Running an editing business requires paperwork. (I use the term “paperwork” loosely, because much of it is filled out online.) I live in Maryland, and besides start-up forms when you first launch your business and tax forms to the IRS and the state, you must fill out and submit DAT forms every year by April 15.

“What are DAT forms?” you ask.

DAT stands for Department of Assessments and Taxation. It wants to know how much money your business made each calendar year. It also wants to know about the personal property your business has and how much it is all worth.

For Fiedler Editorial LLC, I used to have to fill out two forms. One is the Annual Report, which I still complete, and the other is the Personal Property Report, from which I am now exempt. Since I am a single-member entity, the Annual Report is pretty painless. All I have to do is list my department number (you find this out the very first time you fill out such a form), answer several questions about my business by checking boxes, and list my gross earnings for the year. The questions are fairly straightforward, and if you do not understand something, there is a phone number for DAT on its website. The only caveat is that you have to remember to list your gross earnings for the year, not your net profit. Thankfully, I read instructions well, so I have never made this mistake.

The first few times I filled out DAT forms, I had to complete the Personal Property Report, which was an absolute pain. I basically went about giving the required information by listing every single item of property my business owned on a piece of scrap paper (this included the carpeting and window blinds in my home office). Then next to each item, I wrote how much I paid for it and calculated its final value using a given depreciation formula. Finally, I placed each value into a column based on categories (one column for computer hardware, one for furniture, et cetera) and added up each column. It is recommended to make multiple copies of the Personal Property Report and do at least one rough draft.

Thankfully, after a few years, the rule became that a Personal Property Report was required only if the value of the business property was a certain amount of money or greater. The value of my business property was lower than this amount, so I did not have to bother with that form any longer.

What required forms in your state are a headache for you?