Management letters: Follow up on your auditor’s recommendations

Maintaining the status quo in today’s volatile marketplace can be risky. To succeed, businesses need to “level up” by being proactive and adaptable. But some managers may be unsure where to start or they’re simply out of new ideas. Fortunately, when audited financial statements are delivered, they’re accompanied by a management letter that suggests ways […]

Work Opportunity Tax Credits

Even in a tight labor market, some job seekers have trouble finding employment due to such factors as long-term unemployment, veteran status, disability and former incarceration. But the Work Opportunity Tax Credit may help by giving employers who hire eligible individuals a tax credit generally equal to 40% of up to $6,000 in wages paid […]

Crypto-Assets

Some observers have noted that the digital asset reporting model proposed in President Biden’s fiscal 2023 budget is very similar to that put forward by the multinational Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). But, as a U.S. Treasury official has stated, the OECD model is narrower in scope and “focuses on transactions involving dispositions […]

How poison pills can help cure companies of hostile investors

Estimated Tax Payments

The IRS is reminding all businesses, including self-employed and gig workers, to make estimated tax payments quarterly. Individuals and businesses are required to pay taxes as income is earned or received throughout the year, either through withholding or estimated tax payments. That’s why those who are self-employed or in the gig economy usually need to […]

Businesses may receive notices about information returns that don’t match IRS records

The IRS has begun mailing notices to businesses, financial institutions and other payers that filed certain returns with information that doesn’t match the agency’s records. These CP2100 and CP2100A notices are sent by the IRS twice a year to payers who filed information returns that are missing a Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN), have an incorrect […]

Syndicated conservations easements

IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig recently told a Senate hearing that despite his agency’s development of a comprehensive enforcement strategy to address abusive syndicated conservation easement transactions, the schemes persist. A U.S. House bill was introduced in 2021 to crack down on abuse of the charitable conservation-easement deduction, which is intended to help preserve public lands. […]

Valuable gifts to charity may require an appraisal

If you donate valuable items to charity, you may be required to get an appraisal. The IRS requires donors and charitable organizations to supply certain information to prove their right to deduct charitable contributions. If you donate an item of property (or a group of similar items) worth more than $5,000, certain appraisal requirements apply. […]

Tax Court Memo 2022-33

When taxpayers fail to timely file tax returns, the IRS may do it for them. One engineer had substantial income from various entities. For several years, he filed returns late or not at all and didn’t cooperate with the IRS. The IRS used third-party financial records to reconstruct his income and assess a tax liability. […]

Do you know the signs of financial distress in a business?

Financial statements tell only part of the story. Investors, lenders and other stakeholders who know how to identify red flags of impending problems can protect their own financial interests. Additional due diligence may be needed to uncover these issues. For instance, stakeholders might need to talk to management, visit the company’s website and compute financial […]