9 Tax Considerations if you're Starting a Business as a Sole Proprietor

When launching a small business, many entrepreneurs start out as sole proprietors. If you’re launching a venture as a sole proprietorship, you need to understand the tax issues involved. Here are nine considerations: 1. You may qualify for the pass-through deduction. To the extent your business generates qualified business income, you’re currently eligible to claim the 20% pass-through deduction, subject to limitations. The deduction is taken “below the line,” meaning it reduces taxable income, rather than being taken “above the line” against your gross income. However, you can take the deduction even if you don’t itemize deductions and instead claim the standard deduction. Be aware that this deduction is only available through 2025, unless Congress acts to extend it. 2. You report income and expenses on Schedule...

If Your Gave to Charity in 2023, Check to See That You Have Substantiation

Did you donate to charity last year? Acknowledgment letters from the charities you gave to may have already shown up in your mailbox. But if you don’t receive such a letter, can you still claim a deduction for the gift on your 2023 income tax return? It depends. What the law requires To prove a charitable donation for which you claim a tax deduction, you must comply with IRS substantiation requirements. For a donation of $250 or more, this includes obtaining a contemporaneous written acknowledgment from the charitable organization stating the amount of the donation, whether you received any goods or services in consideration for the donation and the value of any such goods or services. “Contemporaneous” means the earlier of: The date you file your tax return, or ...

Keep Fraud Off Your Restaurant's Menu

The restaurant business is notoriously tough — even without the many fraud threats. The fact is, when you’re operating on very thin profit margins, you can’t afford to lose a cent to thieves. To protect your business from ill-intentioned employees, customers and vendors, take steps to fortify your restaurant against fraud. Gaps for exploitation Your restaurant may have high transaction volumes but lack the technology linking point-of-sale, inventory and accounting systems. This leaves gaps for fraudsters to exploit. Employees could, for example, provide food and drinks to friends without entering the sales — or ring up only a portion of their friends’ bills. They might issue voids or refunds when there was no original sale and pocket the proceeds. Or they could overcharge customers by, say, charging...

Update on IRS Efforts to Combat Questionable ERTC Claims

The Employee Retention Tax Credit (ERTC) was introduced back when COVID-19 temporarily closed many businesses. The credit provided cash that helped enable struggling businesses to retain employees. Even though the ERTC expired for most employers at the end of the third quarter of 2021, it could still be claimed on amended returns after that. According to the IRS, it began receiving a deluge of “questionable” ERTC claims as some unscrupulous promotors asserted that large tax refunds could easily be obtained — even though there are stringent eligibility requirements. “We saw aggressive marketing around this credit, and well-intentioned businesses were misled into filing claims,” explained IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel. Last year, in a series of actions, the IRS began cracking down on potentially fraudulent claims. They began with...

IRAs: Build a Tax-Favored Retirement Nest Egg

Although traditional IRAs and Roth IRAs have been around for decades, the rules involved have changed many times. The Secure 2.0 law, which was enacted at the end of 2022, brought even more changes that made IRAs more advantageous for many taxpayers. What hasn’t changed is that they can help you save for retirement on a tax-favored basis. Here’s an overview of the basic rules and some of the recent changes. Rules for traditional IRAs You can make an annual deductible contribution to a traditional IRA if: You (and your spouse) aren’t active participants in employer-sponsored retirement plans, or You (or your spouse) are active participants in an employer plan, and your modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) doesn’t exceed certain levels that vary annually by filing status. For...

Ready, Set, Value!

When the parties know what to expect at each phase of a business valuation project, it makes the process easier for everyone. This awareness promotes collaboration and timeliness, as well as minimizes potential surprises, misunderstandings and rework. Here’s the five-step process that’s used when valuing a business or interest in a business. Engaging a valuation expert The first step is retaining a business valuation professional and agreeing on the price, deliverables and scope of the assignment. Typically, the valuator and client sign an engagement letter, which serves as a legally binding contract that helps the parties understand such parameters as the: Company being valued, Percentage or number of shares to appraise, Effective valuation date, Standard of value (such as fair market value, fair value or...

Answers to Your Tax Season Questions

The IRS announced it opened the 2024 income tax return filing season on January 29. That’s when the tax agency began accepting and processing 2023 tax year returns. Here are answers to seven tax season questions we receive at this time of year. (1)  What are this year’s deadlines? The filing deadline to submit 2023 returns or file an extension is Monday, April 15, 2024, for most taxpayers. Taxpayers living in Maine or Massachusetts have until April 17, due to state holidays. If taxpayers reside in a federally declared disaster area, they may have additional time to file. (2) When is my return due if I request an extension? If you’re requesting an extension, you’ll have until October 15, 2024, to file. Keep in mind that an extension of time...

Generative AI Can Help Prevent, Detect and Investigate Fraud

You may already be familiar with artificial intelligence (AI) and even use it in business applications. What about generative AI (Gen AI)? Gen AI typically is used to create new content (such as text, images, code and video) from raw data and includes such popular systems as Grok, ChatGPT and DALL-E. Gen AI can also help reduce, uncover and combat fraud. However, there may be ethical and legal implications of using these applications. Digital decisions Fraud can occur when a perpetrator finds one or more weaknesses in a company’s defenses and exploits them, creating patterns of activity. Finding these patterns quickly is critical to minimizing losses. Traditional fraud detection engines rely on rules to detect suspicious activity. Once the technology detects a transaction that fits a pattern, the...

Tax-Favored Qualified Small Business Corporation Status Could Help You Thrive

Operating your small business as a Qualified Small Business Corporation (QSBC) could be a tax-wise idea. Tax-free treatment for eligible stock gains QSBCs are the same as garden-variety C corporations for tax and legal purposes — except QSBC shareholders are potentially eligible to exclude from federal income tax 100% of their stock sale gains. That translates into a 0% federal income tax rate on QSBC stock sale profits! However, you must meet several requirements set forth in Section 1202 of the Internal Revenue Code, and not all shares meet the tax-law description of QSBC stock. Finally, there are limitations on the amount of QSBC stock sale gain that you can exclude in any one tax year (but they’re unlikely to apply). Stock acquisition date is key The 100% federal...