One of the issues that every business owner has to address is taxes that are levied on the business. Just like personal taxes, businesses have to pay a certain amount of taxes each year. Failure to pay the appropriate amount of taxes could result in fines that could severely weaken the business. A key to making sure that you pay the appropriate amount of taxes and avoid these heavy fines is to know what common mistakes other business owners make when filing their taxes and avoid such pitfalls. The following are tips to ensure that you pay the correct amount of taxes and avoid any potential punishment.

Keep Good Records

You may think that you can simply use a spreadsheet to keep track of all your income and expenses, but this is a common mistake that is made by business owners. With all that goes into owning a business, taxes are likely down on the list of things that you worry about on a month-to-month basis. Attempting to keep your records in a simple spreadsheet could result in your income or expenses being either understated or overstated. Either way, your numbers when it comes time to pay your taxes may be off. This could become a major problem if you get audited.

Regardless of the type of business you operate, the best way to avoid a situation where you pay the incorrect amount of taxes is to reconcile your income and expenses each month. You can sign up for software programs that can help you keep better track of your income and expenses than a spreadsheet will.

Choosing a Software Program

Many business owners decide that the way to file their taxes is to simply use a software program, but there are disadvantages to this. If you are considering using a free filing program, most of these programs lack the ability to accommodate Schedule C, a form that documents the profits and losses of a business. If you are adamant about using an online filing program, you will also want to make sure that the program is able to accommodate filing for both federal and state taxes as some only accommodate the filing of federal taxes.

The way to truly ensure that you are filling out the correct tax documentation and doing so correctly is to visit a professional that will help. France Law Firm are experts when it comes to businesses taxes and will make sure that everything is done correctly to ensure you don’t have any surprises down the road.

Credits and Deductions

Every year, the government releases new credits and deductions that businesses can take advantage of. These credits and deductions add up to the point where they make up a significant number. Unfortunately, many business owners overlook these credits and deductions which forces them to pay more tax than they otherwise would. The tax code, both individual and business, is very complicated and complex making it very difficult to navigate and understand where money can be saved. The best way to take advantage of all credits and deductions that your business qualifies for is to visit the professionals at France Law Firm. They experts at all of the most recent credits and deductions as well as the previously released ones so they can ensure that you get all of the ones you qualify for. Attempting to find all of the credits and deductions you qualify for yourself will almost certainly result in you missing quite a few.

One of the difficult things to navigate as a business owner, and especially as a small business owner, is taxes. Many business owners think they can simply use a spreadsheet to keep track of their income and expenses but this will almost definitely result in mistakes being made. A lot of business owners also think they can simply use a free software program to file their taxes but, especially for businesses, this can be troublesome because many software programs are not properly designed to handle business taxes. If you are looking to file taxes on behalf of your business, it’s highly advisable to come into France Law Firm to have experts examine your tax situation. They can make sure that you fill out all of the appropriate forms and receive all the credits and deductions you are eligible for.