---

@Ephesians3-14 wrote:

We're basically doing to IRS auditor's job. We pre-populated that field with "Form 1098-T, birth certificates, etc...AS APPLICABLE" That way, I'm not saying I have all of those - just the ones that apply. I do all that work up front in early January to save me time during the tax season.

---

I'm not willing to run with scissors like that. 🙂  The "as applicable" may get you out of trouble but I wouldn't personally bet $545 per client on it.  (But I'm fine with "you do you"!)

One or two forum implementations ago we had a new user pop in complaining about some five-figure due diligence penalty they were assessed.  I don't remember the amount but I want to say it was upwards of $60K.  Long story short, the conversation had a bunch of good folks here involved and lasted several days.  Come to find out in the end the tax practitioner had been DD audited in a prior year and, despite the auditors warning to keep all documents listed that were relied upon, she just kept listing documents like birth certificates and SS cards that she did not have copies of.  Surprise, at her subsequent audit she could not produce those documents and the IRS threw the book at her.  Had she simply not listed the documents she likely would have gotten off much easier.  I think @abctax55 was involved in that discussion but a lot of folks chimed in to try to help, only to find out days later that this wasn't the first audit and she lied on practically all of the 8867 forms.

Rick