Frequently asked questions

We serve clients throughout the Bay Area including San Jose, Cupertino, Sunnyvale, Mountain View, Palo Alto, Santa Clara, Fremont, and surrounding Silicon Valley communities. We also work with clients remotely across California and the entire United States. Our office is conveniently located at 2051 Junction Ave in San Jose.

Yes. We offer a complimentary 30-minute consultation to discuss your tax situation and determine how we can help. There's no obligation — it's simply an opportunity for us to understand your needs and for you to evaluate whether we're the right fit. Schedule yours through our contact page or by calling (408) 383-9870.

We're open Monday through Friday, 8:00 AM to 8:00 PM, and Saturday through Sunday, 8:00 AM to 6:00 PM. We understand that tech professionals have demanding schedules, so we offer extended hours and weekend availability year-round — not just during tax season.

We respond to all inquiries within one business day. During peak tax season (January through April), we prioritize existing client requests but still aim for same-day response to new inquiries.

Yes. We have fluent Mandarin-speaking team members who can assist with all of our services. We also have deep expertise in U.S.-China cross-border tax matters, FBAR filings, and foreign asset reporting — making us a natural choice for Chinese-speaking professionals and business owners in the Bay Area.

This varies depending on your situation, but commonly includes: W-2s, 1099s (interest, dividends, freelance income), K-1s, brokerage statements, mortgage interest statements (1098), property tax records, charitable donation receipts, and equity compensation documents (RSU statements, ISO exercise records, ESPP confirmations). We provide a detailed checklist tailored to your specific situation after our initial consultation.

We recommend reaching out by January to get on our calendar. For proactive tax planning, the best time to start is actually in Q4 of the prior year — this gives us time to implement year-end strategies like Roth conversions, tax-loss harvesting, charitable giving strategies, and equity compensation timing decisions.

Absolutely. Multi-state filing is one of our core competencies. Whether you're a remote worker employed by an out-of-state company, own rental properties in multiple states, or have a business with multi-state nexus, we handle the apportionment, credits, and filing requirements across all jurisdictions.

Yes. If you've discovered errors on previously filed returns — whether prepared by us or another firm — we can file amended returns (Form 1040-X) for up to three prior years. We'll review the original return, identify any additional issues, and handle the entire amendment process.

Equity compensation is one of our core specialties. We help tech professionals with RSU vesting strategies and withholding optimization, ISO exercise timing and AMT planning, NSO tax treatment, ESPP qualifying vs. disqualifying dispositions, concentrated stock position diversification, and IPO/liquidity event preparation. We work with employees at companies of all sizes, from pre-IPO startups to established tech giants.

While RSU vesting is treated as ordinary income (and can't be avoided), there are several strategies we employ: maximizing pre-tax retirement contributions, donor-advised fund gifts of appreciated shares, tax-loss harvesting across your portfolio, timing of supplemental income, and strategic use of charitable remainder trusts for large positions. We build a comprehensive plan around your specific vesting schedule and financial goals.

The Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) is a parallel tax system that can be triggered when you exercise Incentive Stock Options (ISOs). The spread between your exercise price and the fair market value at exercise is an AMT adjustment. We model different exercise scenarios to help you determine the optimal number of ISOs to exercise each year while managing your AMT exposure — and we ensure you capture AMT credit carryforwards in future years.

FBAR (FinCEN Form 114) is required if you have financial interest in or signature authority over foreign financial accounts with an aggregate value exceeding $10,000 at any time during the calendar year. This includes bank accounts, investment accounts, and certain pension accounts held outside the U.S. Penalties for non-filing can be severe — up to $10,000 per violation for non-willful violations. We handle FBAR filings and can assist with late or delinquent filings through IRS streamlined procedures.

Yes — this is an area of deep expertise for our firm. We assist with U.S.-China tax treaty optimization, reporting of Chinese bank accounts and investments (FBAR/FATCA), PFIC reporting for Chinese mutual funds and investment products, foreign tax credit claims, expatriate and inpatriate tax returns, gift and estate tax for cross-border transfers, and proper reporting of Chinese rental income and business interests.

It depends on your situation. S-corp election can save you self-employment tax by splitting your income between salary and distributions, but it also adds payroll obligations and complexity. Generally, it becomes advantageous when your net business income exceeds roughly $80,000–$100,000 annually, but the right answer depends on your total income picture, state tax implications, and future plans. We can model both scenarios for you during a tax planning session.

Yes. We provide full entity formation services including LLC, corporation, and partnership formation, EIN applications, S-corp elections (Form 2553), registered agent service, Statement of Information filings, foreign qualification for out-of-state entities, and dissolution services. We'll also advise on the optimal entity structure based on your tax situation and business goals.

Yes. We provide comprehensive crypto tax reporting including cost basis tracking across exchanges, DeFi transaction reporting (swaps, liquidity pools, yield farming), staking and mining income, NFT transactions, and proper classification of airdrops and hard forks. We work with data from all major exchanges and can help reconstruct transaction history when needed.

Our fees are based on the complexity of your tax situation rather than a flat rate. After our free initial consultation, we'll provide a clear quote based on your specific needs — no surprises. We believe in transparent pricing and will always discuss costs before beginning work. Contact us for a custom quote.

Absolutely. Many of our clients work with us entirely remotely. We use secure document sharing platforms for file exchange, conduct consultations via video call or phone, and handle everything digitally. Whether you're across town or across the country, the experience and quality of service are identical.

National chains and software work well for simple returns. But if your financial life includes equity compensation, international holdings, multiple states, business entities, or crypto — you need a specialist. We offer deep expertise in Silicon Valley-specific tax scenarios, direct access to senior professionals (not seasonal staff), year-round strategic planning (not just filing), proactive communication about tax-saving opportunities, and a genuine understanding of the tech industry financial landscape.