4 May 2012
Homeowners that have had their mortgage debt partly or entirely forgiven during tax years 2007 through 2012, may be able to claim special tax relief and exclude the debt forgiven from their income. Here are 10 facts the IRS would like you to know about mortgage debt forgiveness: 1. Normally, debt forgiveness results [...]
4 May 2012
The IRS is training over 1,000 agents in the use of QuickBooks and Peachtree. These agents are being encouraged to request small business accounting software files. Practitioners are concerned about how much information the IRS is requesting and how they are using it. The IRS decided to use small business accounting files in audits [...]
4 May 2012
In an effort to assist struggling taxpayers to take steps to pay their current and back taxes the Internal Revenue Service recently announced that it has expanded its “Fresh Start” initiative. Fresh Start offers taxpayers flexibility to help pay the tax debt they incurred through failure to pay by providing options for penalty relief, installment [...]
2 March 2012
If you have changed your name the IRS reminds you to make sure the name on your tax return matches the name registered with the Social Security Administration. A mismatch can cause problems in the processing of your return and may delay your refund. 1) Notify the SSA if you took your spouses name: [...]
2 March 2012
Many people that received Social Security benefits in 2011 believe that they are tax-free but depending on their income, up to 85 percent may be taxable. Social Security recipients can determine if their benefits will be taxed when they receive Form SSA-1099 provided by the Social Security Administration. Here are seven tips from the [...]
2 March 2012
Congressman Bobby Schilling, R-Ill. and Aaron Schock R-Ill. have introduced a bill, called the 1099-K Overreach Prevention Act, to prohibit the Internal Revenue Service from implementing a new tax-reporting requirement for small businesses to reconcile their reports from outside providers with their own internal reports. The 1099-K Overreach Protection Act targets the requirement for [...]
2 February 2012
The IRS recently released the final version of Form 8938, Statement of Specified Foreign Financial Assets. Beginning in the 2011 tax year, taxpayers must file Form 8938 with their annual income tax form to report specified foreign financial assets exceeding $50,000 (this threshold increases for married individuals filing jointly and U.S. taxpayers living abroad). Individuals [...]
2 February 2012
In 2011, the New York State Department of Taxation was required to issue a report to the Governor, the Director of the Budget, and the Speakers and Minority Leaders of the Assembly and Senate regarding the percentage of individual taxpayers who filed their New York State personal income tax returns electronically. If this figure was [...]
1 February 2012
The most popular way for saving for college is through a 529 Plan. 529 plans are education savings plans operated by a state or educational institution designed to help families set aside funds for future college costs. There are two types of section 529 plans: prepaid tuition plans and college savings plans. Savings Plans work [...]
5 January 2012
On December 7, 2011, the New York State Senate enacted a bill amending various sections of the tax law in an effort to close a $3.5 billion budget gap. One of those items relates to Personal Income tax Rates for 2012 – 2014. Under the measure, higher personal-income rates are preserved for families with taxable [...]
