Establish the actual filing record first
Before preparing anything, we confirm what the agency shows as filed, assessed and unpaid for each period and each form type. Client recollection and agency records disagree more often than you would expect, and substitute assessments may already exist for some periods.
Rebuild the accounting before the returns
Returns prepared from incomplete records tend to be amended later, which extends the exposure rather than closing it. Bank reconciliation, payroll reconciliation and fixed-asset continuity come first.
Sequence matters
Carryforwards, basis and depreciation all flow between years. Filing the most recent year first can lock in numbers that a properly prepared earlier year would have changed. Refund claims also have their own time limits, which can make one period urgent and another routine.
Then address the balance
Once filings are current, the balance can be addressed through the applicable resolution alternatives. Attempting the reverse order rarely works, because compliance is a condition of most alternatives.