Notices & News - Previously...

Currently...

 

December, 2011

-Payroll Tax Cut Temporarily Extended into 2012 - December 24, 2011

The Temporary Payroll Tax Cut Continuation Act of 2011 temporarily extends the two percentage point payroll tax cut for employees, continuing the reduction of their Social Security tax withholding rate from 6.2 percent to 4.2 percent of wages paid through Feb. 29, 2012. This reduced Social Security withholding will have no effect on employees’ future Social Security benefits.

For more information, visit: http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=251650,00.html

June, 2011

-IRS INCREASES MILEAGE RATE - June 30th, 2011

The rate will increase to 55.5 cents a mile for all business miles driven from July 1, 2011, through Dec. 31, 2011. This is an increase of 4.5 cents from the 51 cent rate in effect for the first six months of 2011, as set forth in Revenue Procedure 2010-51.

In recognition of recent gasoline price increases, the IRS made this special adjustment for the final months of 2011. The IRS normally updates the mileage rates once a year in the fall for the next calendar year.

"This year's increased gas prices are having a major impact on individual Americans. The IRS is adjusting the standard mileage rates to better reflect the recent increase in gas prices," said IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman. "We are taking this step so the reimbursement rate will be fair to taxpayers."

 

-FBAR: June 30, 2011 Deadline - June 8, 2011

You have until June 30, 2011 to file by mail a Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR).  Form available at: http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f90221.pdf

U.S. persons are required to file FBARs Form TD F 90-22.1 annually if they have a financial interest in or signature authority over financial accounts, including bank, securities or other types of financial accounts, in a foreign country, if the aggregate value of these financial accounts exceeds $10,000 at any time during the calendar year.

U.S. persons required to file an FBAR this year are required to meet the June 30, 2011 filing date. Unlike federal income tax returns, extensions of time to file are not available.

Go to: http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/article/0,,id=148849,00.html
for more information.

 

May, 2011

-Offshore Account Amnesty...sort of. - May 31, 2011

The IRS is offering taxpayers with undisclosed income from offshore accounts one more chance to participate in a new, voluntary disclosure initiative to get current on their tax returns. The 2011 Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Initiative (OVDI) will be available only through August 31, 2011.

The 2011 initiative has a higher penalty rate than the previous voluntary disclosure program, which ended October 15, 2009, but it offers clear benefits to encourage taxpayers to disclose foreign accounts now rather than risk IRS detection and face criminal prosecution later. The 2011 initiative includes new guidelines to provide fairness to people with smaller amounts of undisclosed assets or unusual situations.

Now is your chance to come clean - you only have until August 31, 2011.
For more information, go to: http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=235695,00.html

 

-Washington State Department of Revenue New Quarterly Filing Requirements - May 31, 2011

Recent legislation requires Washington State taxpayers who file business excise taxes quarterly to file and pay electronically after July 22, 2011. Taxpayers who file paper returns should have received a letter in mid-May that included instructions on how to set up an online account and descriptions of electronic payment options. The DOR (Department of Revenue) will not mail returns after Quarter 2 unless the taxpayer has received a waiver. Go to: http://dor.wa.gov/Content/GetAFormOrPublication/PublicationBySubject/TaxTopics/MandatoryE-file.aspx for more information.

 

December, 2009

-Critical Notice Corporate Officers - December, 2009

Corporate officers must complete, sign and mail or FAX the Corporate Officer Exemption Form by January 15, 2010.

If you fail to do so, you will be subject to state unemployment tax. Generally, it saves money.

Form available at: http://www.esd.wa.gov/uitax/corporateofficers/corp-officer-fam.pdf#zoom=100 (If you are not able to access the page with the above link, copy/paste it into your Internet browser.) This is due by January 15, 2010.

Because the law requires two signatures for each corporate officer exempted, print a separate form for each officer. The exempted officer must voluntarily agree to be exempt and sign the form.

In addition, a second officer (if there is one) must also sign the form.

If you have any questions, the FAQ is available at: http://www.esd.wa.gov/uitax/corporateofficers/exempt-officers-defined.php

ALSO, if you believe you have not paid enough estimated tax and own your own business, you should increase your January 15, 2010 estimated payment.

If you have any questions please contact us.

 

-Critical Notice for S-Corporations - December, 2009

If you have not taken a wage for your S-Corporation in 2009, you MUST DO SO NOW. All corporate officer payroll checks must be dated by Dec. 31, 2009, and the federal tax liability must be paid by January 4, 2010. Many banks are no longer taking 941 payments, and the IRS is pushing for everyone to pay electronically through EFTPS. It is really quite simple. Go to www.eftps.com and click on Enrollment. The prompts will take you through the steps to enroll. It is important that you sign up now, as opposed to the end of the month. Enrollment can take up to 15 days, SO ACT NOW!! If the IRS does not receive your payment you will be subject to penalties and interest, and you can no longer get out of paying these fines.

If you are unsure as to how much to take in wages, send us a copy of your Balance Sheet and P & L Statement and we can help you determine an amount. But do not wait too long----we need some time.

If we have been preparing your 941 Payroll Reports for you we still can, provided that you give us the numbers. This quarter you cannot file 0 wages if you have net income for 2009. The 941 return is due January 31, 2010. The 940 return, W-3s and W-2s are also due by January 31, 2010. But again, the tax payment for the 4th quarter is due January 4, 2010.

If you have any questions please contact us.

 

July, 2009

-Single Member LLCs that are Subchapter S Corporations - July, 2009

Why you must file all quarterly payroll tax reports with the IRS and state agencies (940 and 941):

At the end of each quarter, whether or not you have paid any wages to yourself during the quarter, you must file IRS Form 941, and also file with State Unemployment and L&I, if you are signed up for those. You must fill out and submit those forms, marking that there were no wages paid.

You must file these payroll tax reports. Otherwise, you will receive a notice. Yes, even if you have no employees and paid no wages during the quarter, you must still file the form and report zero. Attached is an example of how 941s should be completed. Not doing this will generate an IRS notice. We have had a number of these cases in the last few months and we cannot handle them all. Simply, this is one of the things you must do, whether you pay wages or not, in order for you to reap the benefit of an S Corporation.

Please feel free to contact our office if you have any questions.

 

-FBAR: Do you have a foreign bank or brokerage account valued over $10,000? - July, 2009

You have until June 30th to file a Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR), US Treasury form TD F 90-22.1. It's a simple form requiring only the most basic information. FBAR forms and instructions are available at: FinCEN. Click "Other Forms" and select TD F 90-22.1

But do not panic; the IRS is aware some taxpayers have just become aware of this filing requirement. The IRS is allowing more time for taxpayers to file this report. Please follow this link for additional information: http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=210174,00.html

This form can only be mailed to the IRS. While you may not have been aware of this annual filing requirement, we are here to answer any questions you may have.

 

February, 2009

-The Stimulus Bill - February, 2009

As most of you know, President Obama signed the Stimulus Bill last week. It contained 282 changes to the Tax Code. See the February Tax Tips article for more information.

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