Employers generally must withhold income tax from employees’ wages. To figure out how much tax to withhold, you need to use the employee’s Form W-4, the appropriate method and the appropriate withholding table described in Publication 15-T, Federal Income Tax Withholding Methods. You’ll deposit your withholdings based on your business and the amount you withhold. […]
You may be aware of widely circulated promotions — ads on radio and the internet — touting refunds involving Employee Retention Credits. The IRS says these are a blatant attempt to con ineligible people to claim the ERC credit. The problem is widespread enough to make the IRS’s annual “Dirty Dozen” list. The promotions are […]
A trust allows you to be specific about how, when and to whom your assets are distributed. Trusts can be arranged for a variety of different goals: to reduce estate taxes, to transfer property and to preserve assets for minors or a charity. Trusts offer more flexibility than a will to control your assets. You […]
Who counts as an employee versus an independent contractor may be about to change. A DOL proposal suggests revamping employee classification, reclassifying workers who are economically dependent on a company as employees entitled to more benefits and legal protections. The DOL has received 12,469 comments on the proposed rule, so the agency may not issue […]
In late December while most practitioners and their clients were busy with other things, Congress was passing a giant omnibus budget bill. Buried within it was the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement 2.0 Act of 2022 (SECURE 2.0), which contains many retirement (and some other) changes that practitioners and their clients need to […]
The IRS has recently announced that “in the interest of sound tax administration and other factors,” taxpayers in many states will not need to report various payments on their 2022 tax returns. In short, the IRS has determined it will not challenge the taxability of payments related to general welfare and disaster relief. So what […]
Below are federal payroll tax rates and benefits contribution limits for 2023. Social Security tax In 2023, the Social Security tax rate is 6.2% for employers and employees, unchanged from 2022. The Social Security wage base is $160,200 for employers and employees, increasing from $147,500 in 2022. Self-employed people must pay 12.4% on the first $160,200. Medicare tax In […]
With tax time coming, you will need to ask yourself: Do I itemize my deductions or do I accept the standard deduction? In brief, the standard deduction lets you lower your income by a flat rate. It makes the math easy and you don’t have to work your way through piles of records. However, you […]
There’s been buzz about new retirement plan provisions for weeks, and now they’re final, bringing about changes to various federal rules and adding flexibility for current and future retirees. The Secure 2.0 Act of 2022, part of the Consolidated Appropriations Act of 2023, includes the following modifications, some of which are immediate, and others that […]
With year-end approaching, it is time to start thinking about moves that may help lower your tax bill for this year and next. This year’s planning is more challenging than usual due to recent changes made by the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 and the potential change in congressional balance of power resulting from the […]