I knew I would be getting a refund on my taxes this year as I just reopend January 2012 and only had 1 child for 10 months and another one for 3 months of the year. I am able to claim my two grandkids for the earned income credit.

So since I was planning on getting a refund, and was making plans to go on vacation, I decided to hold off filing my income taxes until it was close to time for vacation so I wouldn't be tempted to spend any of it.

I took my taxes in yesterday to a well known chain and after we were finished entering all the information, he told me my filing fees were 440.00!!!!

Is this a pretty standard amount to file? I had done it on a program at home, but I just wanted to make sure I wasn't missing anything this first year so wanted someone who was a professional (yeah right!!! He couldn't even figure out what type of field to put my daycare under...I had to tell him it was under childcare).

I'm pretty sure from here on out I'll be doing it myself...it's really not that hard, I just didn't want to miss anything...and I didn't when I had done it at home. But oh my gosh....$440.00!!! That would have almost paid for all my gas on my vacation.

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WOW! I have a professional accountant who specializes in daycare and small business. Dh and I are both self employed, have two different business, a multitude of itemized deductions, house stuff, insurance stuff, and dh has some stocks, etc. He charges me $200.

I think that's a rip off.

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I used a CPA and was charged $350 this year. I'm going to see if I can't find anyone cheaper elsewhere.

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I think that is fairly standard, yes, however, how much of your cost is a late penalty? And yes, doing it yourself is usually much more cost effective, unless you are just clueless.

Taxes are due April 15th. Is part of that a late filing fee?

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I thought you only got a penalty if you owed money?

I could be wrong.

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Nope...there are no late fees or penalties if you get a refund. Only if you owe the IRS money.

Last year I didn't file until August because I was planning on buying a car in September. I did it myself then, but I didn't have the daycare then so it was just a straight forward form...none of the deductions or anything.

I won't be paying that much next year...that's for sure. Oh yeah, can't you deduct that from your business expenses????

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I paid $200 to my tax person. And I wrote it off the following year too. lol

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We went to a well known company a couple of years ago, and that is exactly what we paid. We switched to a private CPA and we pay about $250 now.

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LOL No, apparently you are correct. The April 15th date only applies to those who OWE taxes. While the IRS "suggests" you file within three years, if you do not, they don't have to give you a refund, so basically, they don't care.

There are all kinds of interesting little tidbits on the IRS.gov site. All is skewed toward gov't getting more money.

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I go to HR Block - we pay $200. I write it off every year.

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$400 btwen my dc & personal taxes.

I used HR Block this year.

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I have heard it is pretty standard for the big chains... AND often that person is not a CPA either.... Mine done by a CPA that knows childcare ran 150 this year

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I paid 175.00 for a private company. I know someone who paid $50 for her daycare...

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We have had our CPA for almost 30 years. Like everything else, the cost of getting our taxes done has slowly gone up. In the beginning it used to be around $150 and the past 2 years it's costing about $400 now. We do write this cost off each year though.

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I would have walked out not accepting my tax papers and not paying them!

$440 is obsurd!

I go to a CPA that specializes in self employment and childcare and he charged me $225 this year! Prior to meeting him, I went to another local CPA firm and they charged me $300 but erred in the processing of my taxes and I got my money back.

The "Block" people charged my husband $300 a few years ago to file his alone and there was nothing special about his. He filed single, head of household, 1 child, some daycare deductions, that's it! NEVER again!!!

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I croaked the first year when I got the bill too, thinking it would be too complicated to figure out on my own. I used that as the example for every year moving forward and now do it on my own and pay $11.99. There was no way I was willing to pay that again.

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I did them myself with the help of Tom's book http://www.amazon.com/books/dp/1605541338 (awesomeness!) and then used Tax Act. Ours are pretty easy outside of the daycare though.

I'd be VERY concerned of the fact that your preparer didn't know about the daycare! Entering things for childcare is different than other home office type businesses.

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I paid $200 for my personal and my business taxes. I don't go to H&R block anymore, they charge way too much money IMO. They quoted me $350 to file the same forms that I pay $200 for at the place I go to now and you never know whether they "know their stuff" in regards to home daycare or not (unless you keep getting the same person year after year).

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You are right, penalty is only for those tax payers that owe $$ so it shouldn't apply to the OP. $440 sounds like a lot to me I say rip off. I paid 200

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