Tax return intake & delivery explained

This article explains the full process of managing tax return intake and delivery in TaxDome, from gathering client documents to sharing the final return.

Tax return intake and delivery at a glance

The end-to-end tax intake and delivery process lets you manage the entire tax preparation workflow in one secure, branded space—faster, with the help of AI and automation. It consists of three key parts:

1. Personalized document checklist: ensures clients provide the right files from the start, speeding up submissions and saving your team hours of chasing and corrections.

2. Automated data entry with Juno: AI extracts information from documents and fills in the tax return automatically, reducing manual work and minimizing errors.

3. Tax return delivery: allows you to present your client’s tax return in a clear, structured format with payment requests and signature collection built in.

How tax return intake & delivery works

The smart intake & delivery includes 3 main steps:

Step 1. Smart Intake in TaxDome

Smart Intake in TaxDome provides a personalized document checklist that streamlines the entire intake process. Clients know exactly what to upload, eliminating guesswork and reducing confusion. For the firm, this means fewer missing documents, less time spent on follow-ups, and a smoother, faster workflow overall.

How it works:

1. Create document checklist for each client. Firms can create document checklists manually or with AI, using data from a client’s prior PDF tax return.

2. Send the checklist independently or include it with an organizer. Document checklists can also be distributed in bulk through the pipeline , and automations move clients’ jobs forward once documents are received.

3. Clients upload documents via the portal or mobile app. They match the checklist item with the uploaded documents or indicate the reason why they are missing (not applicable, upload later, already provided, or leave a comment).

4. You review the completed checklist.

You can complete checklist items on behalf of clients and track progress across Accounts, Organizers, and Jobs. All documents are stored in one place, in the same order as in the tax software.

Step 2. Automated data entry and review with Juno

Juno extracts data from tax documents and integrates with tax software to automate data entry and preparation tasks. It saves time by replacing manual data entry with machine-driven automation, which is faster and less error-prone.

How it works:

1. Send files to Juno from the document checklist or from the Documents section. You can upload W-2s, 1099s, K-1s, and other tax forms .

2. Review and validate the extracted data in the Juno

3. Export the data into your tax software: LACERTE, ProConnect, Drake, UltraTax (CCH AXcess and ProSeries coming soon).

4. Review the tax return. Once done, you can download the file.

Step 3. Tax return delivery in TaxDome

Tax return delivery is a client-friendly way to share tax returns in a clear, well-structured format. It streamlines the process for both clients and firms, ensuring all required steps are completed with ease.

How it works:

1. Upload the tax return document to TaxDome.

2. Select pages with important information, vouchers, or signature requirements, then create an explanatory note with plain language tax summaries . Also, you can add an introduction with recommendations.

3. Request signatures , lock the document to an invoice , and set up reminders if needed.

4. Send the tax return package to the client. This way, they will receive easy-to-understand information about refunds, amounts owed, and key dates.

5. Track client progress via statuses in real time.

Automate processes with intake and delivery

The intake and delivery workflow connects to pipeline automations , so checklists go out, documents come in, and jobs move through the pipeline without manual handoffs.

Common automation scenarios:

• Send organizers with checklists automatically — add the Create organizer automation to a pipeline stage and choose an organizer template with Attach checklist enabled.
• Advance jobs when the tax return is signed — link the tax return delivery to a job and enable Automove on the signing stage. The job moves forward as soon as all required signatures are collected.
• Advance jobs when the invoice is paid — if you lock the tax return delivery to an invoice and link it to a job, Automove advances the job once the client completes payment.
• Automatic reminders — schedule reminders for the checklist organizer , the delivery package , and payments due , so clients are nudged automatically until they take action.

Client view

Clients receive a single, guided experience for both intake and delivery directly in the client portal or mobile app.

For intake, the client gets a notification when you send the organizer with the checklist. From the To-do list or the Organizers page they open a unified intake package — intro, optional questionnaire, and document checklist — and can complete sections in any order. For each item, the client uploads the document or indicates why it isn’t available (not applicable, upload later, already provided, or leave a comment). When auto-matching is enabled, uploaded files are matched to checklist items automatically; otherwise the client matches them manually.

For delivery, the tax return delivery appears in the client’s To-do list as soon as you send it. If the document is locked to an invoice, the client sees an Awaiting payment card and pays first. After payment (when required), the client steps through the introduction, the tax return summary with the pages you selected, and signs the document. All filed returns and payment details remain available in the Tax Summary section of the portal, where the client can use authority portal links, download voucher pages, mark payments as paid or refunds as received, and download signed returns.