FEATURE — It’s that time of year again. Time to start thinking about getting your tax information ready for filing – if you haven’t already. The process can seem overwhelming if you have not been keeping on top of your receipts, deductions and financial information throughout the year.
Never fear, however, because we’ve rounded up some of the best technology to help make your filing season as smooth as possible. Plus, by using these tools throughout the coming year, you’ll be ahead of the game for next year, too.
Shoeboxed
Getting organized for tax time is tough, especially when you’ve got a mess of receipts you can’t seem to keep track of. With an impressively helpful list of features, Shoeboxed is a great fix. Shoeboxed tracks mileage, provides comprehensive expense reporting and, above all else, gives users the ability to scan receipts with their phone for painless archiving. Best of all, digitized receipts are IRS and CRA approved, meaning that your tax information is already good to go when you sync up with your accountant to file. This tool offers a free download for iOS and Android platforms with service costs from $8.25 to $83.25 per month depending on desired capabilities. A limited free version is also available.
iDonatedIt
Do you remember all of the noncash charitable contributions you made over the year as well as each one’s exact values? Most of us don’t and would benefit from an easier method to do so. iDonatedIt is a great tool to get your deductible contributions in check before taxes are due. Users input their information, choose their donated items from a list, and then select the condition of each. iDonatedIt then provides a quotable estimate and complete report that can quickly be sent off to your accountant. The app is $2.99 to purchase and is available on iOS and Android.
MileIQ
As you may be aware, each mile traveled for business can potentially save you money on your taxes if properly recorded. MileIQ uses your smartphone’s built-in location technology to track exactly where, when and how far you travel in your vehicle every day. Operating in the background with automatic movement detection, MileIQ is low-maintenance, allowing you to focus on the tasks ahead instead of constantly keeping track of your driving. Quickly swipe left or right to separate business trips from pleasure rides, send detailed reports and sync up to the cloud for secure storage and easy access. This app is a free download for iOS and Android with a service fee of $5.99 per month or $59.99 per year.
Spendee
We could all use a little help managing and better understanding our budgets. Spendee is a simple and efficient tool to do exactly that — and right from your phone. With the push of a button, Spendee allows you to input and categorize all of your spending information and automatically creates insightful, easy-to-read graphs so that you can keep on top of your finances. You can even set up recurring payments to further streamline the process, as well as attach relevant photos to expenses for more detailed records. At tax time, all of your information is perfectly categorized and ready to send to our firm.
These are just a few of the tools available to help you capture and compile the information you need to file your taxes. While some of them won’t help you immediately with your taxes, they will help you get better organized and head off stress next tax season.
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Resources
- Kinexus CPAs | website | 216 W. St. George Blvd., Suite 100, St George | Telephone 435-674-1314 | Email [email protected]
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