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When someone asks us to review a prior year return, the first thing to understand is that a review and an amendment are two different engagements - the review is the diagnostic step, and an amendment, if warranted, comes after. To review a return prepared by someone else, we have to reconstruct it in our tax software and trace it against your source documents, which is substantially the same work as preparing the return from scratch. For that reason, a prior year review starts at the same rate as a full preparation for that return type, confirmed in writing before any work begins. The fee applies regardless of what we find - a return that checks out required the same reconstruction work as one that didn't. If an error is found and an amendment makes sense, the reconstruction work carries forward into that engagement; you are not billed twice for the same ground. The statute of limitations also matters: whether a federal refund is still available depends on when the original return was filed, and that timing affects what options are actually on the table.

The cost to amend a tax return depends on who prepared the original return and what caused the need for the amendment. Returns we did not originally prepare are priced the same as a new preparation, regardless of how minor the change appears. For returns we did prepare, the answer depends on whether the error was ours - mistakes we made are generally corrected at no charge, while changes driven by new information or client requests are billed at our hourly rate with a one-hour minimum.

NEPA CPA publishes flat starting fees for most return types so clients know what to expect before work begins. As of April 15, 2026, new clients are placed on updated pricing: individual returns start at $900, S Corporation returns start at $1,500, C Corporation returns start at $1,700, and Partnership returns start at $2,100. A $1,500 minimum relationship floor applies to all new engagements. Returns with additional schedules or business activity typically fall higher than the base starting fee, and the exact amount is confirmed before any work begins. Fees for specialized returns - trusts, nonprofits, amended returns - are quoted after an initial consultation.