Unlike Quicken, which actually has four or
five separate data files, QuickBooks keeps all of its data in one file, making
it much easier to move around.
Do not attempt to send the normal working
data file (ending in .QBW). These files are very large and difficult to
transmit.
QuickBooks has three built-in compression
methods for preparing a file to be sent. It is not necessary to also run a
separate zip process on these kinds of files because the additional
size reduction isn't very significant.
Back-Up (file ends
in .QBB) will make a copy of the file that is about one-fifth the size of the
original working file. The backup copy, when opened on our computer, will
be exactly the same as the one you have, with all of the same capabilities.
Portable Company File
(file ends in .QBM) is new as of the 2006 programs
and should be used instead of the QBB for sending files because it produces a
much smaller size file.
Accountant's Review (file end in .QBX)
will also make a copy of the file that is about one-fifth the size of the
original. The difference is that when we open it, there are some things
that we can't do, such as delete accounts or previous transactions.
Your copy will also be so limited. After we have made our changes, we will
send you a small file with them that you can merge into your file. This is
a very handy feature that allows you to continue to use your QuickBooks while we
are working with the data file.
Because of the restrictions the program puts on the QBX file for us, there are a
few things you should do ahead of time to assist us in making the necessary
corrections. You should run a Profit & Loss report with columns by Class
for the tax year being worked on, along with a Balance Sheet as of the tax year
end date. Then review your Chart of Accounts and list of Classes to make
sure that none of the ones appearing with balances in the P&L or Balance Sheet
have been set to Inactive status. If
so, Edit the Account or Class to change it to Active status before producing the
QBX Accountant's Review file. If you are unclear on how to do this,
contact us and we will walk you through it.
When sending us data files, please let us
know which version of QuickBooks they are from and what the password is, if you
are using one. This will save us a lot of time in getting into the actual
data.
Also, please
send the entire time period covered by the data
file. Do not try to limit it to cover any specific time period. We
will work with the appropriate dates as needed.
Review Financial Statements First
Before sending me any data files to use for tax return
preparation, please review the main financial reports for the appropriate tax
year. These include:
The Profit and Loss for the twelve months ending as of the
end of your tax year, with the columns set to show details by Class. Make
sure everything is in the proper class and that nothing shows up in the
Unclassified column. See
this page for more
info on the proper use of classes.
The Balance Sheet as of the end of the tax year.
Make sure both reports are under the Cash basis of
accounting.
Catching any obvious mistakes before sending me the data file
will save me a lot of very expensive time and enable us to prepare the tax
returns much sooner than if we have to go back and forth answering questions
about various items in your data file.
Address Info
It is very important to
keep the Company Information data in the
QuickBooks file as current as possible. Since business tax returns don't have
organizers like we have for the individual tax returns, I do often rely on snail
mail address info that I find in the QuickBooks Company Information section.
E-Mail The Files
To send the file, you
can attach it to an email to us at the current special email address we have set
up for Clients (not shown here to avoid being harvested by spammers).
Do not send files to us on floppy or CD discs.
These almost never end up working properly.
My Docs Online
For the past few years,
we have been
using the online file storage and transfer service,
My Docs Online.
Using a web browser, files can be uploaded directly to Kerry's account by going
to this URL:
The automatic notification function at MyDocsOnline hasn't
worked for a very long time; so if you do upload a file, please send me a
separate email telling me about it.
HighTail (Previously known as YouSendIt) I also have an account with
another online file transfer service at HighTail. You
can send me large files via my special drop box at the following URL: https://spaces.hightail.com/uplink/TaxGuru
Once your file is uploaded, HighTail will automatically
send me an email message with a special link to download it.
QuickBooks 2008 & Newer
The latest versions of QB have a nice built in feature that
allows you to upload QBX files to a free Intuit online server, which will then
send me downloading instructions. I have had several clients use this service
and it has worked out quite well except for the ones who forget to
send me a separate email with the special password I need to open the file.
This then forces me to waste a lot of time requesting the password.
I
recently made some instructional videos for how to send files from QB 2009:
