Build a client request list.

Why the wording matters more than the list

Most request lists ask for categories: investment income, business expenses, charitable giving. A client reading that has to translate a tax concept into an object on their desk, and the translation is where the delay lives. They are not ignoring you. They cannot tell whether the thing they are holding is the thing you meant.

So this names documents, and says why each one is being asked for. It is the same reasoning behind the wider piece on why the chase eats a season, which covers the other four changes worth making.

A caveat worth stating plainly: this is a starting point built from the IRS instructions, not a substitute for your own judgement about a particular client. Prior-year documents beat any generic list, which is exactly what Docenta uses when a client has a prior year to read. A first-year client does not, which is why this exists.