5 ms·

> You just plug in the data (..) Here in the Netherlands I don't have to plug in any data, everything is pre-filled. Income, bank accounts, mortgage, advances

by Aaargh20318 5y ago

> You just plug in the data (..) Here in the Netherlands I don't have to plug in any data, everything is pre-filled. Income, bank accounts, mortgage, advances on deductions, etc. All you have to do is verify it (you can change things if necessary, but I've never had to do that). Takes about five minutes max.

C19is20 5y ago
Italy, same.
- cstork12 5y ago
  My wife is currently fighting with the tax accountant in Italy. Out of curiosity and in order to potentially help her, where do you find these prefilled forms?
TedDoesntTalk 5y ago
If that were to happen in America, an entire industry would be put out of business.
- brynjolf 5y ago
  Sounds like the industry is sustainable only due to it being an industry in the first place. Good riddance.
- ghaff 5y ago
  The vast bulk of the accounting industry (including tax software) is not supported by consumers with very basic taxes taking their paperwork down to the mall or typing some numbers into this year's TurboTax.
- LocalH 5y ago
  So?
- ineedasername 5y ago
  Well, individual tax prep is just one arm a much larger accounting industry. Individuals that use an accountant for their taxes probably have more complex situations where the sort of streamlines process we're discussing wouldn't suit their needs. Or they're already buying the upgraded business/home-business version of turbotax for the same reason. Most people though just use a tax preparer at something like H&R block. A little searching indicates there's roughly 60k to 80k jobs like this in the US, and they earn (at least at H&R Block) about $16 per hour, and only for about 3 months a year. A small # of tax preparers with a bit more training & experience may provide other financial services in the off-season or assist small business with quaterly filings or bookkeeping. Overall though, you're not talking about much of an industry collapse in terms of people employed. The ones that work in that area year-round will lose some extra hours. The ones that don't, having some experience in finance, might seek further training to get a higher level job of that sort (maybe become an actual accountant) I don't think it should be considered a barrier to ending regulatory capture within this area. Apart from that, a few software products would collapse, losing most customers, retaining the ones that legitimately needed advanced guidance. And the company would probably have to charge the more for it, and possible compete with actual accountants on price in that respect. But I don't think "industry collapse" is correct.
Taniwha 5y ago
Same here in NZ - the main thing that makes it easy is that we have absolutely no deductions, if I have one employer my tax will likely be done perfectly. If I want I can go online with the IRD and fill out my tax form (my W2 equivalents are available), it's probably worth doing if I've had 2 jobs, if I don't the govt will do it for me and send me refund if I have one coming. I run a small biz, I do PAYE on a simple spreadsheet, then type the results onto an IRD web page, takes me less than 10 minutes a month.

C19is20 5y ago

Italy, same.

cstork12 5y ago
My wife is currently fighting with the tax accountant in Italy. Out of curiosity and in order to potentially help her, where do you find these prefilled forms?

TedDoesntTalk 5y ago

If that were to happen in America, an entire industry would be put out of business.

brynjolf 5y ago
Sounds like the industry is sustainable only due to it being an industry in the first place. Good riddance.
ghaff 5y ago
The vast bulk of the accounting industry (including tax software) is not supported by consumers with very basic taxes taking their paperwork down to the mall or typing some numbers into this year's TurboTax.
LocalH 5y ago
So?
ineedasername 5y ago
Well, individual tax prep is just one arm a much larger accounting industry. Individuals that use an accountant for their taxes probably have more complex situations where the sort of streamlines process we're discussing wouldn't suit their needs. Or they're already buying the upgraded business/home-business version of turbotax for the same reason. Most people though just use a tax preparer at something like H&R block. A little searching indicates there's roughly 60k to 80k jobs like this in the US, and they earn (at least at H&R Block) about $16 per hour, and only for about 3 months a year. A small # of tax preparers with a bit more training & experience may provide other financial services in the off-season or assist small business with quaterly filings or bookkeeping. Overall though, you're not talking about much of an industry collapse in terms of people employed. The ones that work in that area year-round will lose some extra hours. The ones that don't, having some experience in finance, might seek further training to get a higher level job of that sort (maybe become an actual accountant) I don't think it should be considered a barrier to ending regulatory capture within this area. Apart from that, a few software products would collapse, losing most customers, retaining the ones that legitimately needed advanced guidance. And the company would probably have to charge the more for it, and possible compete with actual accountants on price in that respect. But I don't think "industry collapse" is correct.

Taniwha 5y ago

Same here in NZ - the main thing that makes it easy is that we have absolutely no deductions, if I have one employer my tax will likely be done perfectly. If I want I can go online with the IRD and fill out my tax form (my W2 equivalents are available), it's probably worth doing if I've had 2 jobs, if I don't the govt will do it for me and send me refund if I have one coming. I run a small biz, I do PAYE on a simple spreadsheet, then type the results onto an IRD web page, takes me less than 10 minutes a month.