Root canal therapy. In-flight turbulence. IRS audits. These words may cause your palms to sweat, or make your heart beat a little faster. However, at least as it relates to our specialty areas – tax preparation and consultative accounting – the last term is nothing to fear when you have a qualified and experienced financial partner like Whyte & Associates in Rancho Cucamonga on your side to help you through the process. In addition, our team includes Enrolled Agents (EAs).
The National Association of Enrolled Agents reports there are only about 53,700 EAs in the United States. When one considers that there are more than 1.4 million accountants and auditors practicing in the U.S., we are indeed a rare breed! EA status means that we are the only federally authorized tax professionals who have unlimited practice rights. As EAs, we are not restricted regarding the taxpayers that we can represent. Additionally, we have unrestricted rights to handle all types of tax matters. And we can represent you or your business, nonprofit, and franchise operation before all IRS offices.
To attain this, the highest credential awarded by the Internal Revenue Service, our agents successfully passed rigorous testing and requirements. To retain this distinction, we must complete continuing education and adhere to other standards on an ongoing basis, as part of the license renewal process. With our proactive approach to partnering with clients, we can help you to minimize the odds that an item on your tax return will be “flagged,” and thus trigger an audit. And, in the unlikely event that you are audited, you have peace of mind that the highest quality professionals will support you and provide the complete, accurate information in a manner that resolves any IRS questions promptly. So, you can mentally move on from the dreaded audit!
It is also important to know that, just because you are audited does not mean you did something wrong and are now in (costly) trouble. For starters, it is estimated that fewer than 1% of returns are audited during each tax year. So-called “average earners,” with incomes within a wide range of $25,000 to $500,000 annually, are even less likely to be audited. Furthermore, sometimes returns are selected by chance or for statistical/data analysis purposes. Your return may be picked for audit randomly, or by the computer that screens statistically valid random samples of returns.
If you do not yet have an exceptional tax professional in your corner, contact us today! We look forward to partnering with you and eliminating a significant source of stress or worry from your life.
