J & J Holt Accounting and Tax Service

01/12/2023

IR-2023-05, January 12, 2023

WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service today announced Monday, January 23, 2023, as the beginning of the nation's 2023 tax season when the agency will begin accepting and processing 2022 tax year returns.

01/24/2022

An overview of the credit for other dependents

Taxpayers with dependents who don't qualify for the child tax credit may be able to claim the credit for other dependents. This is a non-refundable credit. It can reduce or, in some cases, eliminate a tax bill but, the IRS cannot refund the taxpayer any portion of the credit that may be left over.

Here’s more information to help taxpayers determine if they’re eligible to claim it on their 2021 tax return.

The maximum credit amount is $500 for each dependent who meets certain conditions. These include:

Dependents who are age 17 or older.
Dependents who have individual taxpayer identification numbers.
Dependent parents or other qualifying relatives supported by the taxpayer.
Dependents living with the taxpayer who aren't related to the taxpayer.

The credit begins to phase out when the taxpayer's income is more than $200,000. This phaseout begins for married couples filing a joint tax return at $400,000.

A taxpayer can claim this credit if:

They claim the person as a dependent on the taxpayer's return.
They cannot use the dependent to claim the child tax credit or additional child tax credit.
The dependent is a U.S. citizen, national or resident alien.

01/10/2022

Key information to help taxpayers
By law, the IRS cannot issue a refund involving the Earned Income Tax Credit or Additional Child Tax Credit before mid-February, though eligible people may file their returns beginning on January 24. The law provides this additional time to help the IRS stop fraudulent refunds from being issued.

01/10/2022

Watch for IRS letters about advance Child Tax Credit payments and third Economic Impact Payments

The IRS started sending Letter 6419, 2021 advance Child Tax Credit, in late December 2021 and continues to do so into January. The letter contains important information that can help ensure the return is accurate. People who received the advance CTC payments can also check the amount of the payments they received by using the CTC Update Portal available on IRS.gov.

Eligible taxpayers who received advance Child Tax Credit payments should file a 2021 tax return to receive the second half of the credit. Eligible taxpayers who did not receive advance Child Tax Credit payments can claim the full credit by filing a tax return.

The IRS will begin issuing Letter 6475, Your Third Economic Impact Payment, to individuals who received a third payment in 2021 in late January. While most eligible people already received their stimulus payments, this letter will help individuals determine if they are eligible to claim the Recovery Rebate Credit for missing stimulus payments. If so, they must file a 2021 tax return to claim their remaining stimulus amount. People can also use IRS online account to view their Economic Impact Payment amounts.

Both letters include important information that can help people file an accurate 2021 tax return. If the return includes errors or is incomplete, it may require further review while the IRS corrects the error, which may slow the tax refund. Using this information when preparing a tax return electronically can reduce errors and avoid delays in processing.

The fastest way for eligible individuals to get their 2021 tax refund that will include their allowable Child Tax Credit and Recovery Rebate Credit is by filing electronically and choosing direct deposit.

01/10/2022

IR-2022-08, January 10, 2022

WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service announced that the nation's tax season will start on Monday, January 24, 2022, when the tax agency will begin accepting and processing 2021 tax year returns.

The January 24 start date for individual tax return filers allows the IRS time to perform programming and testing that is critical to ensuring IRS systems run smoothly. Updated programming helps ensure that eligible people can claim the proper amount of the Child Tax Credit after comparing their 2021 advance credits and claim any remaining stimulus money as a Recovery Rebate Credit when they file their 2021 tax return.

"Planning for the nation's filing season process is a massive undertaking, and IRS teams have been working non-stop these past several months to prepare," said IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig. "The pandemic continues to create challenges, but the IRS reminds people there are important steps they can take to help ensure their tax return and refund don't face processing delays. Filing electronically with direct deposit and avoiding a paper tax return is more important than ever this year. And we urge extra attention to those who received an Economic Impact Payment or an advance Child Tax Credit last year. People should make sure they report the correct amount on their tax return to avoid delays."

The IRS encourages everyone to have all the information they need in hand to make sure they file a complete and accurate return. Having an accurate tax return can avoid processing delays, refund delays and later IRS notices. This is especially important for people who received advance Child Tax Credit payments or Economic Impact Payments (American Rescue Plan stimulus payments) in 2021; they will need the amounts of these payments when preparing their tax return. The IRS is mailing special letters to recipients, and they can also check amounts received on IRS.gov.

Like last year, there will be individuals filing tax returns who, even though they are not required to file, need to file a 2021 return to claim a Recovery Rebate Credit to receive the tax credit from the 2021 stimulus payments or reconcile advance payments of the Child Tax Credit. People who don't normally file also could receive other credits.

09/24/2021

The Internal Revenue Service today reminds taxpayers about the upcoming October 15 due date to file 2020 tax returns. People who asked for an extension should file on or before the extension deadline to avoid the penalty for filing late.

01/29/2021

Here's how the CARES Act changes deducting charitable contributions made in 2020:

Previously, charitable contributions could only be deducted if taxpayers itemized their deductions.

However, taxpayers who don't itemize deductions may take a charitable deduction of up to $300 for cash contributions made in 2020 to qualifying organizations. For the purposes of this deduction, qualifying organizations are those that are religious, charitable, educational, scientific or literary in purpose. The law changed in this area due to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act.

01/04/2021

https://www.irs.gov/coronavirus/get-my-payment

Use Get My Payment to get information about your payment status and payment type.

09/01/2020

Tennessee Releases New Digital Tool



Businesses must confirm information by Sept. 25 deadline

Nashville, Tenn. – Tennessee Governor Bill Lee and the Department of Revenue announced today a new digital eligibility tool for small business owners to determine if their business may be eligible for a Tennessee Business Relief Program payment.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has placed an enormous strain on Tennessee’s small businesses, and we’re hopeful these relief payments will help alleviate that burden as businesses get back on their feet,” said Gov. Lee. “We’re excited for this tool to help small businesses get the relief they need.”

More than 40,000 small business owners across 60 different industries qualify for the Tennessee Business Relief Program. Eligible businesses have until September 25, 2020 to confirm their information with the Department of Revenue in order to receive a relief payment between $2,500 and $30,000 in no-cost funds from the state.

“We encourage all eligible business owners to complete this step as soon as possible,” said Revenue Commissioner David Gerregano. “And if you know a small business owner who could benefit from this program, please help spread awareness.”

The eligibility tool can be found at businessrelief.tn.gov

For questions please call the TN Dept of Revenue at (615) 253-0600 or email [email protected]. More details can be found at tn.gov/revenue.

https://www.tn.gov/revenue/tennessee-business-relief-program.html

On June 2, 2020, Governor Bill Lee announced the use of federal Coronavirus Relief Funds to assist Tennessee small businesses impacted by the COVID-19 crisis. Governor Lee has directed the Tennessee Department of Revenue to issue business relief payments through the Tennessee Business Relief Program...

08/06/2020

11/05/2018

Are Social Security Disability Benefits Taxable?

Your benefits may be taxable, if you have other sources of income besides your disability payment, or if your spouse earns a substantial income.

If you file a federal tax return as single, head of household and one-half of your social security disability benefits plus other taxable income plus tax-exempt interest income is more than $25,000, up to 85 percent of your Social Security benefits are subject to income tax.

If you are married and file a joint return, and one-half of your social security disability benefits plus other taxable income plus tax-exempt interest income is more than $32,000, up to 85 percent of your Social Security benefits are subject to income tax.

If you are married and file a separate tax return, you probably will pay taxes on your benefits unless you lived apart from your spouse all year.