Author Archives: Thomas

The Importance of Having a Will

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Most recently, Prince joins a list of celebrities who died without a will. Tupac Shakur, Bob Marley, and so many other legendary musicians have passed without securing their estates.

It begs the question:  Why?

It seems like such a basic concept; everyone needs a will.  Otherwise the laws of the state you live in determine who receives your assets and controls your legacy after you die.  Without a will, you have no say in what happens, and the chances of a family fight increase dramatically.

Even though a will is relatively simple to create, studies consistently show that Continue reading →

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The Tax Benefits for Hiring Your Own Child

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20150619000453-star-warsHow would you like to help your children develop a sense of responsibility and strong work ethic, while simultaneously letting them earn some money and save for college, all tax-free?

It’s possible. Kids fill our lives with joy, but they also fill our lives with tax benefits. Every child you claim as a dependent can lower your taxable income by $3,950. And the Child Tax Credit may save you another $1,000 per qualifying child if your income is less than Continue reading →

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Setting priorities in an election year

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taxesimageElection-year politics will dominate legislative action in 2016 as both parties seek to lay out policy agendas for 2017 and beyond, which would seem to dim prospects for legislation in 2016. However, despite divided government during 2015, Congress enacted several key pieces of legislation. Will the legislative successes of 2015, including the signing of a major December ‘tax extender’ bill, and Paul Ryan’s elevation to Speaker of the House create momentum that can be carried over into enactment of additional meaningful legislation during 2016? Will the House or the Senate introduce further tax reform legislation setting the stage for 2017?

Newport Beach Tax and Financial will address these topics and more, including tax reform, global tax controversy, IRS challenges, new regulatory projects, and other tax policy matters of importance to today’s business leaders.

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How to track your tax refund’s whereabouts

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where's-my-refund-graphic200x200Filing your tax return electronically shouldn’t have to feel like sending something into outer space. There’s no need to be in the dark about whether the IRS has accepted your tax return and when you can expect to receive your refund.

For example, tax-filing early birds who got their returns in electronically by Jan. 14, and elected to get their refund via direct deposit, should have received their money on Jan. 29. That’s the first direct deposit date set by the IRS.

Assuming you weren’t among those early filers, you can use the Where’s My Refund tool on the IRS website to track your tax return and refund. It lets you check on the status of an electronic return within 24 hours of the IRS receiving it. But you’ll have to wait four weeks after you mailed a paper return to check its status with the tool. Another great reason to e-file if you can.

Where’s My Refund lets you follow your ret Continue reading →

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IRS to hire up to 700 enforcement workers

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BN-NK579_0405ta_M_20160405191302The Internal Revenue Service is hiring up to 700 employees for tax enforcement in what Commissioner John Koskinen calls the agency’s “first significant enforcement hiring in more than five years.”

In a memo to employees Tuesday, Mr. Koskinen said the IRS found money for the hiring—despite budget constraints—because of retirements, other departures and unspecified “efficiencies.” The first wave of hiring will begin in a few weeks and will be concentrated in the IRS department that monitors small businesses and the self-employed.

“While adding 600 to 700 new enforcement hires will not replace those who have left, it will help fill key gaps in our enforcement workforce created by Continue reading →

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The National Taxpayer Advocate Wants to Hear from You!

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We-want-to-hear-from-YOU-FINAL-300x197Olson to Hold Public Forum on Taxpayer Service Needs in Baltimore on May 13

WASHINGTON — National Taxpayer Advocate Nina E. Olson and Sen. Ben Cardin, a member of the Senate Committee on Finance, will hold a public forum to discuss what taxpayers want and need from the IRS to comply with their tax obligations. Sen. Cardin is also the ranking member of the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations.

The public forum will be held on Friday, May 13, at 10:30 a.m. at the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School Of Law in Baltimore.

Members of the public and the media are invited to attend.

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Review your W-4: Bigger refund or bigger paycheck?

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happy-familyLaying the groundwork for a tax refund requires some simple tax planning, a little research and some forethought. Reviewing your tax status, consulting your tax professional when filling out your W-4s and taking advantage of several tax credits can help you increase your tax refund. Newport Beach Tax and Financial can help decide which credits can get you the biggest refund. When you start a job, your employer asks you to complete form W-4. This tells your employer how much federal income tax to withhold from your paycheck. The more allowances you claim on the form, the less income tax will be held back. This will give you bigger paychecks, but a smaller tax refund (or potentially no tax refund or a tax bill at the end of the year). Claiming fewer allowances on your W-4 will mean smaller paychecks, since more tax will be withheld. This increases your chances of over-withholding, which leads to a bigger tax refund. That’s why it’s called a “refund:” you are just getting money back that you overpaid to the IRS during the year.

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Timing Can Boost Your Tax Refund

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Timing-is-everythingTaxpayers who watch the calendar improve their chances of getting a larger refund. If you can, pay January’s mortgage payment before December 31st and get the added interest for your mortgage interest deduction.

Schedule health-related treatments and exams in the last quarter of the year to boost your medical expense deduction potential.

Paying property taxes by New Year’s Eve could make the difference between itemizing and taking the standard deduction, and thus, a bigger refund. If you’re self-employed, you can pay your fourth-quarter state estimated taxes in December, rather than in January when they’re normally due, to increase your itemizing potential

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Number of tax refunds nearly doubles compared to last year

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Tax-Refund

It’s early in the 2015 tax season but Americans are already getting refunds — lots of them.

Nancy Vanden Houten of Stone & McCarthy Research went through the Internal Revenue Service data and notes 7.6 million refunds were issued through Jan. 30, almost double the number of refunds sent out through the end of January last year. getting refunds — lots of them.

But don’t take that as an indication that there are huge numbers of refunds on the way, she cautions.

“At this stage of the tax season, we still view the volume of refund issuance as a timing issue,” she wrote in a research note Tuesday, “rather than an indication that substantially more refunds will go out this year compared to last year.”

Tax returns were accepted starting Jan. 20 this year, compared to Jan. 30 last year. The later date in 2014 was due to  Continue reading →

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Say What?

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IRS Commissioner John Koskinen confirmed Tuesday that illegal immigrants granted amnesty under President Obama’s executive actions will be able to get retroactive tax refunds.

Illegal immigrants will be eligible for the Earned Income Tax Credit, which is actually a government grant of up to $5,000 to working families.

Illegal immigrants affected by the president’s edict will not only be eligible for those tax credits going forward, but three years retroactively, so they’ll be able to collect quite a bit of money from the treasury.

One of the promises Obama made during the passing of ObamaCare was that illegal immigrants would not be eligible for subsidies.

The question of what government benefits, if any, that illegal immigrants should be eligible for has been a pretty hot question for a while. And now, under the president’s edict, they’re definitely eligible for the Earned Income Tax Credit and something called the Additional Child Tax Credit, going back for three years.

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