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Following what was described as a successful launch of beneficial ownership information reporting requirements, officials from the Department of the Treasury found themselves before the House Financial Services Committee defending the regulations.


The IRS has issued a warning to small businesses regarding potential issues with Employee Retention Credit (ERC) claims as the March 22, 2024 deadline for the ERC Voluntary Disclosure Program approaches. Seven suspicious warning signs have been identified based on feedback from tax professionals and compliance personnel. These signs may indicate erroneous claims and could lead to IRS scrutiny. 


The IRS has issued the luxury car depreciation limits for business vehicles placed in service in 2024 and the lease inclusion amounts for business vehicles first leased in 2024.


The Internal Revenue Service has reviewed, redesigned and deployed 31 notices for the 2024 tax filing season in an effort to simplify the notices and improve their clarity.

This is a part of a broader effort to simplify up to 90 percent of the notices the agency sends out to taxpayers on an annual basis.


The IRS, with its Criminal Investigation (CI) arm, has urged businesses to review eligibility for the Employee Retention Credit (ERC). To combat fraud, they intensified compliance efforts related to this pandemic-era credit. Businesses wrongly claiming the ERC are advised to consider applying for the Voluntary Disclosure Program before the March 22 deadline. A special withdrawal program is also available for those with eligibility concerns on pending claims. 


The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has published a Small Entity Compliance Guide (Guide) to provide an overview of the Beneficial Ownership Information Access and Safeguards Rule (Access Rule) requirements for small entities that obtain beneficial ownership information (BOI) from FinCEN. 


The Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service have released new analysis that shows the additional funding provided to the IRS under the Inflation Reduction Act can increase revenues by"as much as" $561 billion.


The American Institute of CPAs offered a series of guidance recommendations to the Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service to help provide clarity on a notice issued by the IRS on changes to the regulation for Roth IRA catch-up contributions made by SECURE 2.0.


As part of the ongoing efforts to improve tax compliance in high income categories, the IRS will begin dozens of audits on business aircraft involving personal use. 


If you converted your traditional IRA to a Roth IRA earlier this year, incurred a significant amount of tax liability on the conversion, and then watched as the value of your Roth account plummeted amid the market turmoil, you may want to consider undoing the conversion. You can void or significantly lower your tax bill by recharacterizing the conversion, then reconverting your IRA back to a Roth at a later date. Careful timing in using the strategy, however, is essential.

If you are finally ready to part with those old gold coins, baseball cards, artwork, or jewelry your grandmother gave you, and want to sell the item, you may be wondering what the tax consequences will be on the disposition of the item (or items). This article explains some of the basic tax consequences of the sale of a collectible, such as that antique vase or gold coin collection.


With the economic downturn taking its toll on almost all facets of everyday living, from employment to personal and business expenditures, your business may be losing money as well. As a result, your business may have a net operating loss (NOL). Although no business wants to suffer losses, there are tax benefits to having an NOL for tax purposes. Moreover, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 temporarily enhances certain NOL carryback rules.

You have carefully considered the multitude of complex tax and financial factors, run the numbers, meet the eligibility requirements, and are ready to convert your traditional IRA to a Roth IRA. The question now remains, however, how do you convert your IRA?

It is a common decision you may make every tax season: whether to take the standard deduction or itemize deductions. Most taxpayers have the choice of itemizing deductions or taking the applicable standard deduction amount, the choice resting on which figure will result in a higher deduction. Once you have determined the standard deduction amount that applies to you, the next step is calculating the amount of your allowable itemized deductions; not always a simple task.

In a period of declining stock prices, tax benefits may not be foremost in your mind. Nevertheless, you may be able to salvage some benefits from the drop in values. Not only can you reduce your taxable income, but you may be able to move out of unfavorable investments and shift your portfolio to investments that you are more comfortable with.

The high cost of energy has nearly everyone looking for ways to conserve and save money, especially with colder weather coming to many parts of the country. One surprising place to find help is in the financial markets rescue package (the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008) recently passed by Congress. Overshadowed by the financial provisions are some very important energy tax incentives that could save you money at home and in your business.

Nonbusiness creditors may deduct bad debts when they become totally worthless (i.e. there is no chance of its repayment). The proper year for the deduction can generally be established by showing that an insolvent debtor has not timely serviced a debt and has either refused to pay any part of the debt in the future, gone through bankruptcy, or disappeared. Thus, if you have loaned money to a friend or family member that you are unable to collect, you may have a bad debt that is deductible on your personal income tax return.

With the U.S. and world financial markets in turmoil, many individual investors may be watching the value of their stock seesaw, or have seen it plummet in value. If the value of your shares are trading at very low prices, or have no value at all, you may be wondering if you can claim a worthless securities deduction for the stock on your 2008 tax return.

Individuals with $400 or more of net earnings from self-employment must pay self-employment tax, in addition to any income tax imposed on the same income. This article can help you estimate any self-employment tax liability that you may owe for 2008.

Contributions to political campaigns are nondeductible. Nondeductible campaign contributions include, for example, contributions to pay for campaign expenses as well as contributions to pay for a candidate's personal expenses while the candidate is campaigning. The line sometimes gets gray, however, when a contribution is being made for a charitable purpose that is being sponsored by a political candidate or is being made to a charity that also appears to be endorsing a political candidate as opposed to a particular position within the public discourse.

Move over hybrids - buyers of Volkswagen and Mercedes diesel vehicles now qualify for the valuable alternative motor vehicle tax credit. Previously, the credit had gone only to hybrid vehicles. Now, the IRS has qualified certain VW and Mercedes diesels as "clean" as a hybrid.

Education continues to become increasingly expensive. The Tax Code provides a variety of significant tax breaks to help pay for the rising costs of education, from elementary and secondary school to college. Some people are surprised at what is available these days, as the dust settles on tax rules that have been in transition now for a number of years. A good place to start educating yourself on these education-related tax incentives - to help yourself or a member of your family better tackle the rising expense of education - is right here.