Maximize Your American Opportunity for Education Tax Benefits
Article Highlights: American Opportunity Credit provides up to $2,500 of tax credit for the cost of post-secondary tuition in each of the first four years of attendance. The credit may be partially refundable. Credit is claimed on the tax return of the individual claiming the student’s tax exemption. The $2,500 credit is a per-student limitation, […]
16 Tax Issues Facing Small Business Owners in 2014
2014 will be a challenging tax year for businesses and higher-income taxpayers. The following issues are concerns that may impact you and your company’s tax liability in the new year. Small Business Health Insurance Credit – The tax credit to small employers (25 or fewer equivalent full-time employees) that provide an affordable health insurance plan […]
Tax Breaks for Charity Volunteers
If you volunteer your time for a charity, you may qualify for tax breaks. Although no tax deduction is allowed for the value of services performed for a charity, some deductions are permitted for out-of-pocket costs incurred while performing the services. The normal deduction limits and substantiation rules also apply. The following are some examples: […]
Beware of Bogus IRS Emails
Every tax-filing season, the scammers and ID thieves try to sucker people into providing personal and financial information through the use of phony e-mails. The IRS receives thousands of reports every year from taxpayers who received emails out of the blue claiming to be from the IRS. Scammers use the IRS name or logo to […]
Individual Estimated Tax Payments for 2013 Start Soon
Our tax system is a “pay-as-you-go” system, and if your pre-paid amount is not enough, you become liable for non-deductible interest penalties. To facilitate that concept, the government has provided several means of assisting taxpayers in meeting the “pay-as-you-go” requirement. The primary among these include: Payroll withholding for employees; Pension withholding for retirees; and Estimated […]
Checking the Status of Your Federal Tax Refund is Easy
If you already filed your federal tax return and are due a refund, you can check the status of your refund online. Where’s My Refund? is an interactive tool on the IRS web site. Whether you split your refund among several accounts, opted for direct deposit into one account, or asked the IRS to mail you […]
2013 Will Hit Higher-Income Taxpayers Hard – Be Prepared
Now that Congress has passed the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 (ATRA) and avoided the so-called “fiscal cliff,” higher-income taxpayers need to brace for higher taxes. There are numerous provisions in the ATRA that don’t provide the higher-income taxpayer any relief, and when these are combined with the provisions of the 2010 Affordable Health […]
Energy Costs Rise as Tax Incentives Fade
With energy costs skyrocketing, you would think that the federal government would come up with some tax incentives aimed at curbing the consumption of energy. However, on the consumer end of taxes, the incentives are actually fading away. Apparently, federal lawmakers and administrators believe the high cost of energy itself is incentive enough to reduce […]
Prepared for the New Surtax?
As part of Obama Care, we have a new tax beginning in 2013. The official name of this tax is the “Unearned Income Medicare Contribution Tax,” and even though the name implies it is a contribution, don’t get the idea you deduct it as a charitable contribution. It is, in actuality, a surtax levied on […]
Revising Your W-4? Seek Professional Advice.
This time of the year, many employers will request from their employees updated W-4 forms (and the equivalent state form for those who live in a state with income tax). The W-4 form allows you to specify your filing status and the number of dependent exemptions to be used for figuring the amount of income […]
