Western CPE Blog
Breaking tax and accounting news and analysis from the experts at Western CPE.
Nonprofit Schools, Hospitals, and Tribal Casinos Are New Targets of Dangerous W-2 Phishing Scam (IR-2017-20) March 22, 2017
By: Payroll/HR Department receiving email from CEO/CFO requesting list of all employees’ W-2s probably is new W-2 phishing. Cyber criminals are using various spoofing techniques to disguise an email to make it appear as if it is from an organization executive to an employee in the payroll or human resources department requesting a list of all employees and their Forms W-2. This W-2 scam, which first appeared last year, is circulating to a broader cross-section of organizations, including school districts, tribal casinos, chain restaurants, temporary staffing agencies, healthcare providers, and shipping and freight companies. In the latest twist, the cyber criminal follows …
Things to Tell Your Client About the Obamacare Replacement NOW March 16, 2017
The promised repeal and replacement of Obamacare (the Affordable Care Act) is in writing. Paul Ryan, Speaker of the House, introduced the American Health Care Act (AHCA) on March 7, 2017. The bill has a long way to go before it is law. But during our busy tax season, clients will have questions on how the proposal affects them and their family. Here are a few pointers:1. The individual mandate and the employer mandate are repealed in the proposed legislation effective after 12/31/2015. Thus, there would be no penalties for failure to have health insurance or to provide health insurance …
How Long Are Corporate Extensions? February 26, 2017
How Long Are Corporate Extensions? The Code Says Five Months, but the IRS Says Six Months! Hurray!The IRS has reassured the public that it knows what it is talking about in the 2016 instructions for Form 7004. Apparently, the IRS has been getting inquiries from preparers who are wondering if the instructions for Form 7004 are correct. The instructions indicate that the automatic extension period for corporations is six months, while §6081(b) states that the extension period for corporations is five months. The IRS explained that they were relying upon §6081(a) for the authority to grant six-month extensions, rather than …
Silent Returns Will Be Processed February 20, 2017
As a result of the President’s executive order on January 20, 2017, the IRS recently confirmed here that “silent” returns will be processed, both electronically and on paper. A silent return is the term the IRS is using to refer to individual returns where:The box on Form 1040, Line 61 indicating full year coverage is not checked, andThere is no Form 8965 attached claiming exemption(s) to health coverage, andNo shared responsibility payment has been computed.The IRS announcement also seems to indicate refunds will not be withheld in these cases. This really gives the IRS two alternatives:Use Exam or CP 2000 …
Forms W-2 & 1099-MISC Corrections February 1, 2017
Were you busy meeting a new IRS deadline for Forms W-2 and 1099- Miscellaneous Income?IRS says making a small mistake on income or withholding doesn’t require a correction.2016 Forms W-2 and 1099-Miscellaneous Income (if there is an entry on box 7 for Nonemployee compensation) were due to the IRS by January 31, 2017. That’s at least a month earlier than the year before. The problem? What if my client makes a small mistake on the W-2 or 1099 in reporting income or withholding? In prior years, the IRS never saw the mistake if we made the correction prior to the …
2017 Tax Season Staff Meeting Agenda December 31, 2016
By: A Dozen Talking Points1. Review law changes for 2016 tax returns. Some provisions from 2015 legislation take effect in 2016. 2015 laws with 2016 tax provisions included:• Trade Bill• Highway Bill• Bipartisan Budget Act of 2015• FAST Act• PATH Act (extender legislation)2. Review “What’s New for 2016″ section of Forms 1040, 1065, 1120 and 1120S instructions.3. Review “What’s New for 2016″ section of tax software manual and discuss problem input forms from the prior year.4. Review required elections and locate software input sheet for each. Important elections include, but are not limited to: (1) grouping election for real estate professionals …
Tax Changes: Are You Keeping Up? December 20, 2016
Nonprofit Schools, Hospitals, and Tribal Casinos Are New Targets of Dangerous W-2 Phishing Scam (IR-2017-20)Payroll/HR Department receiving email from CEO/CFO requesting list of all employees’ W-2s probably is new W-2 phishing.Cyber criminals are using various spoofing techniques to disguise an email to make it appear as if it is from an organization executive to an employee in the payroll or human resources department requesting a list of all employees and their Forms W-2. This W-2 scam, which first appeared last year, is circulating to a broader cross-section of organizations, including school districts, tribal casinos, chain restaurants, temporary staffing agencies, healthcare providers, and shipping and freight …
New Law Cures Small Employer Health Insurance Dilemma December 19, 2016
The 21st Century Cure Act has passed Congress and the President has just approved and signed. The legislation provides for an exception from group health plan requirements for qualified small employer health reimbursement arrangements. Beginning in 2017, a small employer may again reimburse employees for individual health insurance premiums without fear of the onerous $100 per day per employee penalty assessed for violation of health care reform.Plan RequirementsTo qualify as “a qualified small employer health reimbursement arrangement,” the plan must meet certain requirements.employees who have not completed 90 days of service,employees who have not attained age 25,part-time (less than 30 hours a …
Overtime Rules Changes – Is Your Client Ready? December 5, 2016
Overtime and the White Collar Exemption – DOL Overtime for White Collar Workers, Overview and Summary of Final RuleFair Labor Standards Act. The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) provides American workers the right to a minimum wage and time-and-a-half pay for more than 40 hours of work in a week. The FLSA rules apply to hourly and salaried workers, but not to “white collar” workers whose salaries and duties exempt them from the overtime pay requirements.There are two ways in which an employee can be covered by the FLSA:1. Enterprise CoverageEmployees who work for certain businesses or organizations are covered …
Dead-Broke Client and an IRS Audit December 4, 2016
Did your dead-broke client receive an IRS audit letter? If so, ask for a collectability determination. If your client has piled up medical bills or credit card debt or business losses and has no ability to pay additional taxes, an IRS audit can be halted.Throughout an IRS tax examination, examiners are expected to follow Internal Revenue Manual procedures to consider the taxpayer’s ability to pay a potential assessment. The purpose of these “collectability determinations” is to ensure that the IRS’s accounts receivable are collectible.Yet in FY 2015, 50% of all IRS Field Collection closures and 19% of all IRS Automated …
Last Minute Changes Affect Clients December 3, 2016
Two significant last minute changes will affect your clients:A federal judge enjoined nationwide implementation of the Department of Labor Overtime Regulations.The IRS issued Notice 2016-70 granted a delay for Form 1095 reporting to individuals.Department of Labor Overtime Regulations Delayed Indefinitely. Federal Judge Amos L. Mazzant of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas granted a motion temporarily barring the implementation of the December 1, 2016, Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) new rules on overtime pay from going into effect nationwide. A consolidated lawsuit was filed in September 2016 by 21 states and more than 50 business groups. Judge …
Estate Planning Questions for Large and Small Estates December 2, 2016
President-elect Donald Trump has proposed eliminating estate taxes. If there is a repeal, or when there is a repeal, will estate planners be out of a job? Of course not—estate planning is not only about tax. It includes how the estate is divided, whether the estate is big or small.Estate planning mistakes by the ultra-rich, when they had plenty of money to pay for the best advice, make a dramatic starting point for a discussion about transferring family assets to the next generation.No will. Prince died April 21, 2016, without a will, even though his estate is valued at as much …
Avoiding and Resolving ACA Employer Mandate Policies October 27, 2016
My Business Client Received a Bill from the IRS for Violating the ACA Employer Mandate.What Now?…and why did he call me instead of his payroll provider or his insurance broker?Employer notifications are on the way for the 2015 year if any full-time employee of the business received a premium assistance credit.A penalty applies if an applicable large employer did not provide affordable and adequate insurance coverage. The IRS will send employers a §1411 Certificate informing them that an employee has applied for insurance through the Marketplace and that the employee qualified for a premium assistance credit. Once it receives the …
Be Careful Paying Wages to Minor Children October 27, 2016
Tax planning often includes a recommendation to the small business owner that he or she pay wages to their minor children. Wages to the kids may mean (1) using the child’s standard deduction to provide some tax free money, (2) shifting income from the parent’s high tax bracket to the child’s lower bracket, (3) saving FICA/SE tax on wages paid to the minor child, and (4) allowing the parent (or child) to fund a Roth IRA. All of these are legitimate tax savings ideas as long as the parent follows some strict rules. Two 2016 Tax Court cases show what …
FASB Issues New Guidance for Not-for-Profit Entities August 23, 2016
On August 18, 2016 FASB issued Update 2016-14, Presentation of Financial Statements of Not-for-Profit Entities.This represents the culmination of the first phase of FASB’s project on Not-for-Profit Entities and represents the first major revision since the issuance of FASB 116 and 117 in 1993.The provisions reflected in this update are effective for annual periods beginning on or after December 15, 2017 and for interim periods within fiscal years beginning on or after December 15, 2018. Please note that this update has a very short fuse!The most striking component of this update is the reduction of the classes of net assets …
From Making Laws to Breaking Laws: Ex-speaker of the House Sent to Prison for Structuring Bank Withdrawals August 4, 2016
Dennis Hastert, Speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1999 to 2007, pleaded guilty to federal criminal charges of structuring financial transactions to conceal payments to an individual whom he had abused more than three decades earlier, when Hastert worked as a high school wrestling coach. On June 22, 2016, Mr. Hastert began serving a 15-month sentence for the “structuring” charge (a felony). What is structuring? In a series of transactions, Mr. Hastert withdrew cash from his bank accounts in amounts of less than $10,000 each, hoping to avoid bank currency-reporting requirements. Hastert made a total of 106 withdrawals in …
Read it and Weep: IRS Releases Draft of New Form 8867 July 21, 2016
On July 20, the IRS released a draft of the 2016 Form 8867 – Paid Preparer’s Due Diligence Checklist.In our tax practice, we have been completing the Form 8867 for several years as part of our compliance requirements when claiming the earned income credit (EIC) on a client’s return. Beginning for 2016 returns, new legislation requires that we complete the same checklist when preparing a return that claims the child tax credit (CTC) or the American Opportunity Tax Credit (AOTC).There are lots of changes to the form. It’s grown from one page to two pages and from seven “yes/no” questions to 20.Join …
20 Tips for Planning at The Eleventh Hour – Part 2 July 20, 2016
Reprinted with permission of Estates and TrustsMake Taxable Gifts The client may contemplate making taxable gifts in excess of their available federal gift tax exemption because the effective federal gift tax rate is less than the effective estate tax rate. While no gift tax is payable on funds used to pay gift tax, estate tax is payable on funds used to pay estate tax. This result occurs because the federal estate tax is tax “inclusive” and the federal gift tax is tax “exclusive.” Accordingly, even though gift and estate tax rates are the same (40 percent in 2016), the effective gift tax …
20 Tips for Planning at The 11th Hour – Part 1 July 15, 2016
Reprinted with permission of Estates and TrustPlan for IncapacityMany techniques we discuss require that the dying client him or herself, or someone authorized to act on their behalf, take actions. If not already completed, the client should execute a durable power of attorney (POA), which is effective on execution, authorizing an agent to make gifts and establish, amend or fund inter vivos trusts on behalf of the client during the client’s life. A springing POA, which is effective only on incapacity, presents challenges. Locating one or more physicians who will attest to the client’s incapacity may be difficult and time-consuming. As a result, a …
Extender Bill Passed By Congress December 18, 2014
Late as usual, Congress finally extended almost 60 expiring tax provisions to December 31, 2014.Sen. Ron Wyden, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, who voted against the bill, criticized passage, saying that “with this stop-and-go tax extender bill, Congress is turning in its tax homework 11 months late and expecting to earn full credit.”Yes, Sen. Wyden, but with tax season looming, taxpayers, tax preparers, tax software programmers and the IRS are all breathing a sigh of relief now that we know what law will apply on the 2014 tax returns.A few of our clients might need an urgent phone call …