The prompt
Score 10 of 10, Excellent
Use it when You need a list of documents, figures and questions to gather before tax season.
- {{return_type}}
- {{jurisdiction}}
- {{situation}}
- {{last_year}}
- {{accountant_requests}}
Full prompt and why it works
Prompt
Whose return and for which year: {{return_type}} Country and state or province: {{jurisdiction}} Our situation this year (income sources, business activity, property, investments, changes in family or business): """ {{situation}} """ What we sent the accountant last year, or last year's checklist: """ {{last_year}} """ What the accountant has asked for this year, with any deadline: """ {{accountant_requests}} """ Task: Prepare a checklist of the documents, figures and questions I should gather before meeting our accountant. The goal is a meeting spent on decisions, not on chasing paperwork. Requirements: - Group items under these headings, leaving out any that do not apply: Income, Expenses and records, Assets bought or sold, Loans and payments made, Payroll and staff, Letters from tax authorities, Other. - For each item, say why the accountant is likely to need it and where it usually comes from, for example "year-end statement from each bank account". - Carry over everything from last year's list unless my situation shows it no longer applies, and say why you dropped anything. - Add items for each change this year and mark them "new this year". - Name a specific tax form only if you are confident it is a standard form in {{jurisdiction}}, and mark it "confirm with accountant". The accountant's own list takes priority over yours. - Do not tell me what is deductible, estimate any tax, or suggest tax strategies. Turn those into questions for the accountant. - Remind me not to send full ID numbers or account numbers by ordinary email. Format: 1. The checklist, each line starting with "[ ]", grouped by heading. 2. Figures to pull together myself, each with the period it covers. 3. Questions for the accountant, up to 10, starting with those that could change what I need to gather. Keep it to what fits on two printed pages. If my situation is unclear on a point that would add or remove documents (for example, whether side income was paid through a platform), list it as a question instead of assuming either way. Your accountant decides what is needed and how anything is treated. This list only helps you prepare.
Variables
- {{return_type}}
- Whose taxes and which year, for example "our household, 2026" or "my sole proprietorship, 2026".
- {{jurisdiction}}
- The country and state or province you file in.
- {{situation}}
- Your income sources, business activity, property, investments and any changes this year, such as a move, a new job or a sale. Leave out ID and account numbers.
- {{last_year}}
- Last year's checklist or a list of what you sent. Write "none" if this is the first year.
- {{accountant_requests}}
- Anything your accountant has already asked for, such as their organizer or an email, with the deadline. Write "none" if nothing yet.
Why it works
- Background facts. Last year's list is carried forward and this year's changes are added and marked, which catches the documents that usually go missing: a new income source or a sale nobody mentioned.
- What to avoid. It does not say what is deductible or estimate any tax, and names a form only when confident, so the list prepares you without acting as tax advice.
- If unsure. Unclear points that would add or remove documents become questions for the accountant instead of assumptions either way.