Tagged: Taxes

Posted: June 20, 2017
IRS Standard Mileage Rates For 2017 The Internal Revenue Service has recently issued the 2017 optional standard mileage rates used to calculate the deductible costs of operating an automobile for business, charitable, medical or moving purposes. Beginning on Jan. 1, 2017, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or… Read more »

Posted: May 25, 2017
WHAT IS THE PENNSYLVANIA TAX AMNESTY PROGRAM? The PA Tax Amnesty program creates an incentive for taxpayers to pay there tax liabilities during a narrow time period that ends on June 19, 2017. While this program is open, the PA Department of Revenue will waive all penalties and half of the interest for anyone who… Read more »

Posted: February 28, 2017
IRS Installment Agreements: 2017 User Fee Schedule and Options Starting in 2017, the IRS has revised its user fee schedule for installment agreements. The new fee schedule applies to installment agreements entered into, restructured or reinstated on or after January 2, 2017. The final regulations increase the existing user fees (except for low-income taxpayers) and… Read more »

Posted: December 15, 2016
2016 Tax Scam Alert As tax season approaches, the Internal Revenue Service, in IR-2016-164, has just reminded taxpayers to be on the lookout for an array of evolving tax scams related to identity theft and refund fraud. Every tax season, there is an increase in schemes that target innocent taxpayers by email, by phone and… Read more »

Posted: December 06, 2016
IRS Online Tool The Internal Revenue Service announced on December 1, 2016 (IR-2016-155) the launch of an online application that will assist taxpayers with straightforward balance inquiries in a safe, easy and convenient way. This new and secure tool, available on IRS.gov allows taxpayers to view their IRS account balance, which will include the amount… Read more »

Posted: November 16, 2016
IMPORTANT TAX ALERT: New Jersey Governor Chris Christie on Tuesday, November 22, 2016, reinstated a four-decade old tax reciprocity agreement with Pennsylvania that allows residents who work in either state to pay income taxes at their home state’s rate. You can almost hear the collective sigh of relief of the many commuters that would have been… Read more »

Posted: June 06, 2016
IRS LETTERS: WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU GET ONE Each year, the IRS mails millions of notices and letters to taxpayers for a variety of reasons. This can be extremely upsetting when receiving this form of communication, whether it is from the IRS or any other taxing authority. The following tips are presented to reduce… Read more »

Posted: December 18, 2015
2016 Standard Mileage Rates for Business, Medical and Moving The Internal Revenue Service on December 18, 2015 issued the 2016 optional standard mileage rates used to calculate the deductible costs of operating an automobile for business, charitable, medical or moving purposes. Beginning on Jan. 1, 2016, the standard mileage rates for the use of a… Read more »

Posted: December 01, 2015
Tax Positions of Presidential Candidates

Posted: August 09, 2015
Overview of 2015 Tax Law Changes On Friday, July 31, 2015, President Barack Obama signed HR 3236, the “Surface Transportation and Veterans Health Care Choice Improvement Act of 2015” (the “Act”). Not sure how this name relates to taxes but in any event the following tax law changes and provisions became law under this Act:… Read more »

Posted: January 20, 2015
2015 Philadelphia Notice Requirements for Businesses If you are a business that has employees or independent contractors who live in Philadelphia, the City of Philadelphia imposes notice requirements. Beginning January 1, 2015, Title 19, Chapter 19-4000, of the Philadelphia Code, entitled “Income Inequality Initiative – Earned Income Tax Credit,” requires all employers to provide notice… Read more »

Posted: December 26, 2014
Overview of 2014 Year-End Tax Planning The arrival of year-end presents special opportunities for most small businesses to take steps in lowering their tax liability. The starting point is to run projections to determine the income and tax bracket for this year and what it may be next year. Once this is known, decisions can… Read more »

Posted: November 29, 2014
Overview of Year-End Tax Planning: As the year-end quickly approaches, there is still time to do year-end tax planning to generate significant tax savings. As many of you know, changes to the tax laws in 2013 made many tax rates (subject to cost of living adjustments) and certain tax breaks permanent. The President has signed… Read more »

Posted: September 01, 2014
How Grandparents Can Help Grandchildren and Save Taxes Too With college tuition coming due, families should consider tax efficient ways to pay for these expenses. Grandparents who wish to help their children with tuition costs can take advantage of some special gift tax breaks. Grandparents have the usual annual present interest gift tax exclusion (now… Read more »

Posted: June 19, 2014
Streamlined Foreign Offshore Procedure Offers Tax and Compliance Relief For US Citizens Living Abroad A couple of weeks ago, I had someone come in my office who has lived abroad since he was 7 years old. He is a citizen of the United States and Netherlands. He has never filed United States income tax returns…. Read more »

Posted: March 04, 2014
Philip Seymour Hoffman: Estate Planning Lessons To Be Learned The sad and tragic death of Philip Seymour Hoffman at age 46 is yet another reminder of the importance of estate planning. Most of us go along each day not thinking or worrying about what would happen to our loved ones if we suddenly died. Some,… Read more »

Posted: December 22, 2013
Year-End Tax Planning For Businesses The arrival of year-end presents special opportunities for most small businesses to take steps in lowering their tax liability. The starting point is to run projections to determine the income and tax bracket for this year and what it may be next year. Once this is known, decisions can be… Read more »

Posted: November 02, 2013
2013 IRS TAX SCAM ALERT: PHONY IRS AGENTS The IRS just renewed its October, 2013 warning about a pervasive phone scam that continues to target people across the nation, including recent immigrants. The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration called it the largest scam of its kind. As of March 20, this tax division reported… Read more »

Posted: October 17, 2013
Same-Sex Marriage Tax Guide: Essential Tax Rules and Tips Federal tax rules for same-sex couples have recently been issued in response to the Supreme Court decision in Windsor, No. 12-307 (U.S. 6/26/13). This landmark case invalidated a key provision of the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act (“DOMA”) and resulted in major changes in the tax… Read more »

Posted: October 08, 2013
2013 Tax Planning Overview As the year-end quickly approaches, there is still time to do some year-end tax planning. This 2013 tax year will be tough on many taxpayers due to recent tax law changes and the uncertain future of tax reform. Basically, taxpayers will have to deal with the following recent tax law changes:… Read more »

Posted: August 23, 2013
Pennsylvania Provides Special Inheritance Tax Break For Certain Family Owned Businesses Pennsylvania has provides an inheritance tax break for transfers of businesses to certain family members for estates of someone who died on or after July 1, 2013. Qualification For Inheritance Tax Exemption: To qualify for this Qualified Family Owned Business exemption under new Section… Read more »

Posted: July 09, 2013
The IRS Is Aware That Employers Do Not Comply With Employment Tax Rules and Have Increased Enforcement The Treasury Inspector General of For Tax Administration recently issued a report entitled Employers Do Not Always Follow Internal Revenue Service Determination Rulings that indicated the employers just do not get it when it comes to treating workers… Read more »
Posted: December 04, 2012
2012 Year-End Tax Planning Strategies With less than 30 days left in 2012, there is still time to do some year-end tax planning. This 2012 tax year is more difficult in that no one knows how the tax laws may change before the end of the year. With certain tax deductions and credits due to… Read more »

Posted: November 06, 2012
Casualty Loss Deduction For Hurricane Sandy My last post talked about when we can trash tax and other important records. Well, Hurricane Sandy brought a whole new meaning to the concept of trashing records and a whole lot more. Experts estimate that Hurricane Sandy has caused $50 billion of damage. Eqecat Inc., a financial advisory… Read more »

Posted: October 23, 2012
Tax Record Retention Guidelines Papers, papers and still more papers. When can I destroy these documents? There are no hard and fast rules in this area. The following offers some general guidance to carefully consider when determining any destruction of documents. Against the urge to purge, remember that maintaining documents and records is often essential… Read more »