Tag Archives: TurboTax

Managing Tax Season Anxiety

Posted By Financial Independence Hub | April 10, 2023

By Devin Partida

Special to Financial Independence Hub

Tax season can be stressful for most people. Though there are many tools and services to help you manage your finances, they don’t do anything to help your mental state. The truth is much of that stress can be of your own making. Thankfully, there are ways to manage that anxiety and get your taxes done.

To help manage your tax season anxiety, knowing why tax season makes people so stressed might be helpful. A big part of that stress is the simple fact that it has to do with money. Although they say money can’t buy you everything, studies have shown financial troubles can directly affect your mental health.

Is it any wonder? People’s worth is often judged by how much money they earn — not to mention money can affect how high your standard of living is. You are happy when you gain more money and become stressed out when you lose it.

Financial stress has become a more significant part of the world in the last few years. Events like the COVID-19 pandemic and the war in Ukraine have caused global financial difficulties, making it harder for the average person to save.

Fear of the government also causes stress during tax season. While most people are upstanding citizens, the idea of the government swooping in and taking everything you have just because you missed a payment or filled out the wrong form is as prevalent as it is irrational.

How to reduce Stress during Tax Season

The key to overcoming tax season stress is to adjust your mental state. Doing your taxes is the same as any other task you have to complete. Here are some things to remember to make doing your taxes less stressful.

Address Misconceptions about the Government

Contrary to popular belief, the government will not throw you in jail for missing tax payments. In fact, the U.S. and Canadian governments will try to help you make your payments — though there are penalties for not paying on time.

The government also cannot immediately take your property if you’re late in your tax payments.

They can place a lien on your property that they can lift if you set up and commit to a long-term payment plan. The government will also be more lenient if you have a lower income, though they can still audit you.

If you’re living in Canada, there are ways to work with the Canada Revenue Agency so they can accommodate your financial needs. The CRA also encourages you to file your taxes online — it’s easier and faster to process.

Stop Procrastination

Filing your taxes is probably not many people’s definition of fun. However, constantly putting it off can cause even more stress as the due date gets closer and closer. Good time management habits can help you reduce stress and get your taxes done.

A common solution is to break down filing your taxes into smaller tasks and space them throughout the month. This can make your taxes less daunting by letting you finish in increments while giving you more time to do other things.

Use Online Tools

Online tools like TurboTax can make doing your taxes much more manageable. These tools streamline the process, making it quicker to get the job done. In addition, some tax collection organizations like the IRS have partnered with certain companies to offer free e-filing. The IRS free-file system allows you to file with them free of charge.

Filing your taxes online comes with other benefits, such as receiving refunds faster and record-keeping services. Most online tools come with 24/7 support you can contact in case you need help.

Take the Stress out of Tax Season

Stress during tax season is a common problem, but one you can overcome. Practice good working habits to prevent procrastination and get it over with. Remember that the government is not out to get you. Fire up that TurboTax and get to it.

Devin Partida is the Editor-in-Chief of ReHack.com, and a personal finance writer. Though she is interested in all kinds of topics, she has steadily increased her knowledge of the intersection of finance and technology. Devin’s work has been featured on Entrepreneur, Due and Nasdaq.

Review of TurboTax Full Service Self Employed

Posted By Robb Engen | February 15, 2021

This year is going to be one of the strangest and (potentially) most complicated years for tax filing. Jobs were lost and hours cut during the pandemic. The federal government responded by introducing the Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) and the Canada Emergency Wage Subsidy (CEWS), among a host of other measures to protect workers and the economy. Furthermore, many entrepreneurial-minded Canadians turned to side hustles and the gig economy to earn more income.

CERB payments are taxable, but taxes were not withheld at the source. Eligibility for self-employed individuals was not clear from the onset, and the CRA has sent out letters asking to confirm eligibility or risk having to pay back benefits.

All of this to say that many Canadians are nervous about filing taxes for the 2020 year. Self-employed individuals, in particular, need assurance to help understand all of the tax deductions and credits that are available to them.

Think of the deduction for home office expenses. Many of us found ourselves unexpectedly working from home, setting up shop in our kitchen, living room, or bedroom. Because of this, the CRA announced it had simplified the way employees can claim home office expenses on their tax return for the 2020 tax year.

Navigating your way through all of the eligible tax credits and deductions can be painful on your own. That’s why tax services like TurboTax are essential for tax filers – especially the self-employed – to find every available deduction and maximize your return, giving you a little lift when you need it most.

I’m amazed at how intuitive these programs have become. Not just the service, but TurboTax has an entire team of tax experts with an average of 10 years of experience at the ready to answer your questions in real time and can even fill and file your return for you.

TurboTax is NETFILE certified and can guarantee you’ll get your biggest refund. NETFILE is the CRA’s online filing service and it allows you to electronically submit your tax return directly to the CRA from your computer.

Before I get into the features of the TurboTax Full Service Self-Employed product, I have a confession to make. Ten years ago, I hired an accountant to incorporate our online business and to figure out the most tax efficient way to treat our business income, retained earnings, and how to withdraw money from the corporation when needed.

I figured once the corporation was set up and we were pointed in the right direction, I would go back to filing my own taxes, both personal and small business.

What I (surprisingly) discovered was that I found great value in paying for tax advice and having a professional take care of our tax filings. That’s right, a personal finance expert pays someone else to do his taxes! Here’s why:

Our situation is more complicated than most. When I worked a full-time job, we were able to stream dividends to my stay-at-home wife to help accelerate our savings goals. Since then, we created a meaningful role for my wife which helped grow the business and stay on-side of the new TOSI (tax on split income) rules. I opened a corporate investment account to invest our retained earnings. Finally, after I quit my day job, we needed advice on whether to pay ourselves a salary or continue to pay dividends.

Your situation might not be overly complicated, but you can still benefit from having sound advice from a tax expert to help make this year’s tax season less stressful than it has to be.

This speaks to the need to have a tax expert on your side. Thankfully, TurboTax continues to make tax filing easy for all Canadians, even self-employed individuals, with their Self-Employed suite of products.

I got to test-drive TurboTax Live Full Service Self-Employed earlier this month to see how TurboTax gives a little lift to self-employed tax filers.

TurboTax Self Employed

I empathize with small business owners and self-employed Canadians who have more complicated tax situations than simply submitting a T4 along with an RRSP contribution. It’s not easy to file your own taxes and know (with confidence) that you’re claiming all of the expenses and getting all of the deductions that apply to you.

And I get it. Not everyone can afford to (or will even have the desire to) pay an accountant to file their tax return and get tax advice every year. But you’re not alone.

TurboTax Self-Employed offers three ways for self-employed individuals to file their taxes.

Self-Employed (do it yourself) – You complete your own return, and TurboTax will guide you through the process.
Assist & Review Self-Employed – Get tax advice and a final review of your return from an expert.
Full Service Self-Employed – TurboTax Live Experts can prepare, optimize, and file your taxes for you.

TurboTax Full Service

Seasoned self-employed individuals with a good understanding of their expenses and deductions can file confidently on their own with TurboTax Self-Employed.

Newly self-employed individuals, or those with more complicated situations, might want the assurance of TurboTax Assist & Review Self-Employed. You’ll get access to a team of experts who will listen to and understand your unique situation, answer your questions, give you unlimited tax advice, and, of course, give you the little lift of the best possible tax outcome when you file. Continue Reading…

Tax Filing: DIY or Hire a Professional?

Posted By Robb Engen | March 17, 2016

By Robb Engen, Boomer & Echo

Special to the Financial Independence Hub

We’re right in the middle of tax season, and while some keeners have already filed, Canadian taxpayers have until May 2nd to submit their personal taxes for 2015. The deadline to file taxes for those who are self-employed is June 15th.

There aren’t very many strategies for individuals to save on taxes these days and so most tax planning is fairly straightforward. That’s why for many years I filed my taxes using basic tax preparation software.

My tax situation wasn’t complicated. Just a standard T4, plus my RRSP contribution, a bit of student loan interest to deduct, and maybe some tuition credits when I was going to school.

It was no big deal filing taxes on my own – and it got even easier (and cheaper) as the software became more sophisticated. In fact, tax preparers like H&R Block started offering free software last year and will continue to do so this year by download at hrblock.ca.

More Money, More (tax) Problems

But as I started earning extra money through my online business it became clear that I needed some expert guidance to figure out whether it made sense to incorporate my business. Continue Reading…

A procrastinator’s guide to filing your taxes by the looming April 30th deadline: 1 in 5 still scrambling

Posted By Jonathan Chevreau | April 27, 2015

One in five Canadians are scrambling to make this year’s tax-filing deadline, which is now just four days away.

You probably don’t need this site to remind you that the deadline is midnight this Thursday: April 30, 2015 is the last day for most Canadians to file their 2014 tax returns. (The American tax-filing deadline of April 15th has already come and gone).

According to an H&R Block survey, Canadians are master procrastinators when it comes to taxes. And the tax preparation firm is offering a free online solution to those same procrastinating filers.

3% won’t make the deadline

The survey revealed that one in five Canadians say they file just in time, with 3% saying they miss the deadline altogether. Who are the worst offenders? Continue Reading…

No April Fool’s: it’s time to get serious about tax-filing

Posted By Jonathan Chevreau | April 1, 2015

Here’s my latest MoneySense blog. Now that it’s April and Easter is almost here, you know what that means! It’s tax-filing time: April 15th for Americans, April 30th for Canadians.

As the piece recounts, even if you’ve been staying on top of inputting tax slips and receipts, if you have taxable income you’re better off waiting a few days before filing.

But the good news is that once you file, the onerous task is over for another year, and many can also expect a refund. Plus, of course, winter is finally all but over. Continue Reading…

How to reduce Stress during Tax Season

Address Misconceptions about the Government

Stop Procrastination

Use Online Tools

Take the Stress out of Tax Season

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