News and Posts

  When launching a small business, many entrepreneurs start out as sole proprietors. If you’re launching a venture as a sole proprietorship, you need to understand the tax issues involved. Here are nine considerations: 1. You may qualify for the pass-through deduction. To the extent your business generates qualified business income, you’re currently eligible to claim the 20% pass-through deduction, subject to limitations. The deduction [...]

  As part of the SECURE 2.0 law, there’s a new benefit option for employees facing emergencies. It’s called a pension-linked emergency savings account (PLESA) and the provision authorizing it became effective for plan years beginning January 1, 2024. The IRS recently released guidance about the accounts (in Notice 2024-22) and the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) published some frequently asked questions to help employers, [...]

  When you file your tax return, a tax filing status must be chosen. This status is used to determine your standard deduction, tax rates, eligibility for certain tax breaks and your correct tax. The five filing statuses are: Single Married filing jointly, Married filing separately, Head of household, and Qualifying surviving spouse. If you’re married, you may wonder if you should file joint or [...]

  Operating your small business as a Qualified Small Business Corporation (QSBC) could be a tax-wise idea. Tax-free treatment for eligible stock gains QSBCs are the same as garden-variety C corporations for tax and legal purposes — except QSBC shareholders are potentially eligible to exclude from federal income tax 100% of their stock sale gains. That translates into a 0% federal income tax rate on [...]

Did you donate to charity last year? Acknowledgment letters from the charities you gave to may have already shown up in your mailbox. But if you don’t receive such a letter, can you still claim a deduction for the gift on your 2023 income tax return? It depends. What the law requires To prove a charitable donation for which you claim a tax deduction, you [...]

  Economic, social and political events in 2024 have the potential to negatively influence your not-for-profit’s budget. So if you generally prepare static budgets well in advance of each fiscal year, you may want to switch things up. Rolling budgets can provide your organization with greater flexibility. And in the event of major changes, you may even want to consider reforecasting your current budget. Rolling budgets [...]

  If your business has significant inventory on its balance sheet, it can be costly. The carrying costs of inventory include warehousing, salaries, insurance, taxes, and transportation, as well as depreciation and shrinkage. Plus, tying up working capital in inventory detracts from other strategic investment opportunities. Reducing these costs can help improve a company’s profits and boost operating cash flow. Here are two alternative inventory [...]

  Not-for-profits aren’t required to produce audited financial statements. But audited statements are more likely to reassure big donors and grant makers about your financial stability and generally will be required if your organization applies for a bank loan. When you hire a CPA to audit your statements, the auditor is responsible for expressing an opinion on them and obtaining reasonable assurance that they’re free [...]

  Financial reporting plays a key role when a business needs funds for continued operations and strategic investment opportunities. Lenders and investors will generally want to review your company’s financial statements before they give it money. Timely, reliable reports can increase the odds that a bank will approve your company’s loan application and equity investors will provide capital. Relevant financial information Financial statements are a [...]

  Although traditional IRAs and Roth IRAs have been around for decades, the rules involved have changed many times. The Secure 2.0 law, which was enacted at the end of 2022, brought even more changes that made IRAs more advantageous for many taxpayers. What hasn’t changed is that they can help you save for retirement on a tax-favored basis. Here’s an overview of the basic [...]

  Engaging in a merger or acquisition (M&A) can help your business grow, but it also can be risky. Buyers must understand the strengths and weaknesses of their intended partners or acquisition targets before entering the transactions. A robust due diligence process does more than assess the reasonableness of the sales price. It also can help verify the seller’s disclosures, confirm the target’s strategic fit, [...]

The IRS announced it will open the 2024 income tax return filing season on January 29. That’s when the tax agency will begin accepting and processing 2023 tax year returns. Here are answers to seven tax season questions we receive at this time of year. 1. What are this year’s deadlines? The filing deadline to submit 2023 returns or file an extension is Monday, April [...]

  Does your business file 10 or more information returns with the IRS? If so, you must now file them electronically. This is a significant rule change that went into effect on January 1, 2024, for 2023 tax year information returns. The threshold for electronically filing most information returns has dropped from 250 to 10. Before the new rule, only businesses filing 250 or more information [...]

  As audit season begins for calendar-year entities, it’s important to review issues that may arise during fieldwork. One common issue is materiality. This concept is used to determine what’s important enough to be included in — and what can be omitted from — a financial statement. Here’s how materiality is determined and used during an external financial statement audit. What is materiality? Under U.S. [...]