Frequently Asked Questions

Book a free 30-minute consultation on our contact page. We'll talk through your situation, tell you honestly whether we can help, and give you a firm flat quote before any work begins. From there you create a free account, upload documents to your secure vault, and we take it from there.

No — Ascend Taxes is a fully remote practice serving clients nationwide. Everything happens over video, phone, and your secure client portal, so you can work with us from anywhere in the country on your schedule.

All 50. Because we operate remotely and e-file directly with the IRS and state agencies, where you live doesn't limit us — and we regularly handle multi-state situations like remote work, relocation, and income earned across state lines.

If your year was simple — one W-2, standard deduction, no life changes — DIY software may genuinely be enough, and we'll tell you so. A preparer starts paying for itself when things get more complex: self-employment or side income, equity compensation, a home purchase or sale, a new business, multiple states, or an IRS letter. Those are the situations where missed deductions and mistakes cost real money.

You work with the same preparer — Darian — from your first call through filing and all year long, not whoever happens to be at the desk. Add flat fees with measurable results, year-round planning instead of a once-a-year transaction, and a client portal with live return tracking, and the experience is closer to having a private tax advisor than visiting a seasonal storefront.

An individual federal return (Form 1040) plus one state starts at $185. Schedule C starts at +$135, Schedule A at +$50, Schedule D at +$60, Schedule E at +$95 per property, each additional state at +$50, and an amended return (Form 1040-X) is $175 flat. Non-member IRS letter help is $150 per letter. It's the price for a typical return with that form. After the free consult, you get one flat quote in writing before I start. If something new comes up later, I tell you the price before doing the extra work. Your fee never changes based on your refund.

It's the price for a typical return with that form. After the free consult, you get one flat quote in writing before I start. If something new comes up later, I tell you the price before doing the extra work. Your fee never changes based on your refund.

Plans: cancel anytime; monthly plans stop at the end of the billing month. Annual plans can be refunded in full within 14 days. Return prep: if you decide not to file with me before I've finished, you pay only for work completed.

I'm a registered PTIN tax preparer and IRS Authorized e-File Provider. I'm not a CPA, Enrolled Agent, or attorney, so I can prepare returns and help you prepare responses to IRS letters, but I can't represent you in an audit, appeal, or collection case. If you need that, I'll refer you to someone who can.

Your documents are stored encrypted, and only you and I can access your file. I never sell your information. I use it, including with AI tools, only with your written consent, as federal rules (IRC §7216) require, and you can withdraw consent anytime.

Sentinel and Summit don't. Choose the Bundle, or use your member discount on return prep.

Yes. If spreading your fee out helps, just ask during your consultation — we'd rather set up a schedule that works for you than have cost keep you from filing right.

No. The flat quote you approve is the price you pay — IRS e-file included. If the scope genuinely changes mid-engagement (say, we discover a second business that needs its own return), we pause and re-quote before continuing. You'll never see a surprise line item.

Then we'll say so in the free consult. The quote is a flat fee for the forms your return needs. It does not go up or down with your refund.

A Tax Pulse is a reviewed amount Darian signs and publishes — the next estimated payment and one next move. It is not the Live Tax Bill and not a filed 1040. The AI layer never invents that number. Playbook math stays on every plan; a signed Pulse is on Sentinel and Summit.

The Live Tax Bill is a planning picture from the same engine your portal uses. You can move sliders and see engine deltas. A Pulse is the amount your preparer reviewed. Exploring a plan is labeled so it never looks like a signed Pulse or a filed return.

Basecamp is free: your portal, Live Tax Bill estimates, and secure document upload. Sentinel is $15/month or $149/year: everything in Basecamp, reviewed Tax Pulse updates, an estimated-tax payment calendar and reminders, and help with up to 2 IRS letters per year — I review the letter, explain it, and prepare a written response for you to send, with a reply within 72 hours. Summit is $39/month or $399/year: everything in Sentinel, IRS letter response preparation with no yearly cap and a reply within 24 hours, working sessions with Darian, and year-round planning with bank-linked expense tracking. The Bundle is $549/year: Summit for 12 months plus one individual federal return with one state and Schedule C. Founding pricing is $9/month for Sentinel ($89/year) and $25/month for Summit ($249/year), for 50 Sentinel seats and 25 Summit seats, while founding seats last. Neither plan includes representing you before the IRS. Card details are never entered on this site — request a secure payment link in your portal, or book a consult.

Federal estimated payments under IRC §6654(c) are April 15, June 15, September 15, and January 15. Weekend or holiday shifts are not applied in the portal calendar — confirm the year on IRS.gov before you treat a moved date as final. A published Pulse names the signed amount for that date.

Sentinel letters carry a 72-hour clock. Summit letters carry a 24-hour clock. The clock stops when we respond or close the ticket. Accuracy claims stay admin-confirmed — we do not advertise penalty coverage from the desk.

Create a free account, open your plan page, and ask Darian for a secure payment link. That records a real request. Checkout charges the founding price while founding seats last, then the regular price. You can also book a consult if you want to talk it through first.

Typically: W-2s from every employer, any 1099s (NEC, K, INT, DIV), last year's return, mortgage and student-loan interest statements, and records of deductible expenses. Create a free account and our document checklist tool builds a personalized list for your exact situation.

Through the secure document vault in your client portal, protected with bank-level 256-bit encryption. Please never text or email photos of your Social Security card or other sensitive documents — the vault exists so you don't have to.

Once we have your complete documents, most individual returns are prepared and ready for your review within about a week — often faster outside peak season. Business returns and complex situations take longer, and we'll give you a realistic timeline with your quote. You can watch every stage live in your portal's return tracker.

The federal filing deadline is typically April 15. Quarterly estimated payments are due April 15, June 15, September 15, and January 15. If a deadline is about to be a problem, talk to us early — filing an extension is quick, but an extension to file is not an extension to pay.

Yes. If we find money left on the table in a past return, we can file an amended return — generally you have up to three years from the original filing deadline to claim a refund. A quick review of your last few returns is often one of the highest-value things a new client can ask for.

Your client portal's return tracker shows every stage from “documents received” through “accepted.” Once the IRS has your return, their Where's My Refund tool shows the refund itself — most e-filed refunds arrive within 21 days.

Don't reply on your own — send the letter first. I review it, explain what it means, and prepare a written response for you to send. Sentinel includes up to 2 letters a year, with a reply within 72 hours. Summit includes letter response preparation with no yearly cap, with a reply within 24 hours. I can't represent you in an audit, appeal, or collection case.

Every return we file is double-checked before it goes out. If an error on our side ever needs correcting, we fix it and file the correction at no cost to you — that's what standing behind our work means.

The opposite — year-round support is the core of how we work. Tax season is when returns get filed, but the savings get created in June, September, and December: W-4 tuning, estimated payments, entity decisions, and year-end moves. Your portal, your tools, and Darian are available all year.

If you're self-employed or have significant income without withholding, the IRS expects payments four times a year — April 15, June 15, September 15, and January 15. We calculate your quarterly amounts as part of planning, and your portal keeps the deadlines and amounts in front of you so nothing sneaks up.