Email notifications to taxpayers upon successful e-filing

[makinidoestaxes]

Is there the possibility to opt for automatic notifications to be sent to taxpayers upon successful e-filing of their returns? If this is not an option, it should be one!

[IRonMaN]

No there isn't such an option.  And that's all I will say about it today.

[GodFather]

Certainly would be nice. 

[dascpa]

The issue with what you want is that most likely it would send notification of the Federal acceptance but what about those states and those that don't acknowledge right away, or the FBAR which could take longer.

Once a day I send out one email with bcc (blank carbon copy) to all the clients who are 100% accepted. It is an extra step.  Prior to that I had postcards printed up and would just drop them in the mail.  50% never made it to the recipient.

[IRonMaN]

Clients pay us to properly prepare and submit their tax returns.  We give them a copy of the return before the return is submitted.  I’m not sure why we need to submit proof to the clients that the return was accepted.  Back in the days of paper filing, did preparers provide their clients with USPS certified receipts that the IRS received their tax returns?

[dascpa]

I disagree with you. Back in the day - - I never mailed in to the government the tax returns. The client handled that themselves. But today, the client drops off, mails, uploads, emails, or faxes their signed forms to us. They have no idea we actually received them and no idea we submitted their returns. This extra small step is a way for them to feel comfortable we completed their job and it also promotes goodwill with the client.

[IRonMaN]

But you give them a copy of the return when you are done.  If my clients don’t trust me to complete the job they paid me for, they should consider going elsewhere.

[GodFather]

I agree in that I do give a copy of the completed tax return to all my clients.  Since the system recognizes the returns have been accepted, in my opinion, it would be an added benefit if it could automatically send an email informing them.  Not a huge deal that it doesn't, but it would be nice. 

[IRonMaN]

But what do you do for clients that don't have an e-mail address? 😀