The ERC and wages paid to related employees

Employees of family-owned businesses may not be eligible for the Employee Retention Credit (ERC). This credit was enacted to encourage eligible employers to keep employees on their payrolls during the pandemic. It was in effect for most employers through Sept. 30, 2021 (startup recovery businesses could claim it through Dec. 31, 2021). However, wages paid […]

2018 Tax return year closing

If you or someone you know didn’t file a 2018 federal income tax return, time is running out to claim a refund for that year. According to the IRS, $1.5 billion in refund money has yet to be claimed by more than one million taxpayers. To file, you must mail a 2018 paper return no […]

Classroom out-of-pocket expense deduction increases for teachers

In the big picture, $50 may not seem like a lot. But put into the context of the educator expense deduction, it’s notable. Why? Because for 2022, eligible teachers and other educators can deduct up to $300 of out-of-pocket classroom expenses. The $50 increase is the first since the deduction was enacted in 2002. The […]

Proposed changes to the Affordable Care Act

The IRS has proposed changes to the Affordable Care Act’s family coverage and affordability rules. In a nutshell, the proposed regs would change how to determine the affordability of employer-sponsored coverage for an employee’s family. More specifically, the affordability of family coverage would be based on the employee’s share of the cost of covering the […]

Puerto Rico disaster relief

The IRS is providing disaster tax relief to victims of severe storms in Puerto Rico. This includes those hit by storms, flooding and landslides that started on Feb. 4, 2022, in the Puerto Rico municipalities of Catano, Dorado, Toa Baja, Vega Alta and Vega Baja. Affected individuals and businesses now have until June 15, 2022, […]

Do you have a profit motive?

Taxpayers who are in business to make a profit can generally deduct related expenses on their tax returns. If the IRS doubts a profit motive exists, it may deem an activity to be a hobby with a limited ability to deduct costs. The burden to prove there’s a profit motive is on the taxpayer. In […]

IRS backlog of unprocessed returns is “unprecedented”

The magnitude of the IRS backlog of unprocessed returns is “unprecedented,” said the National Taxpayer Advocate, Erin Collins. Since the start of the pandemic, millions of taxpayers have seen their refunds delayed. To rectify the problem, Collins wants to see the IRS’s “antiquated” system modernized, including the use of scanning technology such as 2-D barcoding […]

Survey finds Majority of crypto investors still aren’t ready to file their taxes

From CNBC; Majority of crypto investors still aren’t ready to file their taxes, survey finds – CNBC https://cnb.cx/3JcManv

Report on Recovery Rebate Credit payments

The good news is that the IRS correctly calculated and issued advance Recovery Rebate Credit payments (authorized by the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021) to more than 166.6 million Americans by Sept. 16, 2021. That’s according to an audit by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration. But despite a 99.48% success rate, the […]

IRS’s Office of Fraud Enforcement update

Bad actors, beware! As the director of the IRS’s new Office of Fraud Enforcement (OFE) explained to an American Bar Association audience, the tax agency is aggressively pursuing emerging fraud threats. For example, OFE is training IRS agents and officers to look for fraud when conducting civil audits and training some to become experts on […]