Sales Tax Issues In a case with nationwide ramifications, on June 21st the US Supreme Court overturned the old Quill corporation decision in the case of South Dakota versus Wayfair, which will now allow individual states to attempt to collect sales tax from out-of-state sellers, such as online and website sales. Since 1967, remote vendors without a physical presence in a state could not be forced to collect sales tax. In… Read more
IRS Unveils Draft Form 1040 ‘Postcard’ But Critics Are Not Impressed The new Form 1040 released by the Treasury Department this week meet the administration’s promise of a smaller “postcard style” tax form, but skepticism remains on whether the revisions are a meaningful step toward tax simplification. A draft version of the 2018 Form 1040, available here, reduces the number of line-items from 79 to 23 and shortens it from two… Read more
Just Say No! Being open to new possibilities is a positive trait shared by most entrepreneurs—but saying yes to all the people you meet and opportunities that come your way can get you into trouble. When we over commit—especially when we take on projects that don’t actually benefit our business—our stress can hit the roof. It’s much hard to be productive when we’re feeling burned out and resentful. One of… Read more
F Recent Court Case Illustrates that a contemporaneous mileage log is required. • Edwards, T.C. Memo. 2018-44 Written contemporaneous mileage logs are a requirement to claim a deduction for business mileage. The taxpayer’s job required him to respond to emergencies, such as floods and hurricanes that could adversely affect the state’s transportation system. He was responsible for supervising communications and for assigning personnel and equipment to disaster locations. For a… Read more
According to Google, which offers employees a course on mindfulness meditation, and Lululemon, a company that keeps a Director of Mindfulness on staff, the answer is a resounding yes. Mindfulness, as American scientist Jon Kabat-Zinn defines it, is simply “paying attention in a sustained and particular way – on purpose, in the present moment and non-judgmentally.” Research has shown that practicing mindful meditation can lead to reduced stress, lowered blood… Read more
Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 On February 9, 2018, the President signed into law H.R. 1892, the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018, which extends federal funding for the government. The law also contains a number of tax provisions, including the extension of a number of provisions that had expired as of the end of 2016. These changes affect the preparation of 2017 tax returns. This may delay filing of returns until the IRS… Read more
Currently, owners of partnerships, S corporations, and sole proprietorships – as “pass-through” entities – pay tax at the individual rates, with the highest rate at 39.6 percent. The highest rate is reduced to 37 percent under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. The Act also allows a temporary deduction in an amount equal to 20 percent of qualified income of pass-through entities, subject to a number of limitations and qualifications.… Read more
Tax Reform Guidance “Job One” At IRS Implementing the new tax law will dominate the guidance landscape for 2018, practitioners said at a recent Tax Reform Conference sponsored by the DC Bar Association. NSA Executive VP John Ams, who attended the conference, said that a number of Treasury and IRS attorneys responsible for implementation of the tax reform bill were panelists at the conference but few had any answers. “That’s… Read more
Re: 2017 Tax Cuts Act: What it Means For Individuals The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act was signed by President Trump on December 22. The Act makes sweeping changes to the U.S. tax code and impacts virtually every taxpayer. Individuals are more impacted by the provisions of the act than any other class of taxpayer. With the reduction in effective tax rates, the elimination of some deductions, exclusions, and… Read more
If you need a car to operate your business, you may wonder whether it makes more sense to purchase or lease. On the one hand, if your business owns the car you’ll have a long-term asset and may qualify for more tax deductions. On the other hand, buying a car is a huge expense and monthly lease payments tend to be lower than car loan payments; they may also be… Read more
A new Tax Bill was introduced in early December and we can be sure of at least one thing: future tax rates are going to change. Because this is a year-end 2017 letter, our guidance in this letter is aimed at 2017 tax planning rather than predicting 2018, but one thing we are pretty sure of is that tax rates will be lower in 2018. The general guidance for most… Read more
Minimum-wage rate adjusted for inflation as of Jan. 1, 2018 Minnesota’s minimum-wage rates will be adjusted for inflation beginning Jan. 1, 2018, to $9.65 an hour for large employers and $7.87 an hour for other state minimum wages. Under Minnesota law, the commissioner of the Department of Labor and Industry is required to determine and announce the inflation-adjusted minimum-wage rate each year by Aug. 31. This year, the change in… Read more
According to recent research, a staggering two thirds of US millionaire-owned businesses are operating without a succession plan—and even fewer small business owners around the globe are prepared for their CEO’s eventual exit. Recent stats from PWC Global show that family owned businesses are no more prepared: 43% don’t have a succession plan in place, and only 12% survive to the third generation. No matter whether your company has one… Read more
For bootstrapping young businesses, making a professional first impression as you build your brand is key. Although hiring a branding expert may be too large an expense in the early days, you can still help your business stand out in the best possible way without breaking the bank. Just follow these simple marketing moves that will help people to know, like, and trust you. 1. Build credibility with your own… Read more
Wondering if you’re doing everything you can to boost revenue and cut costs? Or if your business is actually more profitable this year than it was last? The best way to answer these questions is with a thorough assessment of profitability. That’s where gross and net profit calculations come in. These are two of the most important metrics for measuring your capacity to generate earnings relative to costs and expenses.… Read more
This year, do not forget to save your school supply receipts. Most school supplies could qualify for valuable K-12 tax benefits on your 2017 Minnesota income tax return. There are two tax benefits that help Minnesota families pay educational expenses: the refundable K-12 education credit (income limits apply) and the K-12 subtraction (no income limits). Both programs reduce the tax parents pay and could provide a larger refund when filing… Read more
Perhaps you’d always planned to build a thriving business to eventually sell for a tidy sum – or maybe for unexpected personal reasons it’s best to let your company go sooner rather than later. No matter what the reason for selling your business, experts agree: it’s best to be prepared well in advance as it can take years to complete a successful sale. These four tips will help you get… Read more
As the attached article says, accountants and tax prepares are being targeted by thieves attempting to gain access to the information we have on our clients. We will never click or open an attachment that appears to be from a clients unless we know it is coming. It is much better to mail these items to us, or upload to our online portal. If we do not respond to an… Read more
All Employers in U.S. Must Switch to New Form I-9 for Employees Hired in U.S. on or after September 18, 2017 On July 17, 2017 the USCIS released its new version of Form I-9. All employers in the U.S. must use only the new form with a revision date of July 17, 2017 for employees who begin work on or after September 18, 2017. The I-9 Form is mandatory for… Read more
Earlier this year, Minnesota lawmakers passed legislation to match the federal code in several areas for tax years 2015 and 2016. We want to give you an update on where we are at in making necessary adjustments to income tax returns affected by this legislation. 2015 Tax Returns We recently started reviewing all 2015 Minnesota income tax returns. If a taxpayer was affected by changes made to the 2015 tax… Read more