Author Archives: Jessica

As recent tax initiatives have been aimed at collecting more tax revenues from millionaires, you may ask, just who are these millionaire taxpayers? According to research by the Tax Foundation, a group that advocates for lowering taxes, many of these millionaire taxpayers are owners of small businesses. It is more likely for partnership and S corporation small business owners to be million taxpayers than sole proprietors.  Based on IRS data, the Tax Foundation calculated that 51% of partnerships and S corporations reported income of $1 million or more, as compared to 6% from sole proprietors. The study also found that … Click to Read More

You’ve traveled for business, and now it is time to figure out your business travel deductions. What is “ordinary and necessary” and can be deducted on your business tax return? Transportation Flight, train, and car travel to and from the convention or meeting is deductible. Travel by boat, such as an ocean liner or cruise ship, has a daily limit of twice the highest federal per diem rate allowable. Cabs are also deductible to and from the airport and conference or meeting. Lodging Hotel costs for days that you attended the conference and reasonable stays before and after are deductible. … Click to Read More

If you’ve traveled for a conference or visited a client, what can you deduct as costs for your business? Here are some tips to help you separate your personal and business travel expenses, so your business tax preparation will not be hampered by what to count. The purpose of the trip must be primarily business oriented. You may do non-business activities such as sightseeing while on trip, but the main focus must the primary reason for travel. For conferences, travel within North America is deductible if it can be shown that your directly attendance benefits your business. There are special … Click to Read More

While many congressional observers predict that no significant tax legislation will be passed before the November election, several important measures have been introduced that would provide tax relief to small businesses. Three significant pieces of tax legislation that are currently under consideration in Congress are outlined below: Startup Act 2.0 This legislation would allow small businesses that are less than five years old and with annual receipts of less than $5 million to offset their payroll tax liability through the use of a refundable research and development tax credit. It would also increase the financial stability of these young companies by … Click to Read More

Why wouldn’t you take advantage of a tax credit for small businesses? In the case of health care tax credit enacted in the 2010 Affordable Care Act, the answer is if it is too confusing or if the cost to receive it is more than the credit is worth. This health care tax credit was supposed to be helping millions of small business to be able to provide health insurance for employees, paying out a budgeted $2 billion dollars on tax returns for 2012. Instead, as the Government Accountability Office reports, only 170,300 companies out of the 1.4 million to … Click to Read More

You’ve started your own business, and now it’s time to file your first tax return. Even if you hire a business tax preparation specialist, you will need to have your files in order and make some decisions on how you want to file your return. In continuation from last week’s post, here are 3 more tips to help with your first business tax return. Figure out which depreciation method you want to use. The IRS allows a deduction in your first year of up to $100,000 for most equipment and furniture purchased for your business. The alternative is writing off … Click to Read More

You’ve started your own business, and now it’s time to file your first tax return. Even if you hire a business tax preparation specialist, you will need to have your files in order and make some decisions on how you want to file your return. Here are 3 tips to help with your first business tax return. Make sure you carefully review the entire form. It can be easy to miss what you enter where, so make sure to completely review your business tax return to avoid mistakes. There may be questions about the nature of your business, how many … Click to Read More

This past week, a bill was introduced in the House of Representatives that would provide individual or business tax relief by giving the IRS the power to release a tax levy when the imposition of the levy would cause economic hardship. The bill, identified as the Tax Levy Relief Act of 2012, was introduced by Representative Jim McDermott, a member of the House Ways and Means Committee. At a time when many businesses are having difficulty meeting their tax obligations, McDermott’s bill is designed to provide tax relief by giving the IRS the discretion to decide the best way to … Click to Read More

The House of Representatives is considering the Small Business Tax Cut Act of 2012, sponsored by House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.) on Thursday, April 19, 2012. It would reduce taxes on the adjusted gross income (AGI) of an estimated 22 million small businesses, defined as business with under 500 employees, by up to 20 percent next year. It could also add as much as $46 billion to the deficit. While President Obama is likely to veto the bill, Cantor’s argument is that the tax break, which would be $6,500 on average, could be a potent stimulus for the economy, … Click to Read More

A recent survey of a broad cross section of leading tax executives indicates that there is a low expectation within the business community for the passage of any important tax legislation during the remainder of 2012. Those surveyed believe that the main reason for this is the upcoming general election, along with the split in the houses of Congress. The Policy Forecast Survey under discussion was completed last month by top business tax executives selected from a wide range of US and multinational corporations. Most of the business tax executives polled in the recent survey indicated that they thought the … Click to Read More