Your accountant’s portal is not your second mailbox
Finmail Product
Your CPA already has a place to collect organizers, K-1s, and signed organizers: TaxDome, SafeSend, SharePoint, or whatever the firm bought. That portal is theirs. It is not the address Schwab, Fidelity, or a partnership will use next January, and it is not a mailbox you still open if you change firms.
Keep Gmail for everyday mail. This page is the split between their portal and your receive address — not a pitch that accounting firms should buy Finmail, not practice software, and not IRS e-file.
A second Gmail is still the strongest $0 split inside Google. Most people should stop there. Choose another host only if this slice of mail should not live at Google.
Two sides of the same tax season
| Side | What it is | What to give them |
|---|---|---|
| Firm portal | How the practice stores their copies | Leave it. Do not ask the firm to move off Outlook. |
| Your mailbox | The address you control for 1099s, K-1s, and the thread about your return | One address you actually open. A second Gmail is often enough. |
| Issuer file | Schwab paperless, Fidelity eDelivery, partnership tax contact | Change those records. A filter will not. |
The longer receive-side list is where to receive K-1s and 1099s. The work-versus-personal split is a second email for tax season.
Tell the CPA: “For my packets, use you@….” They keep TaxDome. You keep a mailbox that still exists if you switch accountants.
When you send a K-1 onward and expect it to be forwarded, use a password-protected Secure Share instead of a raw PDF. If they must reopen the packet next week, do not use burn-after-read. Walkthrough: send a K-1 without a raw attachment.
Brokers will not follow the portal
A client upload in TaxDome does not update Charles Schwab. Point the issuers first:
- Statement-email index
- Delivery email is not the login email
- A Gmail filter does not change broker email
Then give the partnership and the CPA that same address.
Where your receive address should be
| You want | Use |
|---|---|
| Isolation inside Google, $0 | A second Gmail. Most people should stop here. |
| Swiss hosting and end-to-end encryption | Proton Mail — paid Proton, not an unused Free account |
| Generic paid IMAP, not a finance-only product | Fastmail — often enough |
| US-hosted mailbox for investing, banking, and tax, off Google | [email protected] on Professional |
Finmail is Virginia IMAP, not end-to-end encryption. @finmail.com is weaker than a domain you own.
Do not leave 1099s only on a neglected Yahoo, Outlook.com, or Proton Free address — consumer mailbox inactivity.
What this is not
- Not a TaxDome, SafeSend, or Drake substitute.
- Not IRS e-file, not a tax-agency account, not Legal Hold.
- Not a request that the firm migrate off Outlook.
- Not a cryptocurrency payment mailbox. Finmail does not send or receive BTC or USDT by email.
Professional is $29/mo, 14-day trial, card required, if the job is a finance-only box off Google.
Frequently asked questions
Can Finmail replace my accountant’s portal?
No. The portal stays with the firm. Finmail is a mailbox you control for packets addressed to you.
Should I give the CPA my everyday Gmail?
You can. Issuers already file Gmail. A second Gmail is often enough if you only want tax mail out of the everyday inbox. Choose Finmail only if this mail should not live at Google.
Is a second Gmail enough instead of Finmail?
Often yes. A second Gmail is isolation inside Google and costs nothing. Most people should stop there.