Are There Any Tax Agents on Here? What Tax Software Do You Use?

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  Clear on 25/03/2019 - 16:33

  +1

  I'm not a tax agent but I can seriously recommend Xero. It's just so much easier to use even for people with little experience and integrates well with other apps. Some may call it a con, but the fact that it's all in the cloud makes it easier to access. Unlike MYOB 'Cloud' which is unreliable and really dependent on how good your internet is.

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    bigballerbrand on 25/03/2019 - 16:52

    Thanks for the advice. I have used Xero a million times with clients financial reports and every day bookkeeping. So I know how up to date/modern Xero is as a software.

    I am looking at someone with specific experience with Xero Tax as there will obviously be 500 tax returns being lodged as opposed to working on the same client file.

    • 

      30Something on 25/03/2019 - 16:57

      Hello we use Xero Tax and Lodge IT.

      Xero Tax

      • very user friendly
      • perfect for simple return
      • we found company tax returns a little hard, esp when carrying forward losses. It has some internal checks that need validation.
      • also it can copy previous year data so you can compare the two years
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        bigballerbrand on 25/03/2019 - 17:37

        Does it have everything you would expect from a company tax software point of view. Such as

        Franking account,
        Ability to create generic schedules in each box?
        All the other forms and schedules like motor vehicle, depreciation schedule,
        All the adjustments from accounting profit to taxable income such as non asessable income, non deductible expenses, etc

        I haven't even thought about all the Trusts stuff that need to be there too.

        I am assuming everything is as extensive and detailed as MYOB AO/AE and other softwares?

        I was a little alarmed when you said it is perfect for simple returns. We have about 500 clients, all entities, partnerships, trusts, companies, SMSFs and individuals. Some are simple but not all. Obviously if I am moving software, I will want it to have everything my old software had.

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          30Something on 26/03/2019 - 20:52

          @bigballerbrand: OK before I further comment let me give you a little background of myself. I have been in corporate for 16 years using ERP like SAP, JD Edwards. I moved to public accounting 2 years ago and basically (as I didn't have tax agent license) I signed up with a franchise and they provided XERO TAX. ok now lets move forward
          1. Overall I did not find XERO a software that accountants would like. I think its targeted towards sole traders etc due it being very user friendly. We very soon switched over to Quickbooks, which we find is a lot better accounting software with good reports.

          2. We never had a need to do generic schedules (we do that offline, but now I think its prob better to do it within return). You can provide break up of amounts but I couldn't create schedules. When you do a CTR there are some predefined schedules, but nothing generic. However most items like MV, DEP had schedules.

          3. Adjustments are there and there is a reconciliation page as well, where non assessable income/deductions can be inserted

          4. We did Trust and SMSF fairly basic. Had some issues with SMSF due to some validations check.. took some time but it was done.

          May I ask why do you want to switch from MYOB AO? Is Xero Tax cheaper?

          You can also get a demo from Xero or I am also happy to show you on skype if you'd like.

          Cheers

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  Aloux on 02/04/2019 - 12:57

  XERO
  I am a xero consultant and happy to assist you all