Category: Taxes
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Tax transcripts
I recommend, but do not require, that tax clients allow me to get a tax transcript from IRS to check the data that IRS has reported to them vs. the data that we have available from our own sources. This procedure adds to the cost of service but catches many errors and avoids IRS trouble…
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Payroll taxes unresolved?
Do you have payroll reporting requirements for the first time in 2018? Or do you have existing payroll but are not happy with the reporting services? Good news: We can offer payroll takeover retroactive to 1/1/2018 with no setup fees and no takeover fees. That’s the best payroll service deal that you will see all…
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#IRSFails
In this blog I’ve occasionally written about the extraordinary level of difficulty I’ve experienced resolving clients’ tax matters with IRS. Most recently posts like “Fun and Games With the IRS” and “Today’s adventures with IRS” attempt to document serious service deficiencies in a lighthearted and almost comical blog post. Today CPA Trendines covers the same…
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The Impact of “Funny Numbers”
Will the ‘tone at the top’ trigger an increase in tax fraud? There are a few topics that I don’t talk about or write about in this blog. It’s usually because they are some combination of distasteful, unethical. illegal, immoral, controversial and a ‘no-win’ situation. One of those topics is accounting fraud. I covered the…
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After an audit: don’t let IRS scare you away from proper deductions
This seems to be an increasingly common scenario: IRS audits a self-prepared tax return and discovers errors taken on deductions1. The taxpayer is assessed additional taxes and penalties. This increases the probability that the following year’s tax return will be audited for the same issues. On the following year the taxpayer typically takes one of three…
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Tax Preparation Fees for 2017 Tax Returns
This post and pricing information is now out of date. “How much do you charge for tax returns?” Of course this is a common question from new and prospective clients during tax season. The answer is that I simply use the published national average fee for tax services as a benchmark. Those rates are published…
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Everything you need to file your income tax return.
About half of us file our own returns and half get professional help. Of the options remote professional tax service is fast, efficient, safe and economical. No matter what method, now is the time to check to e sure you have the information necessary to file. Today is February 4 and you should have everything needed…
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Today’s adventures with IRS
CLIENT #1 – My first telephone call to IRS this morning was dropped at 2 minute 10 seconds while I was on hold before I reached any person. The second call was answered at 32 minutes. I sent a fax to the agent that took another 13 minutes to transmit and confirm. The total call…
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IRS issued more guidance on wage tax withholding
Yesterday the IRS issued more guidance on wage tax withholding rules in response to changes triggered by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. Notice 2018-14 provides guidance to both individual taxpayers and employers on tax withholding requirements for wages. One of the most significant changes is the default rate of withholding on bonuses or supplemental wages is…
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We Fix TurboTax Returns
Over the past few years we’ve noticed acceleration of a trend that is confirmed by other tax accountants. Most of the audit notices from IRS are based on errors in TurboTax returns. This is not to say that there is anything wrong with TurboTax or that IRS is targeting these returns but rather that it…