From XU Magazine, 
Issue 35

Working smarter during tax season

Harnessing technology to save time during tax season

For Australian and New Zealand accounting firms who are looking to save time during tax season, some critical technologies can help.
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In today’s rapidly evolving business landscape, accountants face more challenges than ever before. The challenge of managing talent, while also balancing the need to drive business growth and deliver the best client service possible means that saving time is an ever-present need. In fact, in the 2022-23 Wolters Kluwer Accounting Evolution survey, “too much work, not enough time” was the key challenge reported by ANZ firms, who looked to technology to help save time.

Therefore, having tax return preparation and lodgment software that is simple to use, while producing accurate and reliable outcomes is a critical piece of technology for accounting firms in 2023. Additionally, technology which integrates with client collaboration and tax research tools all help to streamline an accountant’s workflow at tax season.

Wolters Kluwer is acknowledged as a global leader in accounting and tax software solutions, tax research content and practical tools for accountants. The ability to support Australian and New Zealand accounting firms at tax time with both cloud software and knowledge solutions is unique to Wolters Kluwer, and our integrated solutions are saving accountants valuable time every day.

CCH iFirm Tax software can reshape the way accountants prepare and lodge returns, enabling them to improve productivity and drive growth. Together with CCH iKnow and CCH Business Fitness research and knowledge solutions, accountants can access Wolters Kluwer expert content such as the trusted Master Tax Guide from within the software or enjoy efficiencies of workflow with our new CCH iFirm Tax New Zealand and CCH Business Fitness Workpapers integration.

CCH iFirm Tax automates and streamlines compliance workflows for the creation, tracking and lodgement of tax returns. In Australia, these include: Individual, Company, Partnership, Trust, Self Managed Superannuation Fund (SMSF), Fringe Benefits Tax (FBT) returns, Instalment Activity Statements and Business Activity Statements (BAS). In New Zealand, IR3, IR3NR, IR4, IR6, IR7, IR526, IR833 and GST returns with IR4J, IR10 and IR215 attachments via Inland Revenue Gateway Services.

Features such as automatic pre-filing, tax return print-preview, prior-year figures review and roll-overs help to make the tax return preparation process quicker and easier.

As a mature cloud solution – in fact, CCH iFirm Tax was the first-ever cloud-based tax compliance software that gives users the freedom to work remotely at the speed of a desktop with the power of the cloud; critical for effective remote working.

To ensure a smooth transition to CCH iFirm Tax, customers have access to our own in-house Consulting team. Having a dedicated in-house team means that customers don’t need to rely on an external consultant for on-boarding as they familiarise themselves with a new product.

With best of breed security credentials, including Microsoft Azure cloud server (onshore) ISO 27001 certification and additional multi-factor authentication in our CCH iFirm Tax (AU), accountants can have full peace of mind.

Integrated tax research

Integrated content is available in our Cloud Tax solution in Australia.

CCH iKnow is an award winning tax research platform which connects accountants to industry-leading tax content and commentary. In Australia, CCH iKnow can be accessed directly from within our CCH iFirm Tax software, via the form item numbers, for convenient access to tax research and commentary.

New Zealand accounting firms can benefit from our CCH Business Fitness knowledge solutions and practical tools library.

Integrated Ledgers and Workpapers

In New Zealand, our CCH iFirm Tax (NZ) product is now integrated with CCH Business Fitness Workpapers. The integration of CCH Business Fitness IR10 worksheet with CCH iFirm Tax IR10 enables a seamless workflow that can save an average of 2 minutes per return. If your accounting firm is doing hundreds (or thousands) of returns per year, this can scale up to tangible return-on-investment, as the time saved could be used for other billable work.

For accountants looking to work smarter rather than harder during tax season, Wolters Kluwer integrated cloud software and knowledge solutions are here to support at every step of your workflow.

Wolters Kluwer is a leader in guiding accounting and tax firms through digital transformation. Across Asia Pacific, Wolters Kluwer inspires productivity, innovation and collaboration through CCH iFirm solutions.

CCH iFirm is a unified cloud-based platform providing an integrated software suite designed specifically for accountants. The CCH iFirm suite helps accounting firms run and grow their practice through deeply integrated modules, increasing automation and productivity. The solutions include: Practice Manager, Cloud Tax (for ATO or IR lodgments), Intranet, Client Portal, Document Manager, CRM, Digital Signatures, Workflow Automation, Reporting, and much more.

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