Frequently Asked Questions

• We are subject matter experts for US taxpayers with cross border needs
• We understand how to work across time zones and non-traditional schedules
• We understand that clients with cross border financial lives will need higher levels of coordination with other professionals than normal taxpayers.
• We are 100% setup to support you remotely.  For us working with clients remotely and asynchronously is not an afterthought or an add on to traditional processes.  It is who we are.
• We make every possible attempt to be proactive in legally reducing your tax bills.
• We are as concerned with helping you with long tax planning as we are in helping you reduce your current year taxes.
• We see you as a partner and expect you to see us that way as well.  We are the subject matter experts in tax and you are the subject matter expert in your life.

We are a 100% remote firm and we meet exclusively via video calls and communicate via our client portal or via email.  While we do have a phone number and mailing address, clients should always contact us via email for the best results.

The first in class client portal is available from anywhere in the world via a browser or mobile apps for the iPhone and Android mobile phones.  It is a one stop client portal that allows you to:

• Securely upload, download, review and sign documents with us.
• Receive and pay all estimates, final bills and recurring monthly charges. 
• Communicate via chat with us.
• Receive and complete onboarding and annual organizers with us.
• And much more!

Although our calendar has specific time slots available, we understand the challenges of coordinating time zones and we are happy to work with you to find convenient times and dates even if they fall outside of the traditional 8-5 professional schedule of most tax professionals.

At this time, we are a one-person operation.  This means there will never be any concern that you will have to coordinate communication between multiple team members.  Even if we choose to bring on additional support staff in the future, all or most of your interaction will always be with the owner.  I genuinely enjoy working with clients and have no goal or desire to be the biggest.  That being said, I do have a strong network of tax professionals that I can consult with or get additional opinions from as appropriate.  

The owner is an Enrolled Agent (EA) with the IRS.  The IRS describes an enrolled agent as:

An enrolled agent is a person who has earned the privilege of representing taxpayers before the Internal Revenue Service by either passing a three-part comprehensive IRS test covering individual and business tax returns, or through experience as a former IRS employee. Enrolled agent status is the highest credential the IRS awards. Individuals who obtain this elite status must adhere to ethical standards and complete 72 hours of continuing education courses every three years.

Enrolled agents, like attorneys and certified public accountants (CPAs), have unlimited practice rights. This means they are unrestricted as to which taxpayers they can represent, what types of tax matters they can handle, and which IRS offices they can represent clients before.

Note: Being an enrolled agent does NOT infer nor imply any endorsement or recommendation of our services, skills or ability on the part of the IRS.

We have three pricing options we use with clients: 

For an all-inclusive, year round relationship with us:   

Buccaneer VIP Club | Poets & Pirates Tax 

For a la carte style pricing where we only charge for the services you need:   

A la carte services | Poets & Pirates Tax 

For hourly consultations:   

Hourly Planning & Advice | Poets & Pirates Tax 

We generally require a 50% non-refundable deposit before starting any engagements.  Buccaneer VIP Club members will have their payments billed monthly.

All invoices can be found in your client portal:  https://poetspiratestax.taxdome.com/

No, deposits are paid to reflect the work we need to invest into the engagements are not refundable.

Although, you will receive a watermarked copy of your return prior to filing, all balances must be paid in full before releasing our work to you or filing any returns.  Any documents you supply to us will always be returned to you or made available to you via our portal.

While we make every effort to price our services competitively, we do not concern ourselves with being the cheapest.  We prefer to provide our clients with a higher level of service than other tax professionals and we feel we price our services accordingly with that priority.  

We begin our data collection and deposit processes in November prior to the tax season so we prefer to get all clients who wish to work with us in the upcoming season onboarded and deposits paid by the end of November.  If you find us past the November deadline you may contact us to ask if we can accommodate a late onboarding.  A late onboarding fee may apply past November 30th depending on availability to onboard new clients and the actual date.

The initial onboarding steps would be:

• Schedule an initial consultation on our calendar

• We will prepare an estimate, an engagement letter and an outline of the services we expect to perform for you.  
• You will pay the initial 50% deposit, sign the  engagement letter.
• We will being the process of onboarding and provide you with requests for your documents specific to your situation.
• We get to work on performing the work.

In our experience there are no "typical" taxpayers as each one is unique and has a unique story and unique needs.  However, the process we follow generally consists of the following steps: 

• Onboarding processes (see above) 
• Client uploads current year tax documents as soon as they have them 
• If we have any questions or need additional documentation we will reach out to you to and communicate with you.
• Once we feel your initial return is complete, we will provide you with a watermarked copy for review and approval only in your portal. 
• If any additional corrections, clarifications or review is needed we will make them. For most clients, it is not necessary to meet to review but if there is a reason for us to need to meet to review, we are generally able to accommodate that. 
• Once both us and the client are satisfied with the accuracy of the return, the client will be expected to make any outstanding payments for the work we have done. 
• Once the client has made their payment, we will e-file any returns that needs to be e-filed or in rare cases when returns are unable to be e-filed we will provide instructions to the client on how to file (and pay the government) their returns.
• We will receive and provide to you a confirmation for any e-filed returns.  

All documents should be uploaded to your https://poetspiratestax.taxdome.com/ Please do not email documents to us.

The dates are slightly different every tax year and may vary from client to client but in general all documents should be uploaded to your secure client portal 45 days prior to any filing deadlines.  For regular filers with returns that need to be filed by April 15th, this would be March 1st.  We do know that there are documents that come in after that date (K1's for instance), and in these cases we will do our best to coordinate a plan to accommodate these situations, but such taxpayers need to know that plan may require an extension.  

Click here to view our full representation & audit policy

No, we can only prepare US tax returns, but we can work with your foreign tax professionals to coordinate your strategy and planning to create the most advantageous situation.  Whenever possible we will help in recommending, evaluating and selecting foreign tax professionals if you do not already have one.

Most likely, yes!  Although we prioritize our focus on people in our niche, we do take on clients outside of our niche as well.  If after reviewing our processes, you feel we are a good fit for you please contact us and we will be happy to evaluate if we can help.  If you have been referred to us by your financial advisor, please let us know who referred you to us when contacting us.