Tax
Quarter-ready: a tax-readiness checklist
· 6 min read
Don't let estimated taxes and filings become a fire drill. Run this checklist each quarter to keep documentation clean and deadlines comfortably ahead of you.
Tax season is a monthly problem
If categorization is sloppy in February, April is a reconstruction. Estimated taxes, 1099s, and accountant questions all get easier when the ledger is already locked and the chart is stable. Tax readiness is a close-process outcome.
This checklist is operational, not advice. Deadlines and elections depend on your entity and facts. Use it to stay organized, then confirm filings with a qualified professional.
Before quarter-end
Lock the prior month. Clear uncategorized expenses. Confirm contractor versus employee coding. Reconcile payroll liability accounts. Make sure large prepaid or deferred items are not sitting in expense because someone booked them quickly.
Export a P&L, balance sheet, and AP/AR aging. If those three reports surprise you, the quarter is not ready — the books are still telling a story you have not reviewed.
In the two weeks after quarter-end
Post known accruals, lock the quarter if that is your policy, and send the package to your accountant early. Include a short note on anything unusual: a large deposit, a related-party payment, a new state where you now have a person or a sale.
Schedule estimated payments on the calendar the same day you review cash. The 13-week forecast should already show those outflows. If it does not, the forecast is incomplete.
Keep a standing document pack
Entity documents, prior returns, exemption certificates, and 1099 vendor W-9s should not be hunted down every December. Store them once. Refresh W-9s when vendors change. A missing form is how a cheap contractor becomes an expensive penalty.
Modern Accounting AI keeps categorization consistent all year so quarterly prep is a review. Pair it with the tax calendar so the dates are not a surprise.