Today's Technology for Tomorrow's Firm.
Issue link: https://cpapracticeadvisor.epubxp.com/i/42507
Reviews For Your Firm W-2/1099 TAX REVIEW SECTIONS BASIC SYSTEM FUNCTIONS • General Navigation/Ease-of-Use • Ease of Data Entry • Multi-Users (concurrent) • Client Management (on-screen management) • SaaS or hosted version available? REPORTING • Electronic fi ling capabilities (Federal, States) • Multi-state capabilities • Billing capabilities – Integration with time & billing application? – Automated invoice creation? • Forms supported • Savable formats (PDFs, etc.) • Pre-printed forms stock, blank paper? • Stuff and mail service • Overall client dashboard IMPORT CAPABILITIES • Import capabilities from major accounting systems • Import capabilities from common fi le formats (CSV, Excel, XML, etc.) HELP/SUPPORT • Built-in support features • System updates • Support website/documentation • Live support SUMMARY & PRICING See www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com/ 10347311 for a review of 1099 Fire & W-2 Fire. L SaaS-based 1099 compliance system on the market in its Taxport A/P off ering. T e program is designed to integrate with the accounts payable module of a business' ERP or accounting system. T is integration allows Taxport A/P to automatically prepare 1099s, and Convey then manages all compliance processes, including fi ling all federal 888-303-1099 8 October 2011 • www.CPAPracticeAdvisor.com 7 Things to Consider for Year-End Reporting ast year at about this time, many small businesses and their accountants were worried about a part of the 2010 stim- ulus act that would have mas- sively increased the 1099 reporting requirements. For- tunately, the part of the bill that required reporting of all amounts in con- sideration of property or "other gross proceeds" made in the course of trade or business was repealed. Despite that change not going into eff ect, year-end wage and information reporting isn't always easy, nor are the reporting requirements static. Another recent factor is the temporary payroll tax deduction instituted for tax year 2011 (extension of this tax break was under discussion at the time of this writing). T is measure reduced the 6.2% Social Security withholding rate to 4.2%. Hopefully, your clients were aware of this, but if not, their employees will be able to claim a credit on their 2011 1040. T ese types of changes are less frequent, however, than procedural changes, such as the continual implementation of the e-fi le mandate. For federal reporting, it remains the same this year, requiring e-fi ling of W-2s and 1099s for entities preparing more than 250 such forms. Fortunately, the companies that make W-2 and 1099 preparation soſt ware have all fi nally rec- ognized the need for e-fi ling and have made it a central component of their systems or off er it as a module. copies, and printing and mailing all recipient copies. This fully managed 1099 service is especially valuable for mid-sized and larger enterprises with substantial quantities of 1099s, freeing their AP departments from these oſt en tedious functions. Designed for use by either the busi- ness or the practitioner, nearly all functions are automated. T e system Among other ongoing issues for those who manage the year-end compliance needs of multiple businesses is the processing of the actual forms. Even though e-fi ling of the federal copies of returns has become stan- dard, recipient copies are still generally produced on paper. For some companies, this can mean hundreds or even thousands of forms to prepare, print and mail. And for professional fi rms with multiple clients, the output needs can swell dramatically. T is has led to a return of service-bureau style off erings from several of the providers in this market. T rough these services, the fi rm handles the processing, but all printing and mailing, including postage, is handled by the soſt ware publisher. T e most important factor, as with most professional systems, is ensuring that the programs can actually do the job you need them to do. Here are seven things to consider: 1 3 2 E-fi ling is now off ered by all of the programs for Federal forms. However, state e-fi ling capabilities vary based on the application. Does the solution include all of the federal, state and local forms your clients need? Can the application print to plain paper, or does it require preformat ed paper? Taxport A/P Automates 1099 Filings with SaaS System Convey Compliance off ers the only Isaac M. O'Bannon, Technology Editor 4 6 Can users import data from various bookkeeping and payroll systems? 5 7 How many users can it support? Are there limits on the total numbers of clients and recipi- ents? Does your fi rm want to manage client billing through the program? T ese are all integral components to fi nding the W-2/1099 reporting system that best fi ts the needs of your clients and your firm, and we cover each of these topics and more in this year's review. ● provides management and reporting overviews for users, and includes inte- grated tools that ensure accurate fi lings. T e Smart Import feature, for instance, helps map source data from Excel and 1220 fi les to forms, and the Dashboard Monitoring system alerts users to tasks pending action, and also off ers status updates. Taxport A/P includes real-time TIN validation, enabling users to identify invalid TIN/name combina- tions before fi ling. Because it's a web-based system, all updates are automatically maintained by the vendor, which also reduces IT requirements. Businesses using Taxport A/P have reported signifi cant decreases in B-notices, as well as the benefi ts of decreasing end-of-year staff workload. www.convey.com