Late Filing And Late Payment Penalties

April 17 was the deadline for most people to file their federal income tax return and pay any taxes they owe. The bad news is that if you miss the deadline (for whatever reason) you may be assessed penalties for both failing to file a tax return and for failing to pay taxes they owe by the deadline. The good news is that there is no penalty if you file a late tax return but are due a refund.

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Correct Filing Status and Reporting Name Changes

If you haven’t filed your taxes yet, it’s time to stop procrastinating. If you’re not sure what to do first, the fastest way to get started is to figure out which filing status applies to you. In addition, if your name or that of a dependent changed during the tax year for which you are filing, then you will also need to report the name changes to the Social Security Administration.

What Are My Rights If I Am Audited?

An IRS audit is a review/examination of an organization’s or individual’s accounts and financial information to ensure information is reported correctly according to the tax laws and to verify the reported amount of tax is correct. IRS audits are conducted either by mail (e.g., you receive a letter in the mail that you must respond to) or through an in-person interview.

Are You A Small Business Owner Looking for Ways to Reduce Your Taxes?

If you’re like most small business owners, you’re always looking for ways to lower your taxable income (legally of course). Here are five ways to do just that.

Do You Need to Get Information For Previous Tax Years?

Tax season may be over, but you still need to hang onto your tax returns and other tax records for at least three years. However, if the IRS believes you have significantly underreported your income (by 25 percent or more), or believes there may be an indication of fraud they have the authority to go back six years in an audit. Furthermore, some documents including those related to real estate sales should be kept for three years after filing the return on which they reported the transaction.

What to do if you haven’t Filed a Tax Return

Tuesday, April 17, 2018, was the tax deadline for most taxpayers to file their tax returns. If you haven’t filed a 2017 tax return yet, it’s not too late, and it may be easier than you think.

Do You Know the “ABC’s” of an HSA-Health Savings Account?

While similar to FSAs (Flexible Savings Plans) in that both allow pre-tax contributions, Health Savings Accounts or HSAs offer taxpayers several additional tax benefits such as contributions that roll over from year to year (i.e., no “use it or lose it”), tax-free interest on earnings, and when used for qualified medical expenses, tax-free distributions.

Traveling as Part of Your Charitable Giving? You May Have a Tax Deduction!

Do you plan to donate your time to charity?  If travel is part of your charitable giving, for example, driving your personal auto to collect donations from local business, you may be able to deduct these travel expenses on your tax return and lower your tax bill. Here are five tax tips you should know if you travel while giving your services to charity.

2018 Standard Mileage Rates

Beginning on January 1, 2018, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car, van, pickup or panel truck are:

Is a Home Based Business Right for You?

More than half of all businesses today are home-based. Every day, people are striking out and achieving economic and creative independence by turning their skills into dollars. Garages, basements, and attics are being transformed into the corporate headquarters of the newest entrepreneurs–home-based business people.

And, with technological advances in smartphones, tablets, and iPads as well as rising demand for “service-oriented” businesses, the opportunities seem to be endless.