Tax preparation is an arduous task, which many people prefer to neglect until the last minute. It is an overwhelming task to wade through the paper work, calculate taxes, make provisions and file for the returns. However, it is mandatory so it has to be done.

Tax preparation involves various steps: choosing the tax form, preparing the return, and sending the return. For this, you need to know certain things, like: what forms do you require? How are the calculations done? Are there any penalties? How do you get the best refund? What are the various deductions that I am eligible for? How do I confirm whether IRS has received by my return? How do I know my filing status? What do I do if I moved during the past year?

Tax preparation has now become relatively easy with the Internal Revenue Services easy-to-understand books and web pages. There is a lot of useful information on the IRSs website that can be used for tax preparation.

The information required for tax preparation is: wage statements (Form W-2), pension, or retirement income (1099-Rs), Social Security card(s), driver's license(s), dependents' Social Security numbers and dates of birth, last year's tax return, information on education expenses, commissions received and/or paid, sales of stocks and/or bonds, self-employed business income and expenses, lottery and/or gambling winnings and losses, state refund amount, Social Security and/or unemployment income, income and expenses from rentals, alimony paid or received, record of purchase or sale of real estate, medical and dental expenses, real estate and personal property taxes, estimated taxes or foreign taxes paid, cash and non-cash charitable donations, mortgage or home equity loan interest paid (1098), unreimbursed employment-related expenses, job-related educational expenses and childcare expenses and provider information.

There are also tax consultants and other professional tax preparers willing to help for a small fee. Using their services would help you to avoid any irregularities or blunders in filing. Tax preparation through these consultants can also be done online by using certain software tools. All the information has to be entered, and the form can be sent via e-mail to the IRS or it can be printed out and sent via post. There are special tax preparation software packages available that make it a very easy task. These can be downloaded from the internet. They can also be bought from stores. Some of the most popular tax preparation programs are: TurboTax, Quicken TurboTax and Kipplinger TaxCut.