A brief message about the tax preparation industry:
1) Everyone who meets the legal criteria has an obligation to calculate their income and file an income tax return.
2) That obligation is not dependent on whether they receive support from anyone else, or whether the income that must be reported meets anyone’s legal, moral or ethical standards.
3) When one method of calculating income is not available for any good reason whatsoever, there is always an alternative method to meet the obligation. Whether you feel comfortable with that alternative method is a personal choice.
4) Comments by some tax preparers like “I won’t help it that situation” are a personal choice well within their rights and likely wise from a position of competency and advocacy. But a tax professional should not imply that this decision to decline help is a matter of professional ethics.
Pennies on the dollar
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