More than maybe any other new-business situation, the initial tax season is fraught with confusion and worry. Maybe you’ve always e-filed or tele-filed your personal tax returns, received a reimbursement, and been on your way. You may never have seen a 1040 before, yet all of a sudden you are surrounded by heaps of paperwork, schedules, itemizations, and tax tables. You find it difficult to get any real work done as that ticking clock is always present telling you that you presently have two weeks till taxes are due. You pore over instruction manuals that seem to have been printed in Greek, and print out each form on the IRS web site that looks like it may potentially have anything to do with the business you are in. Performing precise work is now not possible as every available surface is filled to overflowing with charts, tables, and your own personal notes.

You know the first year’s taxes are urgent, as you invested your life savings into inventory, apparatus, and that brand new rolling office chair that you are sure is in the room if you might only follow it through the mess. You would like to simply hire an accountant and be thru with it, but as you aren’t quite earning a return yet in your work at home business you simply cannot justify the cost. Your business partner has escaped to the bedroom and locked the door, leaving you to face the tax devils alone.

Relax. There’s help. Software solutions exist that may walk you through the process stepby step, at only a fraction of the cost of hiring an expert. Depending on the support package you buy, you’ve got the option of having your return auto-checked for mistakes by a computer system or having it looked over by a tax professional. Packages are even available that grant access to phone or live chat help with a tax expert who will assist you in entering your info. Most reputable tax programs also come with some kind of guarantee.

Many makes of tax software are on the market. 2 of the best known and most reliable are TurboTax and HR Block’s Tax Cut. Both offer packages designed specifically for small business owners. Both take you thru a step-by-step process of entering your info, including the necessary extra forms. You can e-file your taxes thru either website, eliminating the need for handwritten forms and a trip to the post office. Other programs also exist, and may be just as trustworthy as the two shown here. Rather than ripping out your hair and burying your cat under documentation, spend a couple of minutes online exploring the choices of tax software. Be sure to read the footnotes, and email the company with any questions you could have.

Once you’ve acquired your tax software, plan on spending 1 to 2 hours inputting your info. Then click to e-file, clean up the paperwork mess (being sure to save relevant documents ), enjoy dinner with your significant other, sit at work chair and pet the cat, and sleep peacefully, secure in the knowledge that your taxes were filed accurately and in good time. The peace of mind is well-worth the small investment.