Lipton Tax Company, Inc.

08/21/2020

I also have seen clients receiving Notice CP14TL, for tax due on the returns just filed by July 15th. These notices are coming out with balances due, even if the taxpayer paid the tax on time by July 15th. These notices are going out BEFORE the payments have been posted to the taxpayer's account.

If you receive one of these, and you had paid the tax, I would do the following steps:

1. Verify payment has cleared your bank.
2. Wait one or two months to see if the IRS has posted the payment , and you should see a new notice showing that - OR
3. You Might not receive another notice, IF the IRS received your payment, posted it, and they deem that you don't owe anymore.

August 21, 2020 — IRS statement on temporarily stopping the mailing of balance due notices.

08/14/2020

If you know someone who hasn't yet received their EIP stimulus check, please read this...

IRS takes new steps to ensure people with children receive $500 Economic Impact Payments
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The Internal Revenue Service continues to look for ways to help people who were unable to provide their information in time to receive Economic Impact Payments for their children. As part of that effort, the Internal Revenue Service announced today it will reopen the registration period for federal beneficiaries who didn’t receive $500 per child payments earlier this year.
The IRS urges certain federal benefit recipients to use the IRS.gov Non-Filers tool starting Aug. 15 through Sept. 30 to enter information on their qualifying children to receive the supplemental $500 payments.
Those eligible to provide this information include people with qualifying children who receive Social Security retirement, survivor or disability benefits, Supplemental Security Income (SSI), Railroad Retirement benefits and Veterans Affairs Compensation and Pension (C&P) benefits and did not file a tax return in 2018 or 2019.
The IRS anticipates the catch-up payments, equal to $500 per eligible child, will be issued by mid-October.

08/14/2020

IRS NOTICE :

Pending check payments and payment notices
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If you mailed a check with or without a tax return to the IRS, it may still be unopened in the backlog of mail the IRS is processing due to COVID-19. Any payments will be posted as the date IRS received them rather than the date the agency processed them. To avoid penalties and interest, taxpayers should not cancel their checks and should ensure funds continue to be available so the IRS can process them. To provide fair and equitable treatment, the IRS is providing relief from bad check penalties for dishonored checks the agency received between March 1 and July 15 due to delays in IRS processing. However, interest and penalties may still apply.
Due to high call volumes, the IRS suggests waiting to contact the agency about any unprocessed paper payments still pending. See www.irs.gov/payments for options to make payments other than by mail.

Pay your taxes, view your account or apply for a payment plan with the IRS.

02/03/2020

https://www.irs.gov/identity-theft-central

Please read this article from the IRS about how to protect yourself and your business.

Learn how the IRS protects your information and steps you can take to guard yourself against tax-related identify theft.

01/21/2020

I received an email from someone with an email ending in ".cz" stating they got my info from the Florida Society of CPA's. He wanted to know how much I charge for a corporation and personal return. I sent him via return email my minimum charges and said that I needed more info to calculate his fees. SO, he sends me a link to "Sharefile" that wanted me to enter my Office 365 login and password. I have had experience before of getting my email hacked from a similar situation, so I sent him a link for uploading his documents to DropBox. He responded by saying "Got it, thanks".

I looked up the .cz, and it's from Czech Republic.

Please be careful, and DO NOT ENTER your login and password on anyone else's site! I hope I have averted any problems for myself this time.

01/07/2020

I'm posting this to inform small business owners of this new law. It is not a political post, so please refrain from posting such responses.

This year is the start of a NEW BILL - AB5!

California Assembly Bill 5 is one of the most aggressive rules in the country, and effectively re-categorizes the operating rules for hiring folks as Independent Contractors. This directly affects the "GIG Economy", but also clarifies the rules for the rest of us, too.

It's fairly complicated, but here are the three main rules we all HAVE to comply with for 2020 and the future:

A. Worker is free from control and direction of the hiring entity in connection with the performance of the work, AND
B. Worker performs work that is OUTSIDE the course of the hiring entity's business, AND
C. Worker is CUSTOMARILY engaged in an independently established business, trade or occupation of the same nature as the work being performed.

SO:

If you hire Independent Contractors to work for you doing the work your company does, you probably need to change the way you pay them, or face probable payroll audits.

I have seen many companies try to get around the IC rules by requiring their "Contractors" to BECOME self-employed in order to be hired. This practice will no longer work, and will cause penalties.

Here's a Power Point (PDF) for your reading enjoyment🤣! (copy and paste)
https://www.ftb.ca.gov/about-ftb/.../gig-economy-and-tax-compliance.pdf

Please contact me for further information or to figure out how this applies to your company.

and, Happy New Year!

12/16/2019

Please note! We will be closing our office for the holidays from Friday, December 20, 2019 through January 5, 2020. We hope you all have a wonderful holiday!🎄 See you in the New Year!

12/16/2019

Here are some year end tips for taxes. Please let us know if you have any questions or need our help...

IRS Newsletter : Issue Number: Tax Tip 2019-177
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Get ready for taxes:
What to do before the tax year ends Dec. 31

As tax filing season approaches, taxpayers should remember there are things they can do before the end of the year. Doing these will help people get ready for the upcoming tax filing season.

Here are a few things taxpayers still have time to do this year:

Donate to charity - For those who plan to itemize deductions, there is still time to make a 2019 donation. Taxpayers who itemized in the past should remember that the standard deduction has increased. This may limit or eliminate the itemized deductions for many taxpayers.

Report an address change: Taxpayers who moved should notify the IRS of their new address. They should also remember to notify the Social Security Administration of any name change.

Renew expiring ITINs: Certain individual taxpayer identification numbers expire at the end of this year. Taxpayers can visit the ITIN page on IRS.gov for more information on which numbers need renewal.

Connect with the IRS:
Taxpayers can use social media to get the latest tax and filing tips from the IRS. The IRS shares information on things like tax changes, scam alerts, initiatives, tax products and taxpayer services. These social media tools are available in different languages, including English, Spanish and American Sign Language.

Find information about retirement plans:
IRS.gov has end-of-year find tax information about retirement plans. This includes resources for individuals about retirement planning, contributions and withdrawals. Taxpayers who are 70½ and over can still take a required minimum distribution from traditional IRA, SIMPLE IRA, SEP IRA, or retirement plan accounts. Taxpayers who reached 70½ in 2019 can wait until April 1, 2020, to receive their first required minimum distribution.

Contribute salary deferral:
Taxpayers can make a deferral to a retirement plan. This helps maximize the tax credit available for eligible contributions. Taxpayers should make sure their total salary deferral contributions do not exceed the limit for 2019. If you are self-employed you have higher limits, so you can contribute more.

Think about tax refunds:
Taxpayers should be careful not to expect getting a refund by a certain date. This is especially true for taxpayers who plan to use their refund when making major purchases or paying bills. Just as each tax return is unique and individual, so is each taxpayer's refund. Taxpayers can take steps now to make sure the IRS can process their return next year.

08/27/2019

Tax Audit Anyone? We can help you! Call us as soon as you get the notice - and NO - we don't recommend you do it yourself!