If that sticky note retirement is your goal, then you need to save as much as possible, especially if you're self-employed. And yes, I did put that note on the board. ? (Photo by Kay Bell) Most IRA contributions must be made by April’s Tax Day. Unless you’re self-employed and got an extension to file your tax return. That means you also might be able to contribute to, and even establish, a retirement plan for your entrepreneurial endeavor. Here's an overview of some of the more popular, and relatively easy, self-employed retirement plans to which you can still contribute by ..read more

When October rolled around, the Oct. 15 filing extension deadline was one of the tax moves that made the ol' blog's monthly to-do list. Actually, it was covered as two October tax moves. The first was a reminder to the majority of filers across the United States who earlier this year got an extension to file their 2023 tax returns to do just that by Tuesday, Oct, 15. You’ve still got a week to finish up that Form 1040. The second extension tax move in that post, however, noted that some folks get beyond Oct. 15 to file their extended ..read more

If you have a big heart like the Tin Man in The Wizard of Oz classic movie, consider helping out fellow taxpayers as a volunteer during the coming tax-filing season. Volunteering is getting a lot of attention right now, as people are doing what they can to help each other in areas ravaged by Hurricane Helene. These good deed doers are as critical as the official government and organized philanthropic organization workers. The Internal Revenue Service also depends on volunteers every filing season. They are the IRS-trained people who staff Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) and Tax Counseli ..read more

The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame (left) sits on the Lake Erie shore next to the Great Lakes Science Center (right) in Cleveland's North Coast Harbor. (Photo by Rona Proudfoot, CC BY-SA 2.0) For years, Austinites have been the target of the Buckeye State, and I’m not talking college football. A couple of years ago, billboards popped up in the Austin, Texas, metro area suggesting that Ohio had plenty of cool places to live that were less expensive. Now, the Ohio promotions are in television ads. And just as the Lone Star State capital’s annual Austin City Limits (ACL ..read more

Getting mail delivered to your home is convenient. But even individually locked boxes, like these in this community collection area, are not safe from mail thieves. The Internal Revenue Service last week reaffirmed its commitment to modernization, specifically giving taxpayers more digital options, when it announced 24 states will be part of its Direct File program. Direct File is the IRS’ own tax preparation software that eligible taxpayers can use to prepare and electronically file their annual federal tax returns for free. The key for users is free. From the IRS' perspective, a more importa ..read more

Photo by Matt Howard on Unsplash Hurricane Helene and her aftermath have, naturally, garnered most attention. But other parts of the United States also have been hit by disasters. Wildfires erupted on June 22 in parts of Washington state. Less than a month later, on July 13, parts of Illinois endured severe storms and flooding. Now the Internal Revenue Service has granted those affected taxpayers, both businesses and individuals, tax relief. Washington state wildfires: Certain taxpayers in Washington state affected by wildfires that began on June 22 now have until Feb. 3, 2025, to file various ..read more

Three more states — Alaska, Idaho, and Kansas — will join the Internal Revenue Service’s Direct File next tax season. They join Connecticut, Maine, Maryland, New Jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oregon, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, who earlier this year joined the IRS-created-and-operated free online tax preparation and e-filing program. These 12 new Direct File states will double the states where Direct File will be available. A dozen — Arizona, California, Florida, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Hampshire, New York, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, and Wyoming — were part of the Di ..read more

National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration/National Weather Service The people whose lives have been devastated by Hurricane Helene obviously are not thinking about taxes. But the Internal Revenue Service has acted to officially ensure that they don’t have to worry about this for a while. The IRS has announced disaster tax relief for all individuals and businesses in seven states that were affected by the deadly hurricane, which made landfall in Florida’s Big Bend as a category 4 and then proceeded to wreak havoc across the south. Major disaster declarations have been issued by Federal Em ..read more

Photo by Vlad Chețan October is a scary month. Of course, there’s Halloween. As an adult, I’ve learned one of the most frightening things is a bad Oct. 31 costume party! It’s also the time of year when weather turns colder, sending a chill along the spines of those (me!) who prefer warmer weather. And scariest of all, it’s the start of the final quarter of the annual tax year. If you got a filing extension, you’ve got to face your fears and submit that extended Form 1040 by Oct. 15 or potentially pay the price in late-filing penalties. Beyond ..read more

Photo by Adeolu Eletu on Unsplash The main goal of the Republican tax reform bill in 2017 was to lower the corporate tax rate. It did that, cutting it from 35 percent to 21 percent and making it permanent. For anyone not fluent in Congressional legislative language, that means that, unlike the many individual tax breaks in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) set to expire at the end of 2025, there’s no sunset on the lower corporate tax rate. That’s put much of the tax focus, especially on Capitol Hill, on those expiring provisions. But the corporate tax ..read more