Where should I store my tax documents?

Use banker's boxes, crates, or file cabinets to store all of your past tax information and current tax documents.
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Is Google Drive a safe place to store tax documents?

When you upload files to Google Drive, they are stored in secure data centers. If your computer, phone, or tablet is lost or broken, you can still access your files from other devices. Your files are private unless you share them.
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Where would you store your w2 away safely?

There are many ways to store important documents. Weltman says it's a good idea to use a fireproof safe or password-protected electronic file for documents such as bank and investment statements, estate-planning documents, pension information, pay stubs, and tax documents.
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Should I keep all my tax documents?

Generally, you must keep your records that support an item of income, deduction or credit shown on your tax return until the period of limitations for that tax return runs out.
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How long should you save bank statements?

KEEP 3 TO 7 YEARS

Knowing that, a good rule of thumb is to save any document that verifies information on your tax return—including Forms W-2 and 1099, bank and brokerage statements, tuition payments and charitable donation receipts—for three to seven years.
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How I Prepare And Organize Our Tax Documents



What is the IRS 6 year rule?

The statute of limitations is six years if your return includes a “substantial understatement of income.” Generally, this means that you have left off more than 25 percent of your gross income.
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Is it safe to store tax documents on Dropbox?

Since files are encrypted in transmission there's great security. Both you and your tax preparer will use encryption to transmit the files from and to Dropbox.
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Is there any reason to keep old bank statements?

Keep them as long as needed to help with tax preparation or fraud/dispute resolution. And maintain files securely for at least seven years if you've used your statements to support information you've included in your tax return.
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Is there any reason to keep old tax returns?

You get two benefits for keeping these records. First, your state may have had a lower deduction for your contributions. That means, part of your distribution won't be taxable for state purposes. Second, you may have made non-deductible contributions for federal (and state) purposes in some years.
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Is it safe to store tax returns in iCloud?

The simple answer is that your data is at least as safe as it is when stored on any remote server, if not more so. All data is transferred to computers and mobile devices using secure sockets layer via WebDAV, IMAP, or HTTP.
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What's better Google Drive or Dropbox?

Google Drive gives you more space with its free account compared to Dropbox and while both let you pay additional storage Dropbox's maximum is 3TB while Google Drive's is 30TB. Dropbox does follow and sync changes made to files quicker than Google Drive.
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Is it safe to store financial documents in iCloud?

iCloud Drive is already encrypted. So there is no need to encrypt them again. I'd say that it is generally safe to save personal financial documents as long as your password is strong (and unique!) and you have two-factor. Also, of course, that you are the only one with access to those two factors.
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How do accountants organize personal tax documents?

4 Steps to Organizing Your Tax Documents
  1. Collect and organize tax documents. Develop a filing system that works for you. ...
  2. Read and complete the Tax Organizer. ...
  3. Deal with missing information and do so early. ...
  4. Send information and missing pieces securely.
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What tax records should I keep?

This means you should keep 1040 forms and any accompanying tax schedules, along with the documents supporting the return, such as:
  • W-2s.
  • 1099 miscellaneous income statements.
  • Receipts or canceled checks verifying tax-deductible expenses.
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How many years of credit card statements should you keep?

According to the IRS, it generally audits returns filed within the past three years. But it usually doesn't go back more than the past six years. Either way, it can be a good idea to keep any credit card statements with proof of deductions for six years after you file your tax return.
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How long should you keep insurance statements?

If you're using your insured asset for a business, the IRS recommends keeping your documents for three to seven years, depending on the type of document — but check with your tax advisor to be sure. If you get audited, you'll need to show evidence of your transactions related to that asset.
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How long should I keep prescription receipts?

All other medical records, however, such as premium statements, physician or hospital bills, copies of prescriptions, only need to be kept for five years after treatment has ended, unless you have claimed items on your tax returns, in which case the supporting documents should be kept for seven years.
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Is it safe to send tax documents through Gmail?

Important: If you see the icon, the message might not be protected by encryption. Don't send confidential documents, like tax forms or contracts, to that address.
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Where can I store private documents?

Most banks or credit unions offer safe deposit boxes. Some banks will offer a discount if you're a current customer as well. A safe deposit box is perfect for storing original documents, like birth certificates, wills, social security information, annual tax returns, and power of attorney.
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Is Dropbox safe for sensitive documents?

To keep your files safe, Dropbox is designed with multiple layers of protection, distributed across a scalable, secure infrastructure. These layers of protection include: Dropbox files at rest are encrypted using 256-bit Advanced Encryption Standard (AES)
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What triggers IRS audit?

Top 10 IRS Audit Triggers
  • Make a lot of money. ...
  • Run a cash-heavy business. ...
  • File a return with math errors. ...
  • File a schedule C. ...
  • Take the home office deduction. ...
  • Lose money consistently. ...
  • Don't file or file incomplete returns. ...
  • Have a big change in income or expenses.
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Does IRS forgive debt after 10 years?

In general, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has 10 years to collect unpaid tax debt. After that, the debt is wiped clean from its books and the IRS writes it off. This is called the 10 Year Statute of Limitations.
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How far back can the IRS audit you?

Generally, the IRS can include returns filed within the last three years in an audit. If we identify a substantial error, we may add additional years. We usually don't go back more than the last six years.
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Is it safe to throw away credit card statements?

Is it safe to throw away old bank statements, or do you need to shred them first? According to the Federal Trade Commission, you should shred documents containing sensitive information, including bank statements, to protect yourself from identity theft.
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