If it is not already done, farmers should be busy preparing their 2017 tax returns. The deadline for paper filers was 31 October. For people who pay online using Revenue’s online service (ROS), the deadline is next Wednesday 14 November. To prepare a tax return, accountants will need 2017 farm bank statements, cheque stubs, sales dockets, purchase invoices, etc. Accountants are warning 2017 tax bills could be very high, especially on dairy farms. If the bill is very high, the option is available to use income averaging, which will base the tax bill on the average profit of the business over a number of years. The pluses and minuses of this option should be teased out with your accountant.