Now in 2013 the standard mileage rate has increased a penny, which is used to reimburse employees who drive their own vehicles for business. You may also use the rate to value the personal use of employees’ moderately priced (2012 amounts were $15,900 for cars and $16,700 for SUVs) company cars.
We would like to remind you of the substantiation and reporting requirements that apply to the personal use of autos that are owned or leased by your corporation. It is important that you comply with these requirements to avoid the potential loss of deductions, plus penalties, and interest if you are ever audited.  First, [...]
Beginning tax year 2013, a new Additional Medicare Tax (a provision of the Affordable Care Act) of 0.9 percent applies to individuals’ Medicare taxable wages, compensation, or self-employment income that exceeds certain threshold amounts based on their filing status. For more information about this tax, see the IRS Q&A for the Additional Medicare Tax. [...]
Business Use The standard mileage rate for transportation or travel expenses is 56.5 cents per mile for all miles of business use (business standard mileage rate).  Charitable Use The standard mileage rate is 14 cents per mile for use of an automobile in rendering gratuitous services to a charitable organization under § 170.  [...]
Working with our CPA associate, we would like to remind you of the tax rules that apply to shareholders of S-Corporations who own 2% or more of the stock and receive certain fringe benefits. It is important that you comply with these requirements before year end, otherwise you risk the loss of your shareholder health [...]
April 15 is getting uncomfortably close. QuickBooks, of course, can’t do your taxes for you. But it helps you lay some of the groundwork. Following up on last month’s column on customizing reports, we’ll look at the program’s tax-related reports and its powerful report-filtering options. But first, you’ll need to make sure that this output [...]
The IRS issued new reporting regulations for tax year 2011 1099-MISC form. These regulations will exclude some forms of payments from the 1099-MISC form; instead, the payments will be reported on the new third party form 1099-K.
The IRS issued new reporting regulations for tax year 2011 1099-MISC form. These regulations will exclude some forms of payments from the 1099-MISC form; instead, the payments will be reported on the new third party form 1099-K. If you have made payments to vendors in tax year 2011 you will only need to report certain [...]
The IRS has evidently changed it’s mind about increasing the standard business mileage rate in light of the increased costs of gasoline etc. Effective July 1st through the end of December 2011 the new standard business mileage rate is 55.5¢
Effective July 1, 2011, the one percent sales and use tax rate increase that was approved with the state budget and effective April 1, 2009, will expire lowering the statewide base tax rate from 8.25 percent to 7.25 percent.
Business Mileage Rate has increased from 2010′s .50¢ to 2011′s .51¢ (read on for more info)
For the first time in the history of Social Security (at least in my lifetime) the employee’s portion of the Social Security tax is NOT equal to the employer’s portion!! The employers are now paying a full 2% more into Social Security than the employees are contributing. (read on for details)
How to save 6.2% in employer paid Social Security Taxes and reap a $1000 tax credit on eligible employees! Read more about The HIRE Act of 2010.
The IRS’s National Research Program (NRP) isn’t as benign as it sounds. NRP’s are intensive, line-by-line audits, which are intended to give the IRS basement compliance data for future enforcement efforts. The Payroll NRP, which will be conducted by the IRS’s Small Business/Self-Employed Division, was scheduled to start last November, but actually will begin this [...]
Special Tax Treatment for your expenses! Business Start-Up Costs Start-up costs are amounts paid or incurred for: (a) creating an active trade or business; or (b) investigating the creation or acquisition of an active trade or business. Start-up costs include amounts paid or incurred in connection with an existing activity engaged in for profit; and [...]
One of the advantages of operating your own business is hiring family members. However, the employment tax requirements for family employees may vary from those that apply to other employees. Below, we point out some issues to consider when operating a husband and wife business. How spouses earn Social Security benefits A spouse is considered [...]
If your employees use cell phones for company business while driving, make sure your policy requires hands-free devices. Then educate employees about the policy. Reason: California law bans the use of hand-held cell phones while driving a motor vehicle. The law carries a $20 fine for a first offense and a $50 fine for all [...]
Assorted Do’s and Don’ts Do withhold FICA on part-timers, including retirees. Even if someone who works for you part-time also has a full-time job where they have had 100% of their FICA withheld for the year, you must withhold the full amount of FICA from their pay. These individuals can obtain a refund of any [...]
Take the stress out of filing 1099-MISC forms every year! Following these steps makes this task worry free! 1. Obtain W9′s 2. Edit QuickBooks Preferences 3. Setup up Vendors for 1099 reporting 4. Use the QuickBooks reports as tools to bullet proof your process! View our Webinar’s Powerpoint at: http://tinyurl.com/AdvantEdge
Just an FYI – Effective November 1, 2009, California Personal Income Tax (PIT) Withholding Schedules Replaced Watch for computer updates to your software!! If you are not using MAS or QuickBooks payroll, the modified schedules can be downloaded from EDD’s web site at http://www.edd.ca.gov/Payroll_Taxes/Rates_and_Withholding.htm#2009PITWithholdingSchedules
F had a full-time job and ran a small store on the side that had a loss its first full year. F deducted the loss on Sched. C. Because he had no proof of any business transactions, the IRS deleted the F’s return both revenues and expenses. F appealed to the Tax Court, this time [...]
Some may face underpayment of FIT Because of the new withholding tables under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, some employees might want to adjust their 2009 FITW by submitting a new W-4 now. The Act reduced FITW to reflect the Make Work Pay tax credit. But for some employees, that adjustment may result in [...]
Employers were required to begin using the new I-9 on April 3, 2009. Using the old edition – which was dated 06.05.2007 – could trigger fines.  Click here for the new form in English (if you require the Spanish form, send us an email with I-9 in the subject and we’ll send it to you.
This morning, July 1st, brought a BIG change in the way you pay your employment payroll taxes! If you are using software, like QuickBooks, for your payroll, make SURE that you have the latest update in place before you try to pay June’s taxes or file 2nd quarter tax returns. While having the latest updates is [...]
What this means to you: Contemporaneous means; you may not reconstruct mileage logs after the fact. Therefore, you may want to require logs each time an employee returns a vehicle or returns from a trip or at least require reports on a weekly basis. The IRS has denied companies the whole automobile expense deduction, and [...]
