There are articles and answers on this web site or if you can not find your answer or need a price quote, submit the form below
Need your Income Taxes Prepared?
Need Bookkeeping or Accounting?
Received a Letter from the IRS?
Going to an Audit?
CPA Moms - has it ALL!!
Certified Public Accountants, IRS Enrolled Agents, or Professional Tax Preparers - take your pick
What is the difference between a Certified Public Accountant, an Enrolled Agent and a Professional Tax Preparer?
Certified Public Accountants (CPA)
Your top and most expensive choice is a Certified Public Accountant (CPA). The Certified Public Accountant goes through a long process to obtain their license. Getting licensed as a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) requires significant study and the licensing test is absolutely brutal. If you have a unique or complex Income tax situation, you want to use a Certified Public Accountant to do your Income taxes. In fact, you should use a Certified Public Accountant throughout the year to not only prepare your income taxes, but plan to minimize the income taxes you will be paying.
To qualify to be a Certified Public Accountant (CPA), a person must pass a two-day examination administered by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) and meet state licensing requirements relating to work experience and, in most states complete special academic work.
In addition, every year the Certified Public Accountant must take classes that are approved by their state's Certified Public Accountant board. With the Enron, World Com and Global Crossing accounting nightmare, Certified Public Accountants are now required to take a lot of courses dealing with the ethics of business and they maintain a high ethical standard.
A Certified Public Accountant has a tendency to specialize. Some Certified Public Accountants specialize in financial accounting, some in managerial accounting, some in auditing, some in cost accounting and others in taxes.
You are going to pay more for a Certified Public Accountant services than other Professional Tax Preparers services. You are not just paying for their time, you are paying for all of the time they had to spend sitting on those “hard chairs” to stay current with the latest information about their area of specialization.
Just because a person is a Certified Public Accountant is not a indication that they “know” taxes. Make sure you deal with a Certified Public Accountant in which taxes is their specialty.
All our Certified Public Accountants (CPA Moms) know TAXES. That is the area in which Certified Public Accountant work in our network (CPA Moms) specialize.
Certified Public Accountants are expensive with hourly rates in the $150 to $250 range. Due to less overhead, CPA Moms rates are less than the Certified Public Accountants that have offices and staff.
IRS Enrolled Agents (EA)
Enrolled Agents are licensed by IRS. Unlike a professional tax preparer, an enrolled agent can represent you at an audit without your physical presence. Whereas, with a professional tax preparer you HAVE to be physically present.
The Enrolled Agent (EA) is a professional tax preparer who has passed an IRS test covering all aspects of taxation, plus passed an IRS background check.
Enrolled Agents (EA) have passed a two-day, 8-hour examination. The examination (called the Special Enrollment Examination) covers all aspects of federal tax law, including the taxation of individuals, corporations, partnerships, and various regulations governing IRS collections and audit procedures.
Like Certified Public Accountants and tax attorneys, Enrolled Agents can handle any type of tax matter and represent their client's interests before the IRS. Unlike Certified Public Accountants and tax attorneys, Enrolled Agents are tested directly by the IRS, and Enrolled Agents focus exclusively on tax accounting.
The "EA" designation may be revoked by the IRS' Office of Professional Responsibility for malpractice.
Enrolled agents are tprofessional tax preparer specialists licensed by the federal government but, more importantly, they are also able to represent their client if there is a problem with their tax return. Usually the Enrolled Agents fees are less than a Certified Public Accountant , but more than a Professional Tax Preparer.
Professional Tax Preparers
Professional Tax Preparers are the least expensive. Experience is important when it comes to picking a ANY Tax Preparer. An example every year H & R Block and Jackson Hewitt run large tax training programs. These are actually their company's employee training program that the participants pay to attend. If you complete these companies employee's training course, they will give you a job. Although the training is good, experience in preparing taxes is what matters.
All Moms and Dads that work from their homes are all VERY experienced, some have as many as 30 years in preparing taxes. No only do each Mom or Dad know the tax laws but they maintain their area of expertise on our special web site. Each tax subject is maintained by a Mom or Dad in our network.
Our network consists of Certified Public Accountants, IRS Enrolled Agents, and Professional Public Tax Preparers. Each writes, collects, screens and posts tax articles of interest.
So, who should you pick?
The answer is entirely dependent upon the sophistication of your Income taxes.
If you are salaried employee earnings $62,000 a year and own your home, a Professional Tax Preparer is your best pick.
If you are going into a audit, look for an Enrolled Agent.
If you are a small business owner with more than one business, it is time to find a Certified Public Accountant .
At CPA Moms - we have them all!
The pages of this web site contain information that has been collected from many independent sources. Each article or new item offers a different points of view and resources. This information is for for general information only. If you desire to ask a specific question, feel free to contact me at:
Voice: 866-331-1040
Fax: 866-363-1040
| 
