The IRS announced temporary relief for employers and employees using the automobile lease valuation rule. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the IRS relief involves determining the value of an employee’s personal use of an employer-provided vehicle. That value is used to calculate an amount to include in the employee’s gross income. Under the auto … Read More
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Does your estate plan clearly communicate your wishes?
Precise language is critical in wills, trusts and other estate planning documents. A lack of clarity may be an invitation to litigation. An example of this is the dispute that arose after Tom Petty’s death between his widow and his two daughters from a previous marriage. (The two parties have since resolved their differences and … Read More
IRS: Whistleblower Campaign
A whistleblower who provides the IRS with information about another party’s unpaid taxes may be entitled to a financial award. The IRS Whistleblower Office just released its annual report. In fiscal year 2020, it paid out 169 awards totaling $86.6 million. Proceeds collected during the year totaled $472 million. Whistleblower claims assigned in FY 2020 … Read More
The Balanced Scorecard approach to strategic planning
In the early 1990s, the Balanced Scorecard approach to strategic planning was developed to enable business owners to better organize and visualize their objectives. With 2021 shaping up to be a year of both daunting challenges and potentially remarkable recovery, your company should have a strategic plan that’s both comprehensive and flexible. Giving this methodology … Read More
IRS: Individual Tax Refunds
The IRS plans to issue most 2019 individual tax refunds by end of 2020. The IRS has updated its “IRS Operations During COVID-19: Mission critical” website to note that it has made significant progress in issuing refunds related to 2019 individual income tax returns. As of late November, the IRS had 7.1 million unprocessed individual … Read More
Red flags of deadbeat debtors
Unfortunately, many businesses have experienced problems with collections during the COVID-19 pandemic. Accounts receivable are a major item on most companies’ balance sheets. Slow-paying — or even nonpaying — customers or clients adversely affect cash flow. Proactive measures can help identify collections issues early and remedy them before they spiral out of control. Recognize the … Read More
IRS: 2020 Tax Season
Tax season is rolling up fast, and millions of Americans will be anticipating refunds. As always, the IRS cautions taxpayers not to rely on receiving a refund by a certain date, especially to pay a big bill or make a major purchase. Depending on the details, some returns require additional review and processing, as the … Read More
IRS: Treasury Offset Program
Taxpayers who owe certain debts may have their refunds reduced or even entirely taken by the federal government. Under the Treasury Offset Program, refunds can be seized to pay past-due federal tax, state income tax, state unemployment compensation debts, child support, spousal support or other federal nontax debts, such as student loans. If only part … Read More
2021 Q1 tax calendar: Key deadlines for businesses and other employers
Here are some of the key tax-related deadlines affecting businesses and other employers during the first quarter of 2021. Keep in mind that this list isn’t all-inclusive, so there may be additional deadlines that apply to you. Contact us to ensure you’re meeting all applicable deadlines and to learn more about the filing requirements. January … Read More
IRS: Business Meal Deduction 2021 & 2022
Taxpayers can claim a 100% business meal deduction in 2021 and 2022 when they buy the food from restaurants. Taxpayers can generally deduct the ordinary and necessary food and beverage expenses associated with operating a trade or business, including meals consumed by employees on work travel. Currently, the deduction is generally limited to 50% of … Read More