One of the essential steps in having a long-term tax strategy is hiring the services of an experienced Steuerberatungskanzlei. Every dollar (or Euro, for that matter) is a direct deduction from your profits. The only problem with this is that, in reality, you have hundreds of options to choose from, and while this does give you many options, it also makes it that much harder to make a choice eventually.
The question then is, how do you choose the right tax consultancy for you? Here are four steps to screen your choices and get the most benefit out of hiring a Steuerberatungskanzlei:
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Find A High-Caliber Advisor
There are Steuerberatungskanzlei everywhere you look. A simple Google search will probably reveal at least ten in your immediate area. The thing is, not all of them are created equal. Every time tax season rolls around, everybody from freelance tax preparers to high-end companies offers their services to people, meaning there are both trustworthy professionals and low-grade freelancers in the field.
We’re not telling you to hire the most expensive company you can find, but don’t cheap out on hiring a tax consultancy, or you risk regretting it when your company’s unoptimized legal form leads to even more taxes.
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Make a Wise Choice
Sounds obvious, right? This point doesn’t mean what you think it does, but rather that when picking a tax consultancy, you should consider your circumstances before choosing one. There’s no point in hiring a tax pro if they end up costing you more money than they help you save, so it’s essential to make a choice appropriate to the scale of your own company.
For example, if you’re a small startup, you don’t need the most expensive consultancy that provides you with a whole team of consultants because you don’t have that much to pay in taxes. Alternatively, a small group of consultants won’t be able to handle the needs of a multinational corporation, so you should aim for a consultancy large enough to address your needs.
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Create a Long Term Tax Strategy
After choosing and picking a Steuerberatungskanzlei, the next step is to work with them and create a long-term tax and financial strategy for your company. This process includes defining your short-term goals, exploring various opportunities and suggestions put forward by the consultancy, and finally creating a comprehensive roadmap of changes that will enable you to pay less in taxes.
The best long-term tax strategies aren’t just made from an overview of your current situation but also include changes and suggestions based on how your company’s finances have performed for the last five to ten years. It also considers your long-term goals for the company and where you’d like to take your company in the future.
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Meet Regularly With Your Consultants
You might be thinking that meeting with your consultants once or twice a year is fine. Still, the reality is that if you’re going to keep sessions so infrequent, it’s going to be very hard to get an overview of your company’s finances, much less develop a long-term strategy for dealing with taxes.
Instead, make appointments for meetings with your Steuerberatungskanzlei regularly, where you can discuss your goals for the long run, provide them with updated financial statements and other data, and even develop corporate strategies for future business decisions. You should also expect to be making constant changes to your tax strategy since it’s hardly ever static.
What Should You Look For In a Tax Consultancy?
For most people, the word that first pops into their mind when they think of taxes is ‘boring.’ While they can put the impatient to sleep, taxes are also equally (and notoriously) complicated. If you aren’t used to doing your tax returns, it’s safe to assume that you won’t understand the requirements and regulations concerning taxes for a business entity.
On the other hand, tax advisors live and breathe this stuff (at least, the good tax advisors). Being up-to-date on the latest changes, trends, and tricks is more or less a job requirement for them, which makes them perfect for helping you better understand the laws, credits, and deductions concerning taxes.
Still, we’re not leaving you in the dark with just that. Here are five qualities you should look for in a tax consultancy before you hire them:
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They come with the proper certifications
Too many business owners end up hiring a substandard service without suitably qualified professionals to file your tax returns. This can lead to mismanaged finances, poorly prepared financial statements, and honestly just lousy advice in many scenarios. Instead of hitching yourself to an inefficient consultancy, fork out a little more and choose one that gives you value for your money.
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They’re available all year
Remember when we said that you should be meeting with your consultant regularly? That’s pretty hard to do if they aren’t available for anything but tax season. Ideally, the consultancy should be able to provide you with an appointment whenever you need it, or at least fit you in sometime within a week if it’s busy. Take it from us: whatever you do, don’t go for tax advisors that don’t have time for you.
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The consultancy makes time to answer any questions you might have
Most terms with taxes (like rebates, deductions, and Adjusted Gross Income) are confusing, and unless you have previous experience with finance, they’re going to be flying right over your head. But unless you want to hand over complete financial control of your company to the consultancy, it’s a huge help to have advisors willing to sit down and answer any questions you might have.
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You should be able to trust the consultancy with sensitive financial information
This goes without saying, right? If you’re working with them over an extended period, you need to know that you can trust them with everything. As they say, trust is the foundation of any relationship.
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They should be proactive in initiating communication with you
Ask yourself, do you want a Steuerberatungskanzlei that approves your tax return without a second look, or do you want a service that takes the initiative and finds different ways to save you more money by the second? If nothing, the tax pro should at least be able to explain all the things you’re getting taxed for and give you tips on keeping them low.
Final Words: Finding a Tax Consultancy You Can Trust
If you’re ready to find a Steuerberatungskanzlei that you can trust, the best part is that finding one isn’t that hard either. You can head online and look for the most reputed consultancies in your area, or ask your colleagues and partners if they have any suggestions. With how popular tax consultancy services are these days (and how necessary too), it shouldn’t take you more than an hour to make a list of reputed consultancies.
Also Read – What Are The Essential Advantages Of Hiring Insurance Brokers?
