Below, you'll find a variety of common scenarios and frequently asked questions you may encounter while you're getting familiar with the Keeper app.
| Question | Answer |
| What is Keeper? |
Keeper is a tax filing software that connects to your bank to automatically personalize your experience and uncover tax breaks. We help independent contractors and freelancers discover write-offs and file taxes. By linking your accounts, our bookkeeping app lets us track and categorize your business expenses as they happen throughout the year — creating a list of write-offs that will save you time and money when you file! You can interact with a dedicated tax assistant using in-app messaging or texts. They’ll do a daily review of all the write-offs the app picks up for you. You also have the option to review and categorize write-offs yourself! |
| Can Keeper track my income? |
We do not track income. We focus on tracking business expenses.
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| How do I update my payment method? | To update your billing, you’ll need to log in to the Keeper app and navigate to the “Settings” Tab at the bottom right-hand corner of the screen. Scroll down and select “Subscription", then scroll down and select “Edit Payment Method.” There, you’ll be able to update your payment method on file. |
| Can I include write-offs on my quarterly taxes? |
Write-offs are calculated at the end of the year and aren’t included in your quarterly estimated taxes. It’s actually better to overestimate when paying your quarterly taxes. If you overpay throughout the year, the IRS will issue the difference as a refund at the end of the year. |
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I have multiple LLCs, how do I separate these within the app? |
If your LLCs are single-member LLCs, the IRS considers you to be one entity for tax filing. This means that you can track all of your business expenses together! If you choose to file with Keeper, we’ll intelligently allocate your expenses by income source at tax time, but this makes no real difference on your return. |
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Can I use my tax refund to pay for my subscription? |
You will need to purchase your subscription with us before you file your tax return. We review every return with a real Tax Expert, so we need to charge for the subscription before we send it to the IRS. |
| How can I scan receipts into the app? | While we don’t have a feature to scan receipts in the app, you can manually add expenses at any time by tapping the “+” in the top right-hand corner of the home page. |
| Can I write off the income I pay to myself? | Unfortunately, paying yourself is not considered a write-off so we won’t track it here in the app. |
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How can I update my filing status in the app?
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You can always update your filing status and other personal information right from the tax profile settings in the app. This will ensure the best estimate while you’re tracking your expenses throughout the year. If you are currently working on your return in the app and need to update your filing status, just head over to the “Household Details” section and you can add or remove a spouse and dependents.
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| Does Keeper track mileage? |
Keeper doesn’t track mileage if you drive a car for work, but we’ll automatically keep track of your car expenses — things like gas, car maintenance, etc. In some cases, this is actually a better deal for you at tax time! If you file your taxes with Keeper we will help you choose between claiming actual expenses or the standard mileage deduction. |
| How much does Keeper cost? | We offer a variety of subscription options that work for you and you can always manage your plan right from the “Subscription” settings in the app. We currently offer a monthly plan that includes access to all of the features in the app except tax filing for $20/month, or we have an annual plan that offers access to the same great features and includes tax filing at no extra charge for $192/year. Finally, if you have more complex tax situations, be sure to ask us about our Premium Plan designed for more hands-on help from a tax expert. |
| Can I pay in installments for the annual subscription? | We are not currently offering any installment plans for our annual subscription. We do have a monthly subscription of $20 per month but that does not include tax filing. |
| How do I log into the Keeper app? |
Press “Get started” and enter the same phone number or email address you used when creating your account. Keeper doesn't use passwords. We will send you a 4-digit security code to your phone number or email address instead to confirm your sign-in. Kindly note that if you enter a different number than what you used previously, this may create an additional subscription, which may cause you to be charged extra. |
| I already filed my personal return, can you help me file my business return? | The IRS considers you and your LLC/sole proprietorship to be one entity for tax filing. This means that you’ll need to file an amended return to include your business income and expenses. If you’d like to file an amended return, Keeper can provide free resources that can help you with the process. We also have a premium subscription that includes filing amended returns. If you’d like more information about that, just let me know! |
| How do I include my LLCs information on my tax return? | The IRS considers you and your LLC/sole proprietorship to be one entity for tax filing. We’ll use your social security number for filing your income taxes. You can enter the income you received from your LLC in the income section of your return. You can add your LLCs expenses as write-offs within the app! |
| I have foreign income, how do I include this when I file taxes? | Keeper doesn’t currently support in-app filing for foreign income. However, Keeper has a premium subscription for $396 annually which does include filing for foreign income! With a premium subscription, you’ll be connected to a tax professional who will assist you directly with filing your foreign income. |
| How do I file my taxes with Keeper? | You can get started with filing your taxes with Keeper by accessing the File Taxes tab in the Keeper app or logging in at keepertax.com |
| How do I update my vehicle business usage, home office, etc. percentage? | You can edit your vehicle, home office, and phone business usage percentage from the Settings > Edit your tax profile section in the app. |
| My refund says deposited in the Keeper app but I haven’t received it. | The refund status indicator in the Keeper app is based on a 21-day estimate. The most up-to-date information can be found at irs.gov/refunds The IRS processes most returns within 21 days, but some returns take up to 90 days for the IRS to process. Continue checking your status at irs.gov/refund and call the IRS if there is no update within 90 days of filing. |
| Do I need to keep receipts? | The Keeper app helps you track your expenses and provides a summary of your transactions. While it's a useful tool for maintaining records, it's not a replacement for actual receipts. The IRS may require original receipts for certain tax-related matters, however, bank statements with expenses clearly marked may suffice as well. This doesn't mean the app isn't sufficient, but rather, it serves a different purpose — to help you organize and keep track of your expenses. |
| Can you file my S-Corp taxes? | Keeper doesn’t currently support filing S-Corp tax returns, but with our premium subscription, we can include shareholder income from a S-Corp, usually reported on a K1 form. |
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Where do I enter my medical expenses? |
Medical expenses are typically considered personal expenses, and they aren’t something we track here in the app. Instead, you will be asked about that when you file your return with us. You have the option of itemizing your deductions or using the federal standard deduction amount. Itemized deductions include premiums for health insurance, medical and dental bills, mortgage interest paid, and charitable donations. If the total amount you paid for these items equals less than the standard deduction amount, then we recommend you use the standard deduction amount, as this will be most beneficial to you. |
| It is saying my income is lower than my write-offs. | You can check the total amount of your write-offs by tapping on the Estimated Savings Amount in the app or by exporting your write-offs to a file from the Settings tab in the app. You can then compare this to the total amount of income you entered under Freelance Income. If some write-off category totals seem high, you can review those write-off categories from the Write-offs tab and remove any invalid write-offs. If your write-offs are valid, you can bypass the warning in the app and proceed with submitting your information for review. |
| It says my vehicle expenses or mileage is too high. | You can review the Credits and Deductions > Vehicle Expenses section in the tax filing menu to ensure you’ve entered your mileage correctly. You can also review the write-off categories on the Write-offs tab that are related to your vehicle expenses. If your mileage and write-offs are accurate, you can bypass the warning and submit your return for review. |
| Can you tell me more about the premium plan? | Our premium subscription covers preparing complex tax returns, tax amendments, quarterly tax filings, and navigating audits. Premium subscribers have an assigned tax expert available to answer tax questions and prepare tax returns, including returns with complex tax scenarios such as rental income, S-Corp shareholder income, and more. It costs $396 which is still cheaper than going to an accountant. |
| I need an export of my expenses. |
If you need an export of the expenses you’ve been tracking in the app, you can head over to Settings > tap on "Export your write-offs" to request an export. One will be sent over to the email address on file with your account.
If you haven't received the export you requested via the app, please check your spam or junk folder. Then, verify the email address registered in the app (Settings > Account > Profile) and make sure you're checking the correct inbox. You can also update your email address in the app and request another export. If these steps don't resolve the issue, please reach out to us. |
| I need a letter from my tax preparer or a CPA. |
Our premium subscription includes access to a dedicated tax expert who can provide a letter from a CPA about your tax return or your projected income and expenses. |
| I thought Keeper tax was free? I’ve had Keeper tax for a while and now all of a sudden it’s asking me to pay an annual fee. |
Keeper does offer a free version that is limited to linking your bank accounts and has limited expense-tracking abilities. To have access to the full app, including the tax deduction summary export file, you will need a paid monthly or annual subscription. |
| Looking for a receipt app that will allow me to scan an entire receipt, but I need an app that can allow me to pick and choose items on each receipt that will be for just business. |
If you have a receipt and you're not looking to add the entire expense you can manually add charges at any time by tapping the "+" in the top right-hand corner of the app. Additionally, you can always let your keeper in the app if they need to update the amount of one of your charges and they'll be happy to help.
Furthermore, by linking your bank to the app we can scan your purchases and ask if they are business-related. Under the All transactions section: |
| Can I write off charitable donations? |
We don't track charitable expenses in the app since they aren't business expenses, but we will ask you about your charitable contributions when you file your return with Keeper. |
| How do I cancel? |
You can cancel your subscription from the Settings > Subscription section in the app. |