Client document collection automation that knows what each return needs
For tax practices whose staff spend February asking for the same brokerage statement three times. Each client's request list is built from last year's return, reminders go out until every item arrives, and uploads are checked, named and filed for the preparer.
- Request lists built from the prior-year return
- Wrong or partial uploads caught on arrival
- Status per client without a spreadsheet
Why returns sit almost finished
Generic organizers get skipped
A long organizer asks every client every question. They ignore it, and the preparer learns about the new rental property in March.
The upload is the wrong document
A client sends the 1099-B summary page without the detail, last year's K-1, or a W-2 photo cut off at box 12. Nobody notices until prep starts.
Corrected forms arrive after you file
Brokers issue corrected 1099s into spring, and partnerships send K-1s well after April. Who still owes what lives in a spreadsheet one person maintains.
What the collection build does
It works inside the portal your clients already use. Staff approve request lists and messages until the rules prove reliable.
Request lists from last year
Last year's W-2s, 1099s, K-1s, 1098s and schedules become this year's list, so a client with three brokerage accounts is asked for three statements.
Upload checks on arrival
Each file is classified, matched to the list and checked for tax year, payer and completeness. If it is wrong, the client is asked again right away.
Reminders tied to issue dates
Clients are not chased for a K-1 before the partnership could have sent it. Timing follows each form's usual issue window and your cadence.
Plain-language replies
When a client asks what a form is or where to find it, staff get a drafted answer from your approved help text.
Per-client status
Each client shows received, missing and pending items, and the extension list builds itself from who is still waiting on what.
Portal-only delivery
Requests point clients to your portal, never to email attachments, and no message carries a full SSN or account number.
Portals and storage it works with
TaxDome and Canopy
Requests, uploads and status worked through the access each vendor provides, with exports where there is no open API.
SmartVault and Liscio
Files read and filed to client folders, through SmartVault's developer API and the access Liscio offers.
Karbon
Collection status written to the client's work item through Karbon's API, so the preparer sees it in the queue.
Tax software prep
Sorted documents grouped the way your UltraTax, Lacerte, CCH Axcess or Drake workflow expects, ready for import tools or manual entry.
Agents for the rest of prep
Pair collection with agents that extract K-1 detail and read IRS notices.
AI for accounting firms
The full range of automation we build for CPA firms.
Collection built for taxpayer data rules
Ready for your security program
Under the FTC Safeguards Rule your firm keeps a written information security program. We document where uploads go, who can see them and how they are encrypted.
No sensitive data in email bodies
In line with IRS Publication 4557 guidance, reminders link to the portal and never carry SSNs, account numbers or attachments.
Cadence your clients will tolerate
You set how often and how firmly clients are reminded, by client tier, so your best clients are not nagged.
Staff keep the relationship
Escalations, sensitive questions and anyone who is upset go to a person, with the full request history attached.
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Common questions
What is client document collection automation?
Software that builds each client's request list, sends reminders until every item arrives, checks each upload and files it for the preparer, with staff approving the messages.
Do we have to switch portals?
No. It runs on TaxDome, Canopy, SmartVault, Liscio or the portal you already use, through whatever access each vendor provides.
How does it know a client needs a K-1 this year?
From last year's return and anything new the client reports. If a partnership K-1 was on last year's return, it goes on this year's list, and staff can add or remove items.
What happens when a corrected 1099 arrives after we file?
It is flagged against the filed return and routed to the preparer, who decides whether an amended return is needed.
Can reminders change once a client goes on extension?
Yes. Moving a client to extension switches their cadence and keeps the list open for the remaining items through October.
What if a client uploads a blurry photo of a form?
The image is checked for readability and missing boxes. If it is cut off or unreadable, the client is asked for a new one the same day.
Stop asking for the same 1099 three times
Take the 2-minute AI audit to see how much of your season goes to chasing documents.
- Export last season's received documents
We pull what each client sent last year from your portal or document system to build the starting request lists.
- Write the reminder calendar
Together we set cadence by form type, so W-2 requests start in January and K-1 requests wait for the partnership.
- Send the first wave with approval
Staff review each request list and message before it reaches the first group of clients.
- Adjust through April and October
We watch reply rates and wrong uploads through the season and extension deadlines, then tune the rules for next year.