Taxing Taxing, Part 6

Accountant/Tax Preparer, Current Events, Impossible Demands, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Non-Dialogue, USA | Right | September 2, 2020

I am a paid tax preparer. In Minnesota, there’s an additional tax form called the M1PR Rebate of Rent and Property taxes. It’s a repayment of part of your property taxes, or part of the rent your landlord used to pay their property taxes.

It’s filed separately from your normal tax return, and the due date is August 27th of the next year.

It’s the last day to file your income taxes for this year. A client comes in with two sets of taxes, a full tax return for this year, and a rent rebate for last year. It’s not yet August, so there’s plenty of time to file the rent rebate for last year.

I’m getting many, many, many clients. Due to the health crisis, all of our major competitors are closed. We’re the only open tax office in the city.

I’m in triage mode. Many clients are bringing in returns from all sorts of years. This year, last year, three years ago, fourteen years ago… I’ve been letting all of my clients know that this year is the year where the due date is coming up, and I’m only doing this year’s taxes. Prior years can wait till tomorrow when we are still open but don’t have a deadline.

This client is having none of this. They insist on getting their 2018 Renter’s Rebate done right here, right now. “You should do one client at a time!” the client insists.

I pass the client to our manager, who tells the client the same thing. The client then walks out and insists that they’ll get their taxes done elsewhere. They take their unfinished 2019 income taxes with them.

I wish them luck looking for a CPA or other preparer who’s willing to do a prior year’s rent rebate on this night.