Reap tax rewards for travel and entertainment What are your plans for the summer? If you have a business trip scheduled for a place you would like to visit personally, you might decide to combine a little pleasure with your business. Similarly, you may invite some of your best clients to your home for a [...]
Small business owners must remain alert It seems to be in the news every other day: A trusted longtime employee is found guilty of embezzling money from his or her employer. This may give you momentary pause, but then it is likely that you will simply continue to go about your business. After all, this [...]
Did you use your vehicle for business driving in 2016? Generally, you can deduct expenses on your tax return in one of two ways: the actual expense method or the IRS-approved standard mileage rate. Here is a brief comparison: Actual expense method: As the name implies, you can deduct actual expenses attributable to business use [...]
Are you pulling your hair out right now trying to figure out a tax deduction from a credit? Or worse, do I need file a separate business tax form for your new LLC? According to a recent NerdWallet survey, you are not alone. Out of eight questions about IRS rules for common deductions, retirement, and [...]
People are living longer these days than they did five, 10 or 20 years ago. Of course, that is good news, but it also means that you may have to provide a bigger cushion in retirement than you had initially intended. What’s more, uncertainty over future Social Security benefits as baby boomers continue to swell [...]
The IRS, the nation’s tax collection agency, has identified a select group of four private contractors that will begin collecting federal tax debts during the 2016 tax return filing season. Background: Under the Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) Act of 2015, a highway spending measure, the IRS can assign private companies to collect taxes on [...]
Do you operate a business out of your home? It could be your main line of work, and your only source of business income, or just a sideline activity. Depending on your circumstances, you may be entitled to a generous tax deduction for this “home office” on your 2016 tax return. However, the rules [...]
Made in Alabama products topped $20.6 billion – that’s TWENTY BILLION with a B – in 2016. That represents a 6.4% increase over 2015 numbers, per the US Department of Commerce. The previous high water mark was $19.6B back in 2012. Made in Alabama Alabama exports have risen 48% in the last ten years [...]
The IRS pays close attention to deductions claimed for business travel expenses. Both employers and employees must meet strict recordkeeping requirements or face the consequences. Fortunately, you can obtain some relief by using IRS-approved per diem allowances in lieu of accounting for every expense. Now the IRS has updated its per diem rates for [...]
It is now 2017. Do you know where your business budget is? This is the traditional time to draw up a budget for the coming year. Perhaps the way you previously developed the budget for your business has not been overly successful. Or maybe you have found as the year goes along that certain key [...]