Tax Preparation Business Strategy

  • Cincinnati Tax Processing Center to Be Closed

    The Internal Revenue Service is reminding the nation’s tax professionals that, by the end of 2019, the IRS’ Cincinnati Tax Processing Center will be closed. That will eventually leave centers in Kansas City, Mo., and Ogden, Utah, as the only remaining processing locations after 2025. The Cincinnati center is physically located in Covington, Ky., directly…

  • Government Shutdown Causes Cancellation of IRS Public Hearing

    The partial federal government shutdown is in its nineteenth day, and it seems some federal services will be unavailable for the foreseeable future. While the IRS Commissioner recently assured taxpayers that the shutdown would not impact the issuance of refunds, other federal processes have not been spared, like the public hearing for Qualified Opportunity Fund…

  • What is the taxable income QBI threshold for 2018?

    There are two income thresholds for claiming QBI in tax year 2018: $157,500 for single taxpayers, heads of household, qualifying widows and widowers, or trusts and estates $315,000 for married couples filing jointly Return to Taxing Subjects frequently asked questions. Related FAQs: What is the Qualified Business Income Deduction? What types of business income qualify…

  • Reminder: New Tax Law Revised Family Tax Credits

    Tax reform legislation passed in late 2017 doubles the maximum Child Tax Credit, boosts income limits for claiming the credit, and revises the identification number requirement for 2018 and later years. The new law also creates a second, smaller credit of up to $500 per dependent for those taxpayers supporting older children and other relatives…

  • Tax Reform Expands Retirement Contribution Limits

    Notice 2018-83 details that taxpayers can now generally contribute more money to their retirement funds as part of the cost-of-living adjustment guidance. Changes for 2019 The contribution limit for employees participating in 401(k), 403(b), most 457 plans and the federal government’s Thrift Savings Plan is hiked from $18,500 to $19,000. Annual contributions to an IRA…

  • New Tax Transcript Now Online

    A revamped tax transcript is now available for individual taxpayers and tax professionals. The IRS previously announced the improvements to the transcript design, which is aimed at making the product more secure. Transcripts are a prime target of hackers and identity thieves, since transcripts can provide the real taxpayer data that can make a fraudulent…

  • IRS Notes TCJA Changes to ABLE Accounts

    The Internal Revenue Service last week issued a Tax Tip outlining how the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) will affect section 529A ABLE accounts. In 2014, Congress passed The Achieving a Better Life Experience Act, which established a new type of state-offered savings account designed to help disabled Americans afford qualified disability expenses, like…

  • Delaware Governor Signs Tax Preparer Regulations

    Delaware Gov. John Carney has signed legislation aimed at protecting the state’s taxpayers from unscrupulous tax professionals. Accounting Today reports the legislation, called the Taxpayer Protection Act, became law this week. Among other things, it requires tax preparers in the state to include their Preparer Tax Identification Number (PTIN) whenever they file a state tax…

  • Audit Finds Business Identity Theft Controls Still Lacking

    A report from the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) finds that despite measures by the Internal Revenue Service to flag possibly fraudulent business returns, a significant number of bogus returns are slipping through. The agency’s first warning came three years ago, when TIGTA recommended the IRS install filters on its computer systems to…

  • GAO Finds Americans Under-Withholding

    A new federal report finds that more Americans may get an unpleasant surprise come April 15. Most folks expect to pay less tax after the tax cut law went into effect in late 2017. But the Government Accountability Office says more American taxpayers will actually have to pay tax due because their employers aren’t withholding…