Monday, September 16, 2024
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Tax season: how Apple accounting apps can help small businesses

By Jane Sandwood

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has moved the filing deadline from April to July 15 of this year to accommodate the American public amid the current health crisis. This presents a good opportunity for small businesses to take advantage of the extra time to sort out their taxes. 

Conquering taxes can be understandably challenging, but the good news is that Apple has helpful software that can give small business owners a hand. So how exactly can Apple accounting apps help small businesses?

Keep Track Of Documents

Only about 25% of small business owners feel confident that they’ve filed the right tax documents, according to Gene Hammett. This isn’t surprising, as the varying tax forms and documents can get repetitive and confusing – especially when the tax filing deadline is looming. To help combat this and help their users, Apple developed particular apps for it.

For example, the H&R Block Tax Prep and File App helps small business owners create a tax preparation checklist. It also connects them with a comprehensive Help Center to provide expert-given answers regarding a wide range of tax-related questions. The app also enables small business owners to import the previous year’s tax return to have a comparative guide, thus alleviating any confusion regarding documentation.

Have Accessible Yet Secure Tax Info

Nearly 80% of small businesses are expected to use cloud computing by this year, according to Intuit. So the ease of accessing information from multiple sources is a process that small business owners are used to by now. Naturally, Apple’s accounting apps have adapted to that norm. For example, Zoho Books will sync their client’s information across any platforms they use and have the app installed on. 

So if the small business owner enters new information on their tablet, they can expect the new information to be added to their desktop and phones. It also has strict security encryption, so any data is kept secure and safe. This Apple app can also categorize payments and organize invoices automatically, and it can save business owners a significant amount of time and effort. So it ensures that small business owners can access their information wherever they are and be assured by the fact that their data is safe.

Auto-Report Generation

One of the most draining parts of getting ready for tax season is putting together all relevant information like invoices, payroll information and deductibles. Apple apps like FreshBooks auto-generate expense reports and even add time and date stamps to ensure clarity. Such an app is ideal for any small business that generally sends out a lot of invoices per month. An auto-report generator will help business owners keep a strong track of their outgoing and incoming funds and simplify the taxing process.

Bookkeeping can be challenging, but it is manageable – especially when there are Apple accounting apps that specifically exist to help out. As there are several on the market, the trick is to read a lot of reviews about them to find out which ones are truly helpful for small businesses, and which ones are a waste of money. At the end of the day, the right accounting app ensures a smoother and stress-free tax filing, and that is definitely worth having.

Steve Sande
the authorSteve Sande
Steve is the founder and former publisher of Apple World Today and has authored a number of books about Apple products. He's an avid photographer, an FAA-licensed drone pilot, and a really bad guitarist. Steve and his wife Barb love to travel everywhere!