2021 – 02/08 The IRS has issued guidance related to the tax break allowing eligible teachers to deduct out-of-pocket expenses related to COVID-19 protective items. A recent law provides a $250 educator expense deduction, with respect to items purchased after March 12, 2020, for COVID-19 protection. The educator expense deduction rules permit eligible educators to…
2021 – 02/08 The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the IRS’s Criminal Investigation division are warning taxpayers about a new wave of COVID-19-related scams. Officials with the DOJ and IRS spotlighted a number of scams, including: text messages asking taxpayers to disclose bank account information under the guise of receiving Economic Impact Payments; phishing…
2021 – 02/08 A number of tax-related limits that affect businesses are annually indexed for inflation, and many have increased for 2021. Some stayed the same due to low inflation. And the deduction for business meals has doubled for this year after a new law was enacted at the end of 2020. Here’s a rundown…
2021 – 02/05 As tax season kicks off on Feb. 12, 2021, the IRS wants to remind taxpayers of some points they might miss. For example, taxpayers who received interest income (of at least $10) from the IRS will be sent a Form 1099-INT, which must be reported on the 2020 tax return. Many received…
2021 – 02/03 Over the past year, the importance of leadership at every level of a business has been emphasized. When a crisis such as a pandemic hits, it creates a sort of stress test for not only business owners and executives, but also supervisors of departments and work groups. Among the most important skill…
2021 – 2/01 The Consolidated Appropriations Act (CAA), enacted on Dec. 27, 2020, allows corporations to deduct up to 100% of taxable income for charitable contributions for disaster relief. The IRS recently offered more details on requirements for the temporary deduction: 1) Qualified contributions must be paid by a corporation from Jan. 1, 2020, through…
2021 – 02/01 This year, the optional standard mileage rate used to calculate the deductible costs of operating an automobile for business decreased by one-and-one-half cents, to 56 cents per mile. As a result, you might claim a lower deduction for vehicle-related expenses for 2021 than you could for 2020 or 2019. This is the…
2021 – 01/28 A new year can bring a fresh start, including for your tax situation. That’s why the IRS is reminding people to check their 2021 withholding by using the IRS Tax Withholding Estimator online tool. Employees can avoid penalties by ensuring they’re having enough tax withheld, but also keep more cash in their…
2021 – 01/27 The Employee Retention Credit (ERC) is extended for employers who keep workers on payroll. The recently enacted Consolidated Appropriations Act made several changes to the tax credit, which was created under the CARES Act. This includes modifying and extending it through June 30, 2021. For the first 2 quarters of 2021, eligible…
2021 – 01/27 Many business owners generate financial statements, at least in part, because lenders and other stakeholders demand it. You’re likely also aware of how insightful properly prepared financial statements can be — especially when they follow Generally Accepted Accounting Principles. But how can you best extract these useful insights? One way is to…
2021 – 01/26 Did you know that eight out of 10 taxpayers receive their income tax refunds using direct deposit? The reason, according to the IRS, is that filing electronically and choosing direct deposit is the fastest way to receive a refund. In fact, the IRS uses the same electronic transfer system to deposit tax…
2021 – 01/25 There’s a new IRS form for business taxpayers that pay or receive certain types of nonemployee compensation and it must be furnished to most recipients by February 1, 2021. After sending the forms to recipients, taxpayers must file the forms with the IRS by March 1 (March 31 if filing electronically). The…
2021- 01/22 What should you do if you think you’ve been the victim of tax-related identity theft? The IRS has a form to file for that. The “Identity Theft Affidavit” (https://bit.ly/3o6BgVN ) is for taxpayers who suspect identity theft. For example, taxpayers file the form if their tax preparers couldn’t e-file their tax returns because…
2021 – 01/20 A new year has arrived and, with it, a fresh 12 months of opportunities to communicate with customers and prospects. Like every year, 2021 brings distinctive marketing trends to the table. The COVID-19 pandemic and resulting economic challenges continue to drive the conversation in most industries. To get more for your marketing…
2021 – 01/21 If 2020 taught us anything, it was the necessity of being adaptable to unexpected circumstances and being flexible in solving problems across all aspects of our lives. In the accounting world, for example, COVID-19 public health restrictions necessitated significant changes in how financial statement audits were performed. When the COVID-19 restrictions came…
