Quickbooks, Bookkeeping and Accounting Blog

Restoring a QuickBooks backup file is easy. The only mistake you have to be careful not to make is to restore the wrong file. Fortunately, if you do restore the wrong QuickBooks file, you can just try again, making sure to select the most recent QuickBooks backup file.
The instructions below walk you the process of […]

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A list of upcoming dates and actions that accountants, bookkeepers and small business owners should be aware of follows:

4/2/2008 - If you are subject to the semiweekly deposit rule, then deposit payroll taxes for payments made between March 26th and March 28th.
4/4/2008 - If you are subject to the semiweekly deposit rule, then deposit payroll taxes for […]

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The instructions below guide you through the process of backing up QuickBooks on a regular basis, such as at a regular time and day each week.
From the QuickBooks File menu select Save Copy or Backup.

Select Backup Copy and click Next.

Select Local backup and Options (assuming you haven’t already done so).

Choose the folder you want to […]

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In January Intuit announced Quicken for the iPhone, prompting QuickBooks Online users to ask whether or not they would be able to access their company data via the iPhone. Intuit responded. QuickBooks Online users can now access their company data from anywhere using their iPhones.
To access your company data in QuickBooks Online:

Go to https://accounting.quickbooks.com/m from your iPhone.
You […]

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Intuit recommends backing up your QuickBooks file daily. Depending on the amount of data you enter, this may be more than necessary. However, there is no question that you want to back up regularly. Fortunately, creating a backup copy of your QuickBooks file is easy.
First, decide if you want to backup your QuickBooks company file […]

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I added three QuickBooks tutorials this week. Each tutorial covers a different section of the QuickBooks EasyStep Interview. All three include pictures and a brief discussion of each step involved in setting up a company in QuickBooks using the QuickBooks EasyStep Interview. Links to these QuickBooks tutorials follow:

Getting Started With QuickBooks
Customizing QuickBooks For Your Business
Setting Up Your […]

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The third part of the QuickBooks EasyStep Interview, to be completed after Getting Started With QuickBooks and Customizing QuickBooks For Your Business, guides you through the process of setting up your chart of accounts. 
QuickBooks will use your answers to the next few questions in the QuickBooks EasyStep Interview to create a Chart of Accounts that […]

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After creating your QuickBooks company file (see Getting Started With QuickBooks), the QuickBooks EasyStep Interview will guide you through the process of customizing QuickBooks for your business. Your answers to the questions in this section will be used to customize your QuickBooks home page. Don’t worry if you aren’t sure about all the answers, however, […]

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The IRS has created an Economic Stimulus Payment Calculator to help individuals figure out whether or not they qualify for a stimulus payment and to estimate how much they will receive. To use this calculator, simply input information from your 2007 Form 1040, Form 1040EZ, or Form 1040A. It takes 5-10 minutes. To get to the calculator, click […]

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When you start QuickBooks for the first time, you will see a window like the one below. Inside the No Company Open window are 3 boxes:

Create a new company
Open or restore an existing company
Open a sample file

Select “Create a new company” to get to the QuickBooks EasyStep Interview, which will guide you through the process […]

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I am often asked about the difference between tax credits and tax deductions. The difference is very significant. Definitions of both terms follow:

Tax Credit: tax credits are dollar for dollar reductions of the total amount you owe the IRS.
Tax Deductions: tax deductions reduce your gross income, allowing you to obtain your adjusted gross income, which is […]

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Every year the IRS releases a data book summarizing its activities for the year.  The 2007 IRS Data Book, which covers the period from 10/1/06 to 9/30/07, was released today.  Some interesting numbers:

$2.4 trillion - the approximate amount the IRS collected
235 million - the number of returns the IRS processed
114 million - the number of individuals […]

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People frequently ask whether or not the receipt of frequent flyer miles represent taxable income. The answer is that frequent flyer miles are not taxable. In 2002, after much debate, the IRS announced that the value of frequent flyer miles is not taxable and that if this rule changes, it will not be applied retroactively.

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To change your fiscal year (sometimes called financial year) in QuickBooks, select Company Information from the QuickBooks Company menu.

Then select the correct Fiscal Year in the lower left-hand corner of the Company Information form by selecting the month your fiscal year starts.

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For general information on the 2008 Economic Stimulus Package, see my prior blogs: Bush Signs Economic Stimulus Package; Most People Will Receive Tax Rebates and 2008 Economic Stimulus Package Benefits Business as Well as Individuals. Additional information on some special cases follows:

2007 Income Higher Than Normal
If your 2007 income was too high for you to […]

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