Tax Preparation Business Strategy

  • IRS Says it’s Time to Renew Expiring ITINs

    Time is running out for taxpayers who need to renew an expiring ITIN before next filing season. In June, the IRS issued a press release reminding taxpayers that failing to renew an expiring ITIN can result in refund delays and ineligibility for some tax credits. While ITINs are only used by taxpayers who can’t get…

  • Tax Tips for New Business Owners

    Owning your own business can be a very rewarding experience. The process of starting a business, however, can seem overwhelming to the uninitiated. There are so many choices to consider – from business plans to market strategies and tax responsibilities. The IRS has put together a quick list of items any new owner of a…

  • IRS Waives Estimated Tax Penalty for Eligible 2018 Filers

    For some taxpayers paying estimated taxes who have filed their 2018 tax returns there’s a little bit of bad news—and some good news. The bad news is they failed to claim the special waiver that would have spared them from the estimated tax penalty mandated when withholding and estimated tax payments fell short of their…

  • Taxpayers with Significant Tax Debt Could Lose Passports

    The Internal Revenue Service is warning taxpayers they risk losing their passports if “significant” tax debt is not paid. Those taxpayers are urged to contact the IRS immediately or have travel plans delayed later. The passport action is mandated by the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act (also known as the FAST Act). The IRS is…

  • Don’t Get Left Behind on Auto Expense Deductions

    If you’ve always deducted your business vehicle expenses in the past, read on. With the recent changes in the tax code, not everyone can still claim the deduction. Some taxpayers can, but some cannot. In a nutshell, only a few types of taxpayers can now qualify to deduct auto expenses from their taxes. Business Owners…

  • IRS Issues Tax Tip Explaining Educator Deduction

    Now that the tax year 2018 filing season is over, some teachers may know that the educator expenses deduction was moved to line 23 of the new Schedule 1. To help those unsure about which unreimbursed, job-related expenses qualify, the IRS this week released Tax Tip 2019-83. The press release outlines the basics of determining…

  • CPA Practice Advisor Gives Drake Tax 5 Stars

    When choosing tax preparation software, tax professionals weigh a number of factors: cost, features, support, word of mouth recommendations, and industry reviews. CPA Practice Advisor recently issued its annual software review for Drake Tax, awarding the Drake Software’s tax preparation package 5 out of 5 stars. Straight away, reviewer Mary Girsch-Bock pointed out that Drake…

  • IRS Issues Guidance on Cooperatives

    The Internal Revenue Service and the Treasury Department have issued their legal guidance on certain deductions to cooperatives and their patrons. The guidance was made necessary by changes to the tax code by the 2017 tax reform legislation called the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) and the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2018. The proposed…

  • New Scams Identified by IRS

    The April filing deadline is long gone, but that doesn’t stop scammers from attempting to swindle American taxpayers out of their hard-earned money. In fact, the Internal Revenue Service is asking taxpayers to be on the alert to two new phishing and email scams. The scams are variations of previous tax-related schemes. One involves Social…

  • IRS Fixes Error in Schedule D Worksheet

    The Internal Revenue Service says it has corrected a calculation error in its 2018 Schedule D Tax Worksheet. The worksheet should have taxed capital gains at a lesser rate, as mandated by the new tax reform package, the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, passed in 2017. Instead, the Schedule D Worksheet was taxing those capital…