Work From Home? Consider the Home Office Deduction
Work From Home? Consider the Home Office Deduction
Whether you are self-employed or an employee, if you use a portion of your home for business, you may be able to take a home office deduction. Here are six things the IRS wants you to know about the Home Office deduction
1. Generally, in order to claim a business deduction for your home, you must use part of your home exclusively and regularly:
- as your principal place of business, or
- as a place to meet or deal with patients, clients or customers in the normal course of your business, or
- in any connection with your trade or business where the business portion of your home is a separate structure not attached to your home.
2. For certain storage use, rental use, or daycare-facility use, you are required to use the property regularly but not exclusively.
3. Generally, the amount you can deduct depends on the percentage of your home used for business. Your deduction for certain expenses will be limited if your gross income from your business is less than your total business expenses.
4. There are special rules for qualified daycare providers and for persons storing business inventory or product samples.
5. If you are self-employed, use Form 8829, Expenses for Business Use of Your Home to figure your home office deduction and report those deductions on line 30 of Form 1040 Schedule C, Profit or Loss From Business.
6. If you are an employee, additional rules apply for claiming the home office deduction. For example, the regular and exclusive business use must be for the convenience of your employer.
Top 10 Tax-Time Tips
Top 10 Tax-Time Tips The income tax filing season has begun and important tax documents should be arriving in your mailbox. Even though your return is not due until April, you can make tax time easier on yourself with an early start. Here are the Internal Revenue Service’s top 10 tips to ensure a smooth tax-filing process.
1. Gather your records Round up any documents you’ll need when filing your taxes: receipts, canceled checks and other documents that support income or deductions you’re claiming on your return.
2. Be on the lookout W-2s and 1099s will be coming soon; you’ll need these to file your tax return.
3. Have a question? Use the Interactive Tax Assistant available on the IRS website to find answers to your tax questions about credits, deductions, general filing questions and more.
4. Use Free File Let Free File do the hard work for you with brand-name tax software or online fillable forms. It’s available exclusively at http://www.irs.gov. Everyone can find an option to prepare their tax return and e-file it for free. If you made $57,000 or less, you qualify to use free tax software offered through a private-public partnership with manufacturers. If you made more or are comfortable preparing your own tax return, there’s Free File Fillable Forms, the electronic versions of IRS paper forms. Visit http://www.irs.gov/freefile to review your options.
5. Try IRS e-file IRS e-file is the safe, easy and most common way to file a tax return. Last year, 79 percent of taxpayers – 106 million people – used IRS e-file. Many tax preparers are now required to use e-file. If you owe taxes, you have payment options to file immediately and pay by the tax deadline. Best of all, the IRS issues refunds to 98 percent of electronic filers by direct deposit within 14 days, if there are no problems, and some may be issued in as few as 10 days.
6. Consider other filing options There are many options for filing your tax return. You can prepare it yourself or go to a tax preparer. You may be eligible for free face-to-face help at a volunteer site. Give yourself time to weigh all the options and find the one that best suits your needs.
7. Consider direct deposit If you elect to have your refund directly deposited into your bank account, you’ll receive it faster than a paper check in the mail.
8. Visit the official IRS website often The IRS website at http://www.irs.gov is a great place to find everything you need to file your tax return: forms, publications, tips, answers to frequently asked questions and updates on tax law changes.
9. Remember this number: 17 Check out IRS Publication 17, Your Federal Income Tax, on the IRS website. It’s a comprehensive resource for taxpayers, highlighting everything you’ll need to know when filing your return. 10. Review! Review! Review! Don’t rush. We all make mistakes when we rush. Mistakes slow down the processing of your return. Be sure to double check all the Social Security numbers and math calculations on your return as these are the most common errors. Don’t panic!
Keep Good Records Now to Reduce Tax-Time Stress
You may not be thinking about your tax return right now, but summer is a great time to start planning for next year. Organized records not only make preparing your return easier, but may also remind you of relevant transactions, help you prepare a response if you receive an IRS notice, or substantiate items on your return if you are selected for an audit.
Here are a few things the IRS wants you to know about recordkeeping.
1. In most cases, the IRS does not require you to keep records in any special manner. Generally, you should keep any and all documents that may have an impact on your federal tax return. It’s a good idea to have a designated place for tax documents and receipts.
2. Individual taxpayers should usually keep the following records supporting items on their tax returns for at least three years:
- Bills
- Credit card and other receipts
- Invoices
- Mileage logs
- Canceled, imaged or substitute checks or any other proof of payment
- Any other records to support deductions or credits you claim on your return
You should normally keep records relating to property until at least three years after you sell or otherwise dispose of the property. Examples include:
- A home purchase or improvement
- Stocks and other investments
- Individual Retirement Arrangement transactions
- Rental property records
3. If you are a small business owner, you must keep all your employment tax records for at least four years after the tax becomes due or is paid, whichever is later. Examples of important documents business owners should keep Include:
- Gross receipts: Cash register tapes, bank deposit slips, receipt books, invoices, credit card charge slips and Forms 1099-MISC
- Proof of purchases: Canceled checks, cash register tape receipts, credit card sales slips and invoices
- Expense documents: Canceled checks, cash register tapes, account statements, credit card sales slips, invoices and petty cash slips for small cash payments
- Documents to verify your assets: Purchase and sales invoices, real estate closing statements and canceled checks
Ten Tips for Taxpayers Who Owe Money to the IRS
While the majority of Americans get a tax refund from the Internal Revenue Service each year, there are many taxpayers who owe and some who can’t pay the tax all at once. The IRS has a number of ways for people to pay their tax bill.
The IRS has announced an effort to help struggling taxpayers get a fresh start with their tax liabilities. The goal of this effort is to help individuals and small business meet their tax obligations, without adding unnecessary burden. Specifically, the IRS has announced new policies and programs to help taxpayers pay back taxes and avoid tax liens.
Here are ten tips for taxpayers who owe money to the IRS.
- Tax bill payments If you get a bill this summer for late taxes, you are expected to promptly pay the tax owed including any penalties and interest. If you are unable to pay the amount due, it is often in your best interest to get a loan to pay the bill in full rather than to make installment payments to the IRS.
- Additional time to pay Based on your circumstances, you may be granted a short additional time to pay your tax in full. A brief additional amount of time to pay can be requested through the Online Payment Agreement application at www.irs.gov or by calling 800-829-1040.
- Credit card payments You can pay your bill with a credit card. The interest rate on a credit card may be lower than the combination of interest and penalties imposed by the Internal Revenue Code. To pay by credit card contact one of the following processing companies: Link2Gov at 888-PAY-1040 (or www.pay1040.com), RBS WorldPay, Inc. at 888-9PAY-TAX (or www.payUSAtax.com), or Official Payments Corporation at 888-UPAY-TAX (or www.officialpayments.com/fed).
- Electronic Funds Transfer You can pay the balance by electronic funds transfer, check, money order, cashier’s check or cash. To pay using electronic funds transfer, use the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System by either calling 800-555-4477 or using the online access at www.eftps.gov.
- Installment Agreement You may request an installment agreement if you cannot pay the liability in full. This is an agreement between you and the IRS to pay the amount due in monthly installment payments. You must first file all required returns and be current with estimated tax payments.
- Online Payment Agreement If you owe $25,000 or less in combined tax, penalties and interest, you can request an installment agreement using the Online Payment Agreement application at www.irs.gov.
- Form 9465 You can complete and mail an IRS Form 9465, Installment Agreement Request, along with your bill in the envelope you received from the IRS. The IRS will inform you (usually within 30 days) whether your request is approved, denied, or if additional information is needed.
- Collection Information Statement You may still qualify for an installment agreement if you owe more than $25,000, but you are required to complete a Form 433F, Collection Information Statement, before the IRS will consider an installment agreement.
- User fees If an installment agreement is approved, a one-time user fee will be charged. The user fee for a new agreement is $105 or $52 for agreements where payments are deducted directly from your bank account. For eligible individuals with lower incomes, the fee can be reduced to $43.
- Check withholding Taxpayers who have a balance due may want to consider changing their W-4, Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate, with their employer. A withholding calculator at www.irs.gov can help taxpayers determine the amount that should be withheld.
For more information about the Fresh Start initiative, installment agreements and other payment options visit www.irs.gov. IRS Publications 594, The IRS Collection Process, and 966, Electronic Choices to Pay All Your Federal Taxes, also provide additional information regarding your payment options. These publications and Form 9465 can be obtained from www.irs.gov or by calling 800-TAX-FORM (800-829-3676).
Exempt Organization Filing Requirements: Form 990 Due Date
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1099-Q Payments from Qualified Education Programs
1099-Q: Payments from Qualified Education Programs
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If you received Form 1099-Q for distributions that you received during the tax year, the income may or may not be taxable. Before doing anything with the form, you must determine what part, if any, of the distribution is considered taxable. You need to know how much you paid for qualifying tuition, related fees, books, and room and board. Which is larger: the gross distribution in Box 1 of your 1099-Q or the amount of qualifying expenses that you paid for tuition and related fees? The Two Amounts are Equal: Your distribution is not taxable. You do not need to report this on your return. Retain the Form 1099-Q for your records. The Amount in Box 1 is Larger: Part of your distribution is taxable. Call us and we can help you determine what to do next. The Amount of Qualifying Expenses is Larger: Your distribution is not taxable. You do not need to report this on your return. Retain the Form 1099-Q for your records. If you receive a 1098-T for these expenses, you may qualify to take a credit or deduction for your expenses. Reduce the amount of expenses by the amount in Box 1 of your 1099-Q. The remaining is what was paid out-of-pocket and can be claimed as either a Tuition and Fees Deduciton or an Education Credit. |
Tax deadlines extended
The Internal Revenue Service changed the due date of Form 1040 for 2010 to April 18, 2011, instead of April 15, 2011. The extension is in conjunction with Emancipation Day which is celebrated on April 16 in Washington, D.C. President Abraham Lincoln signed the Compensated Emancipation Act on April 16, 1862. The Act allowed for the release of about 3,100 enslaved persons in the District of Columbia nine months before President Lincoln issued his famous Emancipation Proclamation.
On Monday, January 10, 2011, Tom Miller, Commissioner, Kentucky Department of Revenue, announced that Kentucky will follow the federal filing date. Therefore, Kentucky income tax returns will be due on April 18, 2011 rather than April 15, 2011.
Do you know which Form 990-series return you are required to file for the 2010 tax year?
Do you know which Form 990-series return you are required to file for the 2010 tax year? The 990 filing thresholds for the year 2010 and later (filed in 2011 and later) will change as follows for all organizations required to file a 990-series return:
- Organizations with gross receipts normally < $50,000 must file Form 990-N(but may choose to file a complete Form 990 or Form 990-EZ). In prior years only organizations with gross receipts normally < $25,000 could file the Form 990-N (“e-postcard”).
- Organizations with gross receipts > $50,000 and < $200,000 and total assets < $500,000 must file Form 990-EZ or a complete Form 990.
- Organizations with gross receipts > $200,000 or total assets > $500,000 must file Form 990.
- Private foundations must file Form 990-PF.
IRS Releases 2011 Standard Mileage Rates
The IRS released on Friday the standard mileage rates for use in 2011 (Notice 2010-88). The optional standard mileage rates can be used by taxpayers to calculate the deductible costs of operating an automobile.
For business use of an automobile after Dec. 31, 2010, the rate is 51 cents a mile; for medical or moving expenses, 19 cents a mile; and for services to charitable organizations, 14 cents a mile. For tax year 2010, the rates were 50 cents, 16.5 cents and 14 cents, respectively.
Rather than using the standard mileage rates, taxpayers may instead use their actual costs, if they maintain adequate records and can substantiate their expenses
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