BHT&D Certified Public Accountants Blog

Section 139 of the Internal Revenue Code excludes from a taxpayer’s gross income certain payment to individuals to reimburse or pay for expenses related to a “qualified disaster”.  Covid-19 is a federally declared disaster.

Tags: Tax Planning, Small Business, Individual Tax, COVID-19, Work From Home

A taxpayer’s filing status for the year is based upon his or her marital status at the close of the tax year. Thus, if you get married on the last day of the tax year, you are treated as married for the entire year. The options for married couples are to file jointly or separately. Both statuses can result in surprises – some pleasant and some unpleasant – for individuals who previously filed as unmarried.

Tags: Individual Tax Return, Tax Planning

If you are inclined to procrastinate until the end of the year or, even worse, until tax-filing season to worry about your taxes, you may be missing out on opportunities to reduce your tax and avoid certain penalties.

The following are some events that can affect your tax return; you may need to take steps to mitigate their impact and avoid unpleasant surprises after it is too late to address them.

Tags: Tax Planning, Small Business Accounting, Tax Liability

Tax reform has changed the way most taxpayers need to think about and plan for their taxes. It is no longer business as usual. Advanced planning will become very important long before tax time next year.

For most taxpayers, the most significant change is the increase in their standard deduction, which on the surface seems like a big benefit. But, don’t overlook the fact that the same tax reform that nearly doubled the standard deduction took away the personal exemption as a deduction.

Tags: Itemizing Deductions, Tax Planning, Tax Deductions, Tax Deductible Travel Expenses, Business Tax, Individual Tax, TCJA

 

Good tax planning and working with an accountant specializing in your field are key factors for agribusinesses in managing their tax liability.  As we head into the end of the year, here are five things to keep in mind to be prepared for next tax season:

1.  Tax Planning – Determining your year-to-date income PRIOR to the end of the year and planning for an appropriate income level is 

Tags: Agriculture, Tax Planning, Depreciation Deduction, Farm Taxes

The time spent getting organized for your tax appointment is priceless.  It gives you confidence that your returns will be filed timely, accurately, and that all qualified deductions are accounted for. 

Partnering with an experienced Certified Public Accountant can bring you piece of mind and possibly tax savings.  Here are some tips for making the best of that partnership: 

Tags: Tax Planning, Tax Deductions, tax appointment

On May 9, 2014, the IRS published final regulations pertaining to certain costs incurred by estates and non-grantor trusts, and finally brought an end to some controversial issues surrounding the deductibility of certain costs.  

Tags: Tax Planning, Tax Deductions, Estate and Trust Tax

Several provisions of the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes Act of 2015 (PATH) impact Code Section 179 and taxpayer’s depreciation options beginning in 2016.  The highlights of those changes include the following:

1. The elevated expensing limitation and the phase out limits have been made permanent and indexed for inflation. For 2016,

Tags: Tax Planning, Depreciation Deduction, Section 179

Earlier this month, President Obama signed the Protecting Americans from Tax Hikes (PATH) Act of 2015, extending a number of tax provisions that expired at the end of 2014. But unlike past tax extenders legislation, the PATH Act also makes some deductions and tax credits permanent for businesses and working families.

Tags: Tax Planning, Small Business Accounting

With the end of the year quickly approaching and the holiday stretching our free time thin, it is a great idea to squeeze in a little bit of tax planning to help yourself out before 2016.

Tags: IRS, Individual Tax Return, Tax Planning, Business Tax, Minimize Taxes, Tax Return