Preparing for Tax Season? Here’s a Checklist of What to Gather
Gathering your information and documents for tax season.
From figuring out estimated tax payments and tax deductions to worrying about anticipated income tax return results, it’s no wonder we all get a little tense as tax season approaches. Whether it’s your first time filing your tax return or you’re a seasoned pro, here’s a checklist to help you prepare and take some of the stress out of tax season.
Personal information
When filing your taxes, you’ll need to have:
- Last year’s state and federal tax return
- Your social security number
- Your spouse’s social security number
- All of your dependents’ social security numbers, if applicable
- Driver’s license (now required for state filing in most states)
Note: having your state return and federal tax information from last year isn’t imperative if your tax return is simple, but it can be helpful to identify documents you may have missed. If you’d like to have your tax return direct deposited into your bank account, you’ll need to provide the following account numbers:
- Your bank account number
- Your bank’s routing number
Income Information
The following documents will help you prepare all the income information that you need to file a federal tax return:
- W-2 Forms from all employers for which you worked this past year.
- 1099 Forms for you (or your spouse)
- Income from investments
- Income from local and state tax refunds from the prior year.
- Business income (accounting records for any business that you own)
- Unemployment income
- Rental property income
- Social Security benefits
A note about 1099 forms:
Each 1099 form has a different suffix indicating the type of payment you received. For example, form 1099-MISC is for prize winnings, awards, or contract work. 1099-K forms are used to show that you received payment from a third party like PayPal or Venmo. 1099-INT are used for reporting the income from interest on investment earnings.
Your tax accountant can help you sort out which forms you’ll need to accurately report your income and get your taxes prepared without any hiccups. For more on 1099 forms, see What Is a 1099 Tax Form? How It Works and What to Do
Preparing income adjustments
The following expenses may substantially lower your income tax liability, so you’ll want to keep the following records:
- Expenses paid to make your home more energy efficient
- IRA contributions
- Mortgage interest & property taxes
- Student loan interest
- Health Savings Account (HSA) contributions
- Health insurance cost (if you were self-employed)
- Long-term care insurance cost (if you were self-employed)
- Charitable contributions
- The value of donations to thrift stores such as Goodwill & Salvation Army
- Daycare expenses
- Medical expenses, provided they are substantial
- Adoption costs
- Education expenses
- Casualty and theft losses pertaining to business and rental activities
Having all of your resources and documents gathered ahead of time can greatly reduce the hassle of tax season, but making sure your information is accurate and ready to file can still be intimidating.
