Tax payment is not that difficult when you are earning but preparing the income tax statement is surely painful. The stress involved with calculating and filing income tax is quite high and hence the tax preparers can check for the best income tax software. Some tips that make the selection of tax software easy are given here.
Whether looking for free or paid version?
This would narrow your choice as all softwares can be divided into these two categories. The selection of free or paid software would mainly depend on your income. If your gross income comes under the slab of 50k then you may not look for paid versions as you won’t have any deductions. The free software would not pose a major issue even when you opt for the free one as there are no deductions to worry about.
Number of returns you want to prepare
Yes, the tax softwares come with options like unlimited usage or pay per return package. If the number of returns to be filed is low then then pay per return would work else you may look for the larger package that allows unlimited return preparation.
Install or Download
Installation of the software is the long term solution but usually the installed version would lack the latest updates. If the online updates are allowed then one can upgrade the installed version up to certain extent. The downloaded software would usually be latest and have all latest amendments in line. It will also have no issues of compatibility. You can make your choices as per the availability and compatibility.
Type of return
If the kind of return you would be filing is simple and have no deductions or multiple income source then the basic tax calculation software would also suffice. If the kind of return is complex then you will require the premium software. Some softwares are configured to take care of multiple incomes and diverse assets. You can use such softwares if you are handling the bigger accounts with diversified income sources then go for the advanced software as that would make the tax calculation and filing easier.
Assess your software support requirements
When you are the taxation expert and preparing the tax statements from quite a long time then you can start with any basic package. If you taxation is not your strong point then you will require end to end software support and that would be made available only by certain companies. So, check your own competence level and then check the software that is complementary to your strengths and weaknesses.
Trial and error
Trial and error method really works! Don’t take bigger risks but you can always try the software for some time and if you find it fit then make it your default software. Some softwares also come with trial period. Make maximum use of it. If nothing works then check for the reviews as these reviews will give you the deep insight into the practical