Between servicing clients, maintaining or reviewing books, and filing taxes, accountants and their firms must allocate their time to projects with the highest recovery. With never-ending deadlines of extensions, quarterly estimates, and busy seasons, all while trying to drum up new business, accountants are spread more thin than ever before. With this busy season ending, tax accountants find themselves scrambling to keep up with recent legislative changes and their implications for their clients. With the Corporate Transparency Act going into effect on January 1, 2024, tax accountants must now confront a new filing: the Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) Report.
With bipartisan support, the Corporate Transparency Act was passed as part of a larger Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020. The act aims to decrease financial crimes in the country by increasing transparency in commerce.
Because of this, starting in January 2024, a large majority of United States businesses, roughly 97%, will be required to file a BOI Report disclosing specific information about their beneficial owners to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), a part of the U.S. Department of Treasury.
This novel reporting requirement affects accounting firms and businesses of nearly all sizes.
Whether it be a mom-and-pop pizza shop or an extensive portfolio of a private equity firm, tax accountants will be called upon by their clients for CTA guidance.
FileForms has an increasing archive of thought leadership meant to educate businesses of all scales and types and their advisors on these topics. The archive is available here.
Many clients will inevitably turn to their accountants to analyze their reporting requirements and file the BOI report for them. Tax accountants may view BOI reporting as another low recovery, burdensome requirement that they do not want to prioritize over other projects, such as consulting or planning, which seemingly generate a significantly better return for their time.
Traditionally, a new reporting requirement requires significant research and training to grasp the mechanics and their implications for clients. Accountants must navigate FinCEN’s website and FAQs to understand the new reporting requirements and ultimately file their Clients’ BOI reports.
The U.S. Department of Treasury is working on a Beneficial Ownership Secure System (BOSS) portal to make filing slightly easier. However, like FBAR reporting, juggling between FinCEN’s e-filing system and a firm’s tax accounting software may be clunky and time-consuming.
FileForms is the industry leader for the CTA and all things BOI. Rather than frustrating staff and management with another series of lunch-and-learns deciphering the CTA, FileForms will do the heavy lifting and ensure white-glove service for Clients.
FileForms, founded by tax and compliance industry thought leaders, has created a seamless experience for filing this new BOI report. Think of it like the TurboTax for the Corporate Transparency Act. The FileForms platform cuts average filing times from two to three hours to 10 to 15 minutes.
Instead of what would have been a painful experience for both firms and their clients, BOI reporting can become a significant source of revenue in a minimal amount of time. With FileForms’ proprietary platform, accounting firms can seamlessly handle their Clients’ BOI reporting.
FileForms has a product for all Corporate Transparency Act needs, whether it be filing for a couple of single-member LLCs or a complex tiered entity structure. The basic package is geared for simple small business filings, with the pricing structure here.
FileForms also has a referral partner program, a great way to outsource BOI reporting while maintaining the highest quality work product expected by Clients. FileForms can file BOI reports for a firm’s clients and generate a referral fee in the process.
Many accounting firms may want to handle BOI reporting internally rather than utilize another provider. Fileforms also has an enterprise product version, enabling firms to quickly and easily file BOI Reports for their clients. The pricing structure for the enterprise product is also available here.
Whether seeking information about the CTA and BOI report, looking for a referral partner, or aiming to generate additional revenue with existing clients, FileForms can help every step of the way.
Contact FileForms now to get started.
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