Having a high income may mean you owe two extra taxes: the 3.8% net investment income tax (NIIT) and a 0.9% additional Medicare tax on wage and self-employment income. Let’s take a look at these taxes and what they could mean for you.

1. The NIIT

In addition to income tax, this tax applies on your net investment income. The NIIT only affects taxpayers with adjusted gross incomes (AGIs) exceeding $250,000 for joint filers, $200,000 for single taxpayers and heads of household, and $125,000 for married individuals filing separately.

If your AGI is above the threshold that applies ($250,000, $200,000 or $125,000), the NIIT applies to the lesser of 1) your net investment income for the tax year, or 2) the excess of your AGI for the tax year over your threshold amount.

The “net investment income” that’s subject to the NIIT consists of interest, dividends, annuities, royalties, rents and net gains from property sales. Wage income and income from an active trade or business aren’t included. However, passive business income is subject to the NIIT.

Income that’s exempt from income tax, such as tax-exempt bond interest, is likewise exempt from the NIIT. Thus, switching some taxable investments to tax-exempt bonds can reduce your exposure. Of course, this should be done after taking your income needs and investment considerations into account.

Does the NIIT apply to home sales? Yes, if the gain is high enough. Here’s how the rules work: If you sell your principal residence, you may be able to exclude up to $250,000 of gain ($500,000 for joint filers) when figuring your income tax. This excluded gain isn’t subject to the NIIT.

However, gain that exceeds the exclusion limit is subject to the tax. Gain from the sale of a vacation home or other second residence, which doesn’t qualify for the exclusion, is also subject to the NIIT.

Distributions from qualified retirement plans, such as pension plans and IRAs, aren’t subject to the NIIT. However, those distributions may push your AGI over the threshold that would cause other types of income to be subject to the tax.

2. The additional Medicare tax

In addition to the 1.45% Medicare tax that all wage earners pay, some high-wage earners pay an extra 0.9% Medicare tax on part of their wage income. The 0.9% tax applies to wages in excess of $250,000 for joint filers, $125,000 for married individuals filing separately and $200,000 for all others. It applies only to employees, not to employers.

Once an employee’s wages reach $200,000 for the year, the employer must begin withholding the additional 0.9% tax. However, this withholding may prove insufficient if the employee has additional wage income from another job or if the employee’s spouse also has wage income. To avoid that result, an employee may request extra income tax withholding by filing a new Form W-4 with the employer.

An extra 0.9% Medicare tax also applies to self-employment income for the tax year in excess of the same amounts for high-wage earners. This is in addition to the regular 2.9% Medicare tax on all self-employment income. The $250,000, $125,000, and $200,000 thresholds are reduced by the taxpayer’s wage income.

Mitigate the effect

As you can see, these two taxes may have a substantial effect on your tax bill. Contact us to discuss how the impact could be reduced.

The post Are You Liable for Two Additional Taxes on Your Income? first appeared on Burkett Burkett & Burkett Certified Public Accountants, P.A..

When launching a small business, many entrepreneurs start out as sole proprietors. If you’re launching a venture as a sole proprietorship, you need to understand the tax issues involved. Here are nine considerations:

1. You may qualify for the pass-through deduction. To the extent your business generates qualified business income, you’re currently eligible to claim the 20% pass-through deduction, subject to limitations. The deduction is taken “below the line,” meaning it reduces taxable income, rather than being taken “above the line” against your gross income. However, you can take the deduction even if you don’t itemize deductions and instead claim the standard deduction. Be aware that this deduction is only available through 2025, unless Congress acts to extend it.

2. You report income and expenses on Schedule C of Form 1040. The net income will be taxable to you regardless of whether you withdraw cash from the business. Your business expenses are deductible against gross income and not as itemized deductions. If you have losses, they’ll generally be deductible against your other income, subject to special rules related to hobby losses, passive activity losses and losses from activities in which you weren’t “at risk.”

3. You must pay self-employment taxes. For 2024, you pay self-employment tax (Social Security and Medicare) at a 15.3% rate on your net earnings from self-employment up to $168,600, and Medicare tax only at a 2.9% rate on the excess. An additional 0.9% Medicare tax (for a total of 3.8%) is imposed on self-employment income in excess of $250,000 for joint returns, $125,000 for married taxpayers filing separate returns and $200,000 in all other cases. Self-employment tax is imposed in addition to income tax, but you can deduct half of your self-employment tax as an adjustment to income.

4. You generally must make quarterly estimated tax payments. For 2024, these are due April 15, June 17, September 16 and January 15, 2025.

5. You can deduct 100% of your health insurance costs as a business expense. This means your deduction for medical care insurance won’t be subject to the rule that limits medical expense deductions.

6. You may be able to deduct home office expenses. If you work from a home office, perform management or administrative tasks there, or store product samples or inventory at home, you may be entitled to deduct an allocable part of certain expenses, including mortgage interest or rent, insurance, utilities, repairs, maintenance and depreciation. You may also be able to deduct travel expenses from a home office to another work location.

7. You should keep complete records of your income and expenses. Specifically, you should carefully record your expenses in order to claim all the tax breaks to which you’re entitled. Certain expenses, such as automobile, travel, meals, and home office expenses, require extra attention because they’re subject to special recordkeeping rules or deductibility limits.

8. You have more responsibilities if you hire employees. For example, you need to get a taxpayer identification number and withhold and pay over payroll taxes.

9. You should consider establishing a qualified retirement plan. The advantages are that amounts contributed to it are deductible at the time of the contributions and aren’t taken into income until they’re withdrawn. You might consider a SEP plan, which requires minimal paperwork. A SIMPLE plan is also available to sole proprietors and offers tax advantages with fewer restrictions and administrative requirements. If you don’t establish a retirement plan, you may still be able to contribute to an IRA.

Turn to us

Contact us if you want additional information regarding the tax aspects of your business, or if you have questions about reporting or recordkeeping requirements.

The post 9 Tax Considerations if You’re Starting a Business as a Sole Proprietor first appeared on Burkett Burkett & Burkett Certified Public Accountants, P.A..

The American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA), signed by President Biden on March 11, 2021, is the latest major legislation that provides economic relief and stimulus, both tax and non-tax, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Below are brief summaries of the key aspects of the tax provisions in ARPA.

Provisions Affecting Individuals

Recovery rebate credits (stimulus checks). ARPA provides a third round of nontaxable stimulus checks directly payable to individuals. The payments are structured as refundable tax credits against 2021 taxes but will paid in 2021 (not 2022).

The maximum payments are $1,400 per eligible individual ($2,800 for married joint filers) and $1,400 for each dependent (which, unlike the first two stimulus payments, includes older children and adult dependents). The payment phases out proportionally between $75,000 and $80,000 AGI for single filers, $112,500 and $120,000 for head of household filers, and $150,000 and $160,000 for married joint filers.

Rules for identification, for payments made notwithstanding no filing of 2019 and 2020 returns, and for limitations on offsets apply. Eligibility is based on information from 2020 income tax returns (or 2019 returns, if 2020 returns haven’t been filed when the advanced credit is initially issued). For households whose payment was based on 2019 income data, and who would be eligible to receive a larger payment based on 2020 data, IRS is directed to issue a supplementary payment.

Child tax credit. For 2021 (1) qualifying children include 17-year-olds, (2) the credit is increased to $3,000 per child ($3,600 for children under six years of age), but the increase is subject to modified AGI phase out rules (and the existing modified AGI phase out rules for eligibility for any credit at all continue to apply), (3) the credit is refundable, and (4) IRS will make periodic advance payments totaling 50% of its estimate of the credit in the last half of 2021.

Earned income tax credit (EITC). (1) For 2021 the credit is increased for taxpayers with no qualifying children and age restrictions for those taxpayers are relaxed; (2) after 2020 taxpayers that have a qualifying child but can’t meet the identification requirements for the qualifying child are nevertheless allowed the credit; (3) taxpayers may use the greater of their 2019 or 2021 earned income in calculating the credit for 2021; (4) after 2020, the amount of investment income that a taxpayer can have and still earn the credit is increased; and (5) after 2020 there is broadening of the existing exception to the credit’s joint filing requirement under which separated married people eligible to file jointly are allowed the credit even if they don’t file jointly.

Child and dependent care credit. For 2021 (1) the credit is refundable; (2) the amount of qualifying expenses taken into account for the credit is increased from $3,000 to $8,000 if there’s one qualifying care recipient and from $6,000 to $16,000 if there are two or more; (3) the maximum percentage of qualifying expenses for which credit is allowed is increased to 50% from 35%; and (4) phase-down rules, based on AGI, are changed.

The increased dependent care assistance program exclusion amount (see below) under Code Sec. 129 will also affect the child and dependent care credit, as the amount of expenses taken into account for the credit is reduced by the amount excludable from the taxpayer’s income under Code Sec. 129.

Dependent care assistance programs. For 2021, the amount excludible under a dependent care assistance program is increased to $10,500 (or $7,500 for a married taxpayer filing a separate return). Retroactive plan amendments are allowed to facilitate the increase.

Health care premium assistance credit. For 2021 and 2022, the credit will be available for a larger percentage of insurance premiums, and individuals whose income is greater than 400% of the poverty line will be eligible for (rather than barred from) the credit. For 2020, individuals who were provided advances of the credit under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in excess of the credits to which they are entitled aren’t obligated to pay back the excess. And, notwithstanding any other rules, individuals who receive unemployment compensation during 2021 are eligible for the credit (and under
rules that increase the amount of the credit).

Income exclusion for unemployment benefits. For 2020, taxpayers with modified AGI less than $150,000 an exclude from gross income $10,200 of their unemployment benefit. The exclusion is available to each spouse if a joint return is filed. For taxpayers who already filed 2020 returns and did not exclude unemployment benefits, IRS said that taxpayers shouldn’t file an amended return and that additional guidance will be provided.

Student loan forgiveness. Beginning in 2021 and continuing through 2025, the forgiveness of many types of loans for post-high school education won’t result in income inclusion for the forgiven amounts.

Provisions Affecting Businesses

Payroll tax credits. The paid sick leave and family leave credits are extended to apply to wages paid through September 30, 2021 (instead of March 31, 2021). There are also changes to these credits, including:

• One major change is that during the two-quarter extension period the credits are applied against the employer Medicare portion of payroll taxes instead of the OASDI (Social Security) portion. The Medicare taxes taken into account are those for all employees, not just employees to whom qualifying leave wages are paid. But the credits continue to be refundable (and, thus, allowed in excess of the Medicare taxes) and advance refundable (they can be applied against any employment taxes, including income tax withholdings, for the quarter in which eligible leave wages are being paid, with any remaining credit refundable at the end of the quarter).
• An additional major change is that the allowable credit can be increased by both by both the amount of the OASDI taxes paid and Medicare taxes paid with respect to eligible leave wages, instead of just the Medicare taxes.
• Rules are provided that coordinate the leave credits with second draw Payroll Protection Program loans and certain government grants.
• The no-double benefit rule, which disallows claiming both (1) either of the above credits and (2) the income tax credit for family or medical leave is expanded to include similar coordination with certain other income and payroll tax credits.
• An employer is ineligible for the leave credits if, in providing paid leave, the employer discriminates in favor of highly compensated or full-time employees or on the basis of employment tenure.
• IRS is allowed an extended limitation-on-assessment period for deficiencies due to claiming either of the leave credits.
• ARPA allows employers who voluntarily provide 80 hours of emergency paid sick leave and 12 weeks of emergency family leave beginning after March 31, 2021 to claim the leave credits, thereby resetting the leave bank regardless of whether the employee used leave previously or has exhausted leave.
• The employee retention credit is extended to apply to wages paid before January 1, 2022 (instead of July 1, 2021). The result is that as a general rule (but see below) there is allowed a maximum per employee credit for 2021 of $28,000 ($10,000 of wages taken into account per quarter multiplied by the credit rate of 70%).
• Also, there are modifications to this credit. A major change is that for the last two calendar quarters of 2021 there is allowed a maximum $50,000 credit per quarter to certain small start-up businesses (and under relaxed eligibility rules). This change makes a limited credit available to some businesses that couldn’t qualify for the credit at all because they can’t meet either the full/partial suspension or 20% drop-in-gross-receipts requirements. And, during those two quarters certain distressed businesses will be able to treat all wages as eligible (up to the $10,000 per quarter limit), enabling employers with more than 500 employees, who can ordinarily treat only wages paid to laid-off workers as eligible, to treat any wages as eligible.
• Another of the major changes is that the change to applying the credit to Medicare taxes (discussed above for the paid sick and family leave credits) also applies (along with the continuing refundability and, for employers with no more than 500 employees, advance refundability of the credit).
• Under related rules, the relieved amounts aren’t included in the income of the individuals and there is imposed by the Internal Revenue Code a penalty on individuals that fail to report the end of their eligibility.

Self-employment sick and family leave credits. These credits, which are creditable against the income tax, have been extended to apply to eligible days through September 30, 2021 (instead of March 31, 2021). A major change is that both credits treat as reasons for eligible leave the obtaining of or recovering from COVID-19 immunization. And, for the family leave credit, reasons for eligible leave are expanded to include all qualifying reasons for taking sick leave.

Another major change is that in determining whether the 10-day per tax year limit for the sick leave credit is complied with, only days after December 31, 2021, are taken into account (thus restarting the count and often increasing the cumulative number of eligible days). And, a major change to the family leave credit is that the maximum number of eligible days per tax year is increased from 50 to 60, again with only days after March 31, 2021 taken into account (resetting the count and often increasing the cumulative number of eligible days).

Excess business losses. In a revenue raiser, the disallowance of excess business losses is extended to run through 2026 instead of 2025.

Deduction disallowance for over $1 million employee remuneration. In another revenue raiser, for tax years beginning after calendar year 2026, the $1 million annual cap on the deductibility of remuneration paid to certain categories of employees of publicly held corporations is expanded to include as a new category the five highest compensated employees not included in other categories.

Tax treatment of certain non-tax relief. ARPA provides favorable tax consequences for targeted Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) advances made by the SBA under the Economic Aid to Hard-hit Small Businesses, Non-Profits and Venues Act. The advances aren’t included in income and the income exclusion doesn’t result in deduction disallowances, denial of basis increases or reduction of other tax attributes. The same treatment applies to SBA Restaurant Revitalization Grants.

Pension plans. ARPA relaxes some funding standards and other IRC or ERISA rules for multiple employer pension plans. For single employer plans, IRC or ERISA rules are relaxed for amortizing funding shortfalls and the pension funding stabilization percentages are changed. Also changed are the special rules that apply to community newspaper plans.

Reporting by third party settlement organizations. ARPA tightens the de minimis exception to tax reporting by third party settlement organizations (TPSOs, e.g., PayPal) by excluding from reporting only transactions that don’t exceed $600 (and eliminating the 200-transaction threshold). ARPA also clarified that TPSO reporting obligations are limited to transactions involving goods and services.

Foreign tax. In a revenue raising provision, IRC section 864(f), which provided a one-time election under which, effectively, corporate groups could allocate some interest expense from foreign to domestic corporations and reduce the effect of limits on the foreign tax credit, is repealed. The repeal is retroactive to the election’s effective date (i.e., for tax years beginning after Dec. 31, 2020).

We are available to discuss in more detail any of the ARPA changes and how they apply to you.

The post Tax Provisions in the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 first appeared on Burkett Burkett & Burkett Certified Public Accountants, P.A..

There was talk of repealing the individual alternative minimum tax (AMT) as part of last year’s tax reform legislation. A repeal wasn’t included in the final version of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), but the TCJA will reduce the number of taxpayers subject to the AMT.

Now is a good time to familiarize yourself with the changes, assess your AMT risk and see if there are any steps you can take during the last several months of the year to avoid the AMT, or at least minimize any negative impact.

AMT vs. regular tax

The top AMT rate is 28%, compared to the top regular ordinary-income tax rate of 37%. But the AMT rate typically applies to a higher taxable income base and will result in a larger tax bill if you’re subject to it.

The TCJA reduced the number of taxpayers who’ll likely be subject to the AMT in part by increasing the AMT exemption and the income phaseout ranges for the exemption:

• For 2018, the exemption is $70,300 for singles and heads of households (up from $54,300 for 2017), and $109,400 for married couples filing jointly (up from $84,500 for 2017).
• The 2018 phaseout ranges are $500,000–$781,200 for singles and heads of households (up from $120,700–$337,900 for 2017) and $1,000,000–$1,437,600 for joint filers (up from $160,900–$498,900 for 2017).

You’ll be subject to the AMT if your AMT liability is greater than your regular tax liability.

AMT triggers

In the past, common triggers of the AMT were differences between deductions allowed for regular tax purposes and AMT purposes. Some popular deductions aren’t allowed under the AMT.

New limits on some of these deductions for regular tax purposes, such as on state and local income and property tax deductions, mean they’re less likely to trigger the AMT. And certain deductions not allowed for AMT purposes are now not allowed for regular tax purposes either, such as miscellaneous itemized deductions subject to the 2% of adjusted gross income floor.

But deductions aren’t the only things that can trigger the AMT. Some income items might do so, too, such as:

• Long-term capital gains and dividend income, even though they’re taxed at the same rate for both regular tax and AMT purposes,
• Accelerated depreciation adjustments and related gain or loss differences when assets are sold,
• Tax-exempt interest on certain private-activity municipal bonds, and
• The exercise of incentive stock options.

AMT planning tips

If it looks like you could be subject to the AMT in 2018, consider accelerating income into this year. Doing sosa may allow you to benefit from the lower maximum AMT rate. And deferring expenses you can’t deduct for AMT purposes may allow you to preserve those deductions. If you also defer expenses you can deduct for AMT purposes, the deductions may become more valuable because of the higher maximum regular tax rate.

Please contact us if you have questions about whether you could be subject to the AMT this year or about minimizing negative consequences from the AMT.

© 2018

The post Do you still need to worry about the AMT? first appeared on Burkett Burkett & Burkett Certified Public Accountants, P.A..

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) liberalized the eligibility rules for using the cash method of accounting, making this method — which is simpler than the accrual method — available to more businesses. Now the IRS has provided procedures a small business taxpayer can use to obtain automatic consent to change its method of accounting under the TCJA. If you have the option to use either accounting method, it pays to consider whether switching methods would be beneficial.

Cash vs. accrual

Generally, cash-basis businesses recognize income when it’s received and deduct expenses when they’re paid. Accrual-basis businesses, on the other hand, recognize income when it’s earned and deduct expenses when they’re incurred, without regard to the timing of cash receipts or payments.

In most cases, a business is permitted to use the cash method of accounting for tax purposes unless it’s:

1. Expressly prohibited from using the cash method, or
2. Expressly required to use the accrual method.

Cash method advantages

The cash method offers several advantages, including:

Simplicity. It’s easier and cheaper to implement and maintain.

Tax-planning flexibility. It offers greater flexibility to control the timing of income and deductible expenses. For example, it allows you to defer income to next year by delaying invoices or to shift deductions into this year by accelerating the payment of expenses. An accrual-basis business doesn’t enjoy this flexibility. For example, to defer income, delaying invoices wouldn’t be enough; the business would have to put off shipping products or performing services.

Cash flow benefits. Because income is taxed in the year it’s received, the cash method does a better job of ensuring that a business has the funds it needs to pay its tax bill.

Accrual method advantages

In some cases, the accrual method may offer tax advantages. For example, accrual-basis businesses may be able to use certain tax-planning strategies that aren’t available to cash-basis businesses, such as deducting year-end bonuses that are paid within the first 2½ months of the following year and deferring income on certain advance payments.

The accrual method also does a better job of matching income and expenses, so it provides a more accurate picture of a business’s financial performance. That’s why it’s required under Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP).

If your business prepares GAAP-compliant financial statements, you can still use the cash method for tax purposes. But weigh the cost of maintaining two sets of books against the potential tax benefits.

Making a change

Keep in mind that cash and accrual are the two primary tax accounting methods, but they’re not the only ones. Some businesses may qualify for a different method, such as a hybrid of the cash and accrual methods.

If your business is eligible for more than one method, we can help you determine whether switching methods would make sense and can execute the change for you if appropriate.

© 2018

The post Choosing the right accounting method for tax purposes first appeared on Burkett Burkett & Burkett Certified Public Accountants, P.A..

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) provides a valuable new tax break to noncorporate owners of pass-through entities: a deduction for a portion of qualified business income (QBI). The deduction generally applies to income from sole proprietorships, partnerships, S corporations and, typically, limited liability companies (LLCs). It can equal as much as 20% of QBI. But once taxable income exceeds $315,000 for married couples filing jointly or $157,500 for other filers, a wage limit begins to phase in.

Full vs. partial phase-in

When the wage limit is fully phased in, at $415,000 for joint filers and $207,500 for other filers, the QBI deduction generally can’t exceed the greater of the owner’s share of:

• 50% of the amount of W-2 wages paid to employees during the tax year, or
• The sum of 25% of W-2 wages plus 2.5% of the cost of qualified business property (QBP).

When the wage limit applies but isn’t yet fully phased in, the amount of the limit is reduced and the final deduction is calculated as follows:

1. The difference between taxable income and the applicable threshold is divided by $100,000 for joint filers or $50,000 for other filers.
2. The resulting percentage is multiplied by the difference between the gross deduction and the fully wage-limited deduction.
3. The result is subtracted from the gross deduction to determine the final deduction.

Some examples

Let’s say Chris and Leslie have taxable income of $600,000. This includes $300,000 of QBI from Chris’s pass-through business, which pays $100,000 in wages and has $200,000 of QBP. The gross deduction would be $60,000 (20% of $300,000), but the wage limit applies in full because the married couple’s taxable income exceeds the $415,000 top of the phase-in range for joint filers. Computing the deduction is fairly straightforward in this situation.

The first option for the wage limit calculation is $50,000 (50% of $100,000). The second option is $30,000 (25% of $100,000 + 2.5% of $200,000). So the wage limit — and the deduction — is $50,000.

What if Chris and Leslie’s taxable income falls within the phase-in range? The calculation is a bit more complicated. Let’s say their taxable income is $400,000. The full wage limit is still $50,000, but only 85% of the full limit applies:

($400,000 taxable income – $315,000 threshold)/$100,000 = 85%

To calculate the amount of their deduction, the couple must first calculate 85% of the difference between the gross deduction of $60,000 and the fully wage-limited deduction of $50,000:

($60,000 – $50,000) × 85% = $8,500

That amount is subtracted from the $60,000 gross deduction for a final deduction of $51,500.

That’s not all

Be aware that another restriction may apply: For income from “specified service businesses,” the QBI deduction is reduced if an owner’s taxable income falls within the applicable income range and eliminated if income exceeds it. Please contact us to learn whether your business is a specified service business or if you have other questions about the QBI deduction.

© 2018

The post Close-up on the new QBI deduction’s wage limit first appeared on Burkett Burkett & Burkett Certified Public Accountants, P.A..

1. Look at your bracket

Under the TCJA, the top income tax rate is now 37% (down from 39.6%) for taxpayers with taxable income over $500,000 (single and head-of-household filers) or $600,000 (married couples filing jointly). These thresholds are higher than for the top rate in 2017 ($418,400, $444,550 and $470,700, respectively). So the top rate might be less of a concern.

However, singles and heads of households in the middle and upper brackets could be pushed into a higher tax bracket much more quickly this year. For example, for 2017 the threshold for the 33% tax bracket was $191,650 for singles and $212,500 for heads of households. For 2018, the rate for this bracket has been reduced slightly to 32% — but the threshold for the bracket is now only $157,500 for both singles and heads of households.

So a lot more of these filers could find themselves in this bracket. (Fortunately for joint filers, their threshold for this bracket has increased from $233,350 to $315,000.)

If you expect this year’s income to be near the threshold for a higher bracket, consider strategies for reducing your taxable income and staying out of the next bracket. For example, you could take steps to accelerate deductible expenses.

But carefully consider the changes the TCJA has made to deductions. For example, you might no longer benefit from itemizing because of the nearly doubled standard deduction and the reduction or elimination of certain itemized deductions. For 2018, the standard deduction is $12,000 for singles, $18,000 for heads of households and $24,000 for joint filers.

2. Incur medical expenses

One itemized deduction the TCJA has retained and — temporarily — enhanced is the medical expense deduction. If you expect to benefit from itemizing on your 2018 return, take a look at whether you can accelerate deductible medical expenses into this year.

You can deduct only expenses that exceed a floor based on your adjusted gross income (AGI). Under the TCJA, the floor has dropped from 10% of AGI to 7.5%. But it’s scheduled to return to 10% for 2019 and beyond.

Deductible expenses may include:

• Health insurance premiums,
• Long-term care insurance premiums,
• Medical and dental services and prescription drugs, and
• Mileage driven for health care purposes.

You may be able to control the timing of some of these expenses so you can bunch them into 2018 and exceed the floor while it’s only 7.5%.

3. Review your investments

The TCJA didn’t make changes to the long-term capital gains rate, so the top rate remains at 20%. However, that rate now kicks in before the top ordinary-income tax rate. For 2018, the 20% rate applies to taxpayers with taxable income exceeding $425,800 (singles), $452,400 (heads of households), or $479,000 (joint filers).

If you’ve realized, or expect to realize, significant capital gains, consider selling some depreciated investments to generate losses you can use to offset those gains. It may be possible to repurchase those investments, so long as you wait at least 31 days to avoid the “wash sale” rule.

You also may need to plan for the 3.8% net investment income tax (NIIT). It can affect taxpayers with modified AGI (MAGI) over $200,000 for singles and heads of households, $250,000 for joint filers. You may be able to lower your tax liability by reducing your MAGI, reducing net investment income or both.

© 2018

The post 3 traditional midyear tax planning strategies for individuals that hold up post-TCJA first appeared on Burkett Burkett & Burkett Certified Public Accountants, P.A..

 Additionally, please see the guidance from Clarke & Company Benefits, LLC here in this Downloadable PDF on Special Rules for HRAs (DOWNLOAD HERE).  If you have questions or would like our assistance in filing Form 720, please contact us.

The post QUALIFIED SMALL EMPLOYER HRA (QSEHRA) reporting deadline July 31st first appeared on Burkett Burkett & Burkett Certified Public Accountants, P.A..

The massive changes the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) made to income taxes have garnered the most attention. But the new law also made major changes to gift and estate taxes. While the TCJA didn’t repeal these taxes, it did significantly reduce the number of taxpayers who’ll be subject to them, at least for the next several years. Nevertheless, factoring taxes into your estate planning is still important.

Exemption increases

The TCJA more than doubles the combined gift and estate tax exemption and the generation-skipping transfer (GST) tax exemption, from $5.49 million for 2017 to $11.18 million for 2018.

This amount will continue to be annually adjusted for inflation through 2025. Absent further congressional action, however, the exemptions will revert to their 2017 levels (adjusted for inflation) for 2026 and beyond.

The rate for all three taxes remains at 40% — only three percentage points higher than the top income tax rate.

The impact

Even before the TCJA, the vast majority of taxpayers didn’t have to worry about federal gift and estate taxes. While the TCJA protects even more taxpayers from these taxes, those with estates in the roughly $6 million to $11 million range (twice that for married couples) still need to keep potential post-2025 estate tax liability in mind in their estate planning. Although their estates would escape estate taxes if they were to die while the doubled exemption is in effect, they could face such taxes if they live beyond 2025.

Any taxpayer who could be subject to gift and estate taxes after 2025 may want to consider making gifts now to take advantage of the higher exemptions while they’re available.

Factoring taxes into your estate planning is also still important if you live in a state with an estate tax. Even before the TCJA, many states imposed estate tax at a lower threshold than the federal government did. Now the differences in some states will be even greater.

Finally, income tax planning, which became more important in estate planning back when exemptions rose to $5 million more than 15 years ago, is now an even more important part of estate planning.

For example, holding assets until death may be advantageous if estate taxes aren’t a concern. When you give away an appreciated asset, the recipient takes over your tax basis in the asset, triggering capital gains tax should he or she turn around and sell it. When an appreciated asset is inherited, on the other hand, the recipient’s basis is “stepped up” to the asset’s fair market value on the date of death, erasing the built-in capital gain. So retaining appreciating assets until death can save significant income tax.

Review your estate plan

Whether or not you need to be concerned about federal gift and estate taxes, having an estate plan in place and reviewing it regularly is important. Contact us to discuss the potential tax impact of the TCJA on your estate plan.

© 2018

The post The tax impact of the TCJA on estate planning first appeared on Burkett Burkett & Burkett Certified Public Accountants, P.A..

What is a casualty? It’s a sudden, unexpected or unusual event, such as a natural disaster (hurricane, tornado, flood, earthquake, etc.), fire, accident, theft or vandalism. A casualty loss doesn’t include losses from normal wear and tear or progressive deterioration from age or termite damage.

Here are some things you should know about deducting casualty losses on your 2017 return:

When to deduct. Generally, you must deduct a casualty loss on your return for the year it occurred. However, if you have a loss from a federally declared disaster area, you may have the option to deduct the loss on an amended return for the immediately preceding tax year.

Amount of loss. Your loss is generally the lesser of 1) your adjusted basis in the property before the casualty (typically, the amount you paid for it), or 2) the decrease in fair market value of the property as a result of the casualty. This amount must be reduced by any insurance or other reimbursement you received or expect to receive. (If the property was insured, you must have filed a timely claim for reimbursement of your loss.)

$100 rule. After you’ve figured your casualty loss on personal-use property, you must reduce that loss by $100. This reduction applies to each casualty loss event during the year. It doesn’t matter how many pieces of property are involved in an event.

10% rule. You must reduce the total of all your casualty losses on personal-use property for the year by 10% of your adjusted gross income (AGI). In other words, you can deduct these losses only to the extent they exceed 10% of your AGI.

Note that special relief has been provided to certain victims of Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria and California wildfires that affects some of these rules. For details on this relief or other questions about casualty losses, please contact us.

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