Commercial fisherman Needs Help!

[fisherman]

I am a commercial fisherman, I have been leasing a boat and permit for 2 years now. I have been hiring a accountant for 7 years now. This year he said he did not have time to do my taxes. he said I need to file a extension, In his defense it took me a long time to get them prepared.

Here is what I need to know.

1.How do I find another accountant familiar with Commercial fishing.

2.I have only been making around $34,000.00 after expenses and everything else it really isnt that much money. the question is that due to needing to save money where I can is the $450.00 he charged me last year a fair price?

3.I filed 10-99's for some of my employees but I didnt get all of them done on January 31rst am I going to be in Trouble?(might be a question for the hopeful future accountant)

4. I just want to reiterate I NEED TO FIND A ACCOUNTANT IN THE SEATTLE AREA THAT IS FAMILIAR WITH COMMERCIAL FISHERMAN TAX PREPERATION!

Thanks if anyone knows anything!

[MyITGuy]

I am a commercial fisherman, I have been leasing a boat and permit for 2 years now. I have been hiring a accountant for 7 years now. This year he said he did not have time to do my taxes. he said I need to file a extension, In his defense it took me a long time to get them prepared.

Company taxes are due on the 15th of March if I recall correctly, so you definitely need to get a hold of an accountant and they should file the extension request for you.


1.How do I find another accountant familiar with Commercial fishing.
Ask your peers/competitors?
Use the phone book or online searches to find accountants in your area, then call and ask if they are familiar with or can handle your type of account.

Overall, I don't see why they would need to be extremely familiar with commercial fishing, just the tax code to know what type of equipment/operating expenses get you the best deduction.



2.I have only been making around $34,000.00 after expenses and everything else it really isnt that much money. the question is that due to needing to save money where I can is the $450.00 he charged me last year a fair price?

I've never received a bill from my accountant, but then again I don't send her one when I fix her computer/network either ;) In my opinion, $450 seems fair to me, but would depend on how much work they are doing. I.E. Are they only preparing your corporate return based on your Quickbooks file, or are they having to review paper receipts/invoices and preparing your personal return as well?


3.I filed 10-99's for some of my employees but I didnt get all of them done on January 31rst am I going to be in Trouble?(might be a question for the hopeful future accountant)
'1099' and 'employees' used in the same sentence is a big no-no. Either they are contractors (1099), or they are employees (W2)...but they are never both.

Now, in regards to your question its not a big deal (At least I dont think so - I'm not an accountant/tax person)...you will just have to pay $60 per form if you get them in before August 1, after that the fee jumps up to $100 per form.
I would recommend that you either let your accountant deal with these forms in the future, or utilize a Payroll service similar to Intuit in order to ensure you are meeting your tax obligations and getting your forms in on time.

[billbenson]

I read an article yesterday where they said the IRS is doing far fewer audits. The article stated that they felt it was because more people were using programs like TurboTax. Just something to think about.

[jamesray50]

I'll have a large network of accountant's, several in the northwest. I'll let you know if I find anyone. But, this late in the season be prepared to apply for an extension. It's no big deal except that you will have to send in a payment if you think you will owe taxes. And $450 is not unreasonable for a tax return.

[jamesray50]

I found one for you. I sent you a PM.