IRS Issues Fact Sheet on Reportable >$10,000 Cash Transactions

(Image copyright belongs to Serge Averbukh) In Fact Sheet 2020-11, the IRS has presented a series of examples where a person might have to file Form 8300, Report of Cash Payments Over $10,000 Received in a Trade or Business. Background Generally, any person in a trade or business who receives more than $10,000 in cash in a single transaction or in related transactions must file a Form 8300, Report of Cash Payments Over $10,000 Received in a Trade or Business. A "person" is an individual, company, corporation, partnership, association, trust or estate. A person must file Form 8300 if they receive cash of more than $10,000 from the same payer or agent: in one lump sum; in two or more related payments within 24 hours, e.g., a 24-hour period is...

New FAWs Address PPP Loan Forgiveness Issues

The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), in consultation with the Department of the Treasury, released guidance on 8/4/2020 answering 23 frequently asked questions (FAQs) regarding the forgiveness of Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans. The PPP Loan Forgiveness FAQs, published in a new 10-page document, are divided into the following four sections addressing different aspects of the process and on calculations PPP borrowers should use to determine how much of their loan is forgivable. General Loan Forgiveness FAQs Loan Forgiveness Payroll Costs FAQs Loan Forgiveness Non-Payroll Costs FAQs Loan Forgiveness Reductions FAQs Borrowers and lenders may rely on the guidance provided in this document as SBA’s interpretation, in consultation with the Department of the Treasury, of the CARES Act, the Flexibility Act, and the Paycheck Protection Program Interim...

Avoiding the Trust Fund Recovery Penalty

If you own or manage a business with employees, you may be at risk for a severe tax penalty. It’s called the “Trust Fund Recovery Penalty” because it applies to the Social Security and income taxes required to be withheld by a business from its employees’ wages. Because the taxes are considered property of the government, the employer holds them in “trust” on the government’s behalf until they’re paid over. The penalty is also sometimes called the “100% penalty” because the person liable and responsible for the taxes will be penalized 100% of the taxes due. Accordingly, the amounts IRS seeks when the penalty is applied are usually substantial, and IRS is very aggressive in enforcing the penalty. Far-reaching penalty The Trust Fund Recovery Penalty is among the...

1099-NEC Debuts in 2020

There’s a new IRS form for business taxpayers that pay or receive nonemployee compensation.  IRS Form 1099-NEC debuts in 2020 and payers must use it to report any payment of $600 or more to a payee. Why the new form? Prior to 2020, Form 1099-MISC was filed to report payments totaling at least $600 in a calendar year for services performed in a trade or business by someone who isn’t treated as an employee. These payments are referred to as nonemployee compensation (NEC) and the payment amount was reported in box 7. Form 1099-NEC was reintroduced to alleviate the confusion caused by separate deadlines for Form 1099-MISC that report NEC in box 7 and all other Form 1099-MISC for paper filers and electronic filers. The IRS announced in July...

How to Treat Start-up Expenses When Launching a Business

While the COVID-19 crisis has devastated many existing businesses, the pandemic has also created opportunities for entrepreneurs to launch new businesses. For example, some businesses are being launched online to provide products and services to people staying at home. Entrepreneurs often don’t know that many expenses incurred by start-ups can’t be currently deducted. You should be aware that the way you handle some of your initial expenses can make a large difference in your tax bill. How expenses must be handled If you’re starting or planning a new enterprise, keep these key points in mind: Start-up costs include those incurred or paid while creating an active trade or business — or investigating the creation or acquisition of one. Under the Internal Revenue Code, taxpayers can elect to deduct...

Key to Trouble-Free IRS Audits

If you operate a small business, or you’re starting a new one, you probably know you need to keep records of your income and expenses. In particular, you should carefully record your expenses in order to claim the full amount of the tax deductions to which you’re entitled. And you want to make sure you can defend the amounts reported on your tax returns if you’re ever audited by the IRS or state tax agencies.  The fact is that good records are the key to trouble-free IRS audits. Certain types of expenses, such as automobile, travel, meals and office-at-home expenses, require special attention because they’re subject to special recordkeeping requirements or limitations on deductibility. It’s interesting to note that there’s not one way to keep business records....

Business Meal Deductions

Restaurants and entertainment venues have been hard hit by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. One of the tax breaks that President Trump has proposed to help them is an increase in the amount that can be deducted for business meals and entertainment. It’s unclear whether Congress would go along with enhanced business meal and entertainment deductions. But in the meantime, let’s review the current rules. Before the pandemic hit, many businesses spent money “wining and dining” current or potential customers, vendors and employees. The rules for deducting these expenses changed under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), but you can still claim some valuable write-offs. And keep in mind that deductions are available for business meal takeout and delivery. One of the biggest changes is that you...

Ways to Chip Away at Your 2019 Business Tax Bill

The extended federal income tax deadline is coming up fast. As you know, the IRS postponed until July 15 the payment and filing deadlines that otherwise would have fallen on or after April 1, 2020, and before July 15.  Here's some ways to chip away at your 2019 business tax bill. Retroactive COVID-19 business relief The Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act, which passed earlier in 2020, includes some retroactive tax relief for business taxpayers. The following four provisions may affect a still-unfiled tax return — or you may be able to take advantage of them on an amended return if you already filed. Liberalized net operating losses (NOLs). The CARES Act allows a five-year carryback for a business NOL that arises in a tax year...

Business Charitable Contribution Rul Changes under the CARES Act

In light of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, many businesses are interested in donating to charity. In order to incentivize charitable giving, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act made some liberalizations to the rules governing charitable deductions. Here are two  changes that affect businesses: The limit on charitable deductions for corporations has increased Before the CARES Act, the total charitable deduction that a corporation could generally claim for the year couldn’t exceed 10% of corporate taxable income (as determined with several modifications for these purposes). Contributions in excess of the 10% limit are carried forward and may be used during the next five years (subject to the 10%-of-taxable-income limitation each year). What changed? Under the CARES Act, the limitation on charitable deductions for corporations...