Welcome to your ultimate guide on leveraging bank products for tax preparers. Incorporating bank products into your service lineup is a strategic win for both you and your clients. They provide convenient, flexible payment options for taxpayers while helping your business stay competitive, attract more clients, streamline fee collection, and improve cash flow.
In this comprehensive guide, we’ll cover everything you need to know about bank products, including how they work,the benefits they offer to both taxpayers and tax preparers, and how they can support the growth of your tax business. We’ll also walk through the setup process, including how to get approved and ready for tax season, and explore the TaxSlayer Pro bank partners that can help deliver a seamless client experience while maximizing your business potential.
What is a bank product for tax preparers?
At their core, bank products are simply a disbursement option for your clients’ tax refunds. They also allow your clients to have your fee deducted from their tax refund and offer the option to receive some of the refund in advance. You might also hear bank products called “settlement solutions” and “refund transfers.”
Bank products are tools that allow tax preparers to offer clients more flexible options for paying your preparation fees and receiving their refund. The most common option, refund transfer, enables clients to have your preparation fee deducted directly from their tax refunds. When a client chooses a bank product, the IRS will send their refund directly to the refund settlement bank, which distributes your fee to you and sends the remaining balance to the client.
Some bank products also offer cash advances, which allow clients to receive their refunds upfront as a loan or pre-ack loan, often with little to no interest. Availability of refund transfers and refund advances is subject to bank approval.
Benefits of bank products for tax preparers and clients
Bank products are a win-win for clients and tax professionals. Here’s why:
Tax client benefits
Bank products offer several advantages to your clients. They allow your clients to pay your fees directly from their tax refunds, eliminating the need for upfront payments. This makes tax preparation services more accessible to individuals who may not have the funds available at the time of filing. Bank products also offer secure processing, ensuring client refunds are handled safely through trusted financial institutions.
Additionally, bank products can provide clients with flexible refund disbursement options. Depending on the bank partner and product selected, clients may be able to receive their refund through direct deposit, a paper check, or a prepaid card, allowing them to choose the method that best fits their needs.
Some bank products offer refund advances, which allow eligible clients to receive a portion of their anticipated refund before the IRS issues the full refund. For qualifying taxpayers, this can provide faster access to funds for time-sensitive expenses while they wait for the remainder of their refund to be processed and disbursed.
However, bank products may not be ideal for every client. They may not be the best fit in situations such as:
- Minimal refund: If a client’s refund is minimal, the fees associated with bank products may not be justified.
- Tax liability: If a client isn’t receiving a refund, bank products aren’t helpful for them this tax season.
Tax preparer benefits
Bank products offer several valuable advantages for tax preparers. They can help attract new clients by making your services more accessible to taxpayers who prefer the convenience of paying preparation fees directly from their refund rather than upfront. Expanding accessibility can increase your potential client base and help you serve a broader range of taxpayers during filing season.
These products improve fee collection by automating the payment process through refund deductions, helping ensure you receive payment for services rendered. By reducing the need for administrative work, and minimizing the risk of nonpayment. Additionally, receiving fees through bank product programs can help support more predictable cash flow during peak tax season.
Offering bank products can also give you a competitive edge. Many tax preparation businesses advertise pay-by-refund options, and providing similar services can help you remain competitive in your market. Promoting flexible payment options, convenient refund delivery methods, and potential refund advance opportunities can help attract prospective clients who are comparing preparers and looking for added convenience.
This can contribute to stronger client retention, as clients often return to the preparers who offer convenient, hassle-free payment and refund options.
Want to learn more about how bank products can benefit your clients and your business? Download our whitepaper, Bank Products for Tax Preparers, for further details.
How to use bank products to grow your tax business
Once you decide to offer bank products, consider making them a part of your marketing strategy. Promoting benefits such as no upfront tax preparation fees refund. Transfers, and refund advances for eligible clients can help your firm stand out, attract clients and increase revenue. Be sure to highlight these options in your website content, social media posts, digital advertisements, and other marketing materials so prospective clients understand the value you offer. These are huge selling points to many clients, helping you stand out in a competitive market.
Bank products can help with other forms of organic business growth. Bank products can increase your client base and free up your time. When you have the flexibility to see clients who can’t pay upfront, you automatically increase your potential clients. And when you aren’t spending time chasing down payments, you improve your cash flow and leave time to see more clients.
Step-by-step guide on setting up bank products for your tax office
If you use professional tax preparation software with bank products such as TaxSlayer Pro, setting up bank products is simple:
Step 1. Submit your bank application
If you’re already an authorized IRS e-file Provider, your first step will be to review the available bank partners and choose the option that best fits your business needs. It’s also a good idea to apply before tax season to allow time for approval and setup.
Once you’ve logged in to your TaxSlayer Pro Account Hub, go to the “Bank Product Information Tab.” Simply fill in the required information, and it will be transmitted to the bank for verification. During the enrollment process, you may also have the opportunity to review and enroll in eligible ancillary products offered by your selected bank partner.
Step 2. Configure your TaxSlayer Pro software
Once your application is approved, it’s time to configure your TaxSlayer Pro software to offer bank products. The configuration process differs depending on whether you use desktop TaxSlayer Pro or the cloud-based TaxSlayer Pro Web software.
For TaxSlayer Pro Desktop:
- From the Quick Menu of TaxSlayer Pro, select:
- Configuration
- Electronic Filing / Bank Setup
- Bank Setup Menu
- Bank Used for Bank Products – Select the bank you wish to use.
For TaxSlayer Pro Web:
- From the Welcome Screen after logging in, select:
- Configuration
- Office Setup
- Selected Bank – Choose the bank to use from the dropdown menu.
Be sure to make this part of your checklist for bank and ancillary products so that you are ready to go once tax season starts. It’s also a good idea to test your software configuration before tax season begins to ensure bank products are available and functioning properly when clients start filing.
If you need help with any of the steps above, you can reach out to the TaxSlayer Pro support team or check out our detailed support articles specific to your chosen bank.
How to choose the right bank product provider
All refund settlement banks offer core options like refund transfers and refund advances, but they differ in several important ways. These differences can include approval rates, refund disbursement methods, refund advance options, fees charged by tax professionals and clients, and participation requirements.
If offering interest-free refund advances is a priority, Refund Advantage or EPS may be the strongest fit. If you want to leave your office with a refund advance check or prepaid card, Refundo and SBTPG make that process easy and straightforward.
It’s also important to note that availability and participation requirements can vary by state or region. Verifying that a bank serves your jurisdiction and understanding any state specific rules will ensure you choose a provider that can support your entire client base. We recommend reviewing each bank’s product offerings, participation criteria, and fee structure before making your decision.
Need help narrowing down your options? Contact TaxSlayer Pro to explore which bank product aligns with your business goals.
Bank products offered by TaxSlayer Pro
TaxSlayer Pro bank products are designed to support the unique needs of every tax office. To give you flexibility, TaxSlayer Pro partners with a range of refund settlement banks, so you can choose the bank and products that are tailored to your clients’ needs:
- Quick and easy refund transfers
- Interest-free and cost-free refund advance loans of $250, $500, and $1,000
- 36% APR on advances between $1,250 and $6,000
- Pre-Ack loans
SBTPG (Santa Barbara Tax Products Group)
- Quick and easy refund transfers
- Refund Advance Loans of up to $7,000 available January 2 – March 15
- Green Dot Prepaid Visa Cards let clients walk out of your office with their refund
- Zero ERO fees when a client chooses a Green Dot Prepaid Visa Card to receive their refund advance loan (Note: this only applies to post-ack loans)
- Pre-Ack loans
EPS (Electronic Payment Systems)
- Quick and easy refund transfers
- Interest-free and cost-free refund advance loans of $250, $500, and $1,000
- 36% APR on advances between $1,250 and $6,000
- High approval rates with new loan structure
- No-cost options for tax professionals that eliminate the marketing fees you would usually pay for in-season refund advances
- Pre-Ack loans
- Quick and easy refund transfers
- Refund advance loans with over 70% approval rates and approval in as little as 15 minutes
- Print refund advance checks in your office
- New user-friendly dashboard for easier user experience
Fees associated with bank products
Before you start offering bank products this tax season, let’s break down the key fees associated with bank products so that you and your clients know what to expect:
Transmitter fees
Transmitter fees are charges associated with transmitting electronic tax returns that use a bank product to receive the refund. These fees cover the cost of securely transmitting tax return data to ensure compliance with regulatory requirements. TaxSlayer Pro automatically collects this fee from the client’s refund.
Technology fees
Like transmitter fees, technology fees are fees charged by TaxSlayer Pro when a client uses a bank product. The base technology fee is automatically collected from the client’s refund. These fees are for the use of software and technology platforms that facilitate the processing of bank products such as secure portals.
Bank fees
Bank fees are charges imposed by the financial institution offering the bank product. They can vary among different refund settlement banks and cover services such as refund transfers and refund advances.
Tax preparation fees
Tax preparation fees are the fees you charge for your services. With bank products, clients can pay your fee, along with any other associated fees, directly from their refund, minimizing upfront expenses.
It’s essential to transparently communicate these fees to your clients to ensure they understand the cost structure associated with their bank product. Be sure to educate your clients about the convenience and benefits of using bank products, such as the ability to pay tax preparer fees directly from their refunds or to receive refunds in advance.
