It’s not too late for small Maine businesses to take steps to significantly reduce 2016 business income tax bill and lay the groundwork for tax savings in future years. Here’s a summary of some of the most effective year-end tax-saving moves for small businesses under the existing Internal Revenue Code. The tax laws could change after  Continue Reading »

The IRS recently announced its “nonacquiesence” with a federal appeals court decision that held a retailer that issued loyalty discounts to its customers was entitled to deduct its liabilities attributable to discounts, which were accrued but hadn’t yet been redeemed. (IRS Action on Decision 2016-03) Case Background Information A deduction or credit must be taken for  Continue Reading »

GOP tax reform appears likely in 2017 with Donald Trump as the president elect and Republicans holding a majority in the U.S. House and Senate. Mr. Trump promised big tax changes while campaigning. According to his website, here is a digest of his proposals. Changes for Business Tax Major changes to the taxes paid by businesses  Continue Reading »

The IRS issued new guidance in October targeting strategies that are used to exploit the tax benefits associated with partnerships and limited liability companies (LLCs) that are treated as partnerships for tax purposes. In brief, under the new guidance, property transactions between partners and partnerships are more likely to be classified as disguised sales and, therefore,  Continue Reading »

The IRS released new temporary and final Section 752 regulations at the beginning of October 2016. Sec. 752 of the Internal Revenue Code and related regulations explain how to allocate partnership debt among partners for purposes of calculating the basis of their partnership interests. This calculation determines their basis for deducting losses and receiving tax-free distributions,  Continue Reading »

These days many college students are leaving school with an overwhelming amount of debt. However, there are some cases where student loans are discharged (also known as being cancelled or forgiven). In other cases, these loans are paid off by an employer. With both of these actions, there are tax consequences for the student loan borrowers.  Continue Reading »

You could be subject to penalties and taxes and if you miss the deadline for rolling over an IRA distribution to another IRA or eligible retirement plan. However, if you have a valid excuse, you may be able to obtain a hardship waiver from the IRS, but applying is time-consuming and expensive. Fortunately, the IRS  Continue Reading »

Tired of preparing all the documentation needed to support business travel expenses in and outside of Maine? Employees are required to collect receipts as they travel, noting the time, place and business purpose of each expenditure if your business reimburses employees for actual travel expenses. Then, monthly expense reports must be reviewed and approved by management.  Continue Reading »

The IRS recently released a warning for taxpayers to be on guard against bogus emails telling recipients that they owe money for taxes related to the Affordable Care Act (ACA). The IRS has received numerous reports from around the country about scammers sending a fraudulent version of CP2000 notices for tax year 2015. These scam  Continue Reading »

You might have to close up shop for a while if your business is hit by a natural disaster; hurricane, windstorm, blizzard, or if it falls victim to arson or terrorism. As a result, you could suffer a major loss of income. A key component to continuing as a thriving enterprise after a disaster is to  Continue Reading »