Tom reminds of us of the May 17 filing deadline, including what is and isn't due today. He also shares what an extension gives our clients, as well as what it doesn’t give our clients. He then shares some guidance as to resubmitting rejected e-filed returns or extensions and still have them considered to be timely filed… Congrats on making it to the end of a wild filing season ..read more

With the American Rescue Plan, signed by President Biden on March 11, 2021, comes a great deal of items for tax preparers to be aware of in order to provide the best possible advice and service to tax clients. Tom covers things like recovery rebates, unemployment benefits, COBRA continuation coverage, the child tax credit, the earned income credit, child and dependent care credit, family & ..read more

In this second installment looking at the gig economy, Tom dives into worker status. Should they be classified as an employee or as an independent contractor? And what should you, the tax preparer, do if your tax client doesn't agree with the classification? Links: NY Post article VCSP Publication 15-A What's the Gig Deal blog post from 2/22/21 Video Transcript: Hello again everybody. Tom ..read more

IRS guidance from March 24, 2021 clarified that a tax preparer should determine modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) without the unemployment compensation included. In this video, Tom walks through the updated instructions in the Schedule 1, including some examples. Video Links: IRS Guidance American Rescue Plan Blog Post 3/12/21 American Rescue Plan Blog Post 3/22/21 PDF of Slides used in ..read more

In this video, Tom covers news of the individual filing extension as well as updates to specific provisions of the American Rescue Plan. Topics include handling of federally tax-free unemployment, new $1400 stimulus payments, and planning with the Advance Premium Tax Credit "no payback" rule in 2020. *UPDATE 3/23/21: Around the 10:15 mark in the video, regarding federally-excludable unemployment ..read more

"The IRS wants to help taxpayers who are due refunds but haven't filed their 2017 tax returns yet," said IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig. "Time is quickly running out for these taxpayers. There's only a three-year window to claim these refunds, and the window closes on May 17. We want to help people get these refunds, but they will need to quickly file a 2017 tax return." In the below video, Tom ..read more

The American Rescue Plan suspends the requirement to repay excess advance payments of the 2020 premium tax credit. How do we apply this rule? What are the key takeaways and planning opportunities for the APTC? Video Links: IR-2021-84 April 9, 2021 Previous Blog Post: American Rescue Plan: What Tax Pros Should Know Video Transcript: Hello again, everybody. This is Tom O'Saben, Enrolled Agent ..read more

In today’s blog, Tom discusses defining the income of a trust. Is it taxable income? Is it accounting income? Is it what the trust document says it is? OR is it a case of the trustee needing to ”Show Me The Money?" Video Transcript: Hello everybody, this is Tom O'Saben enrolled agent, I'm the Assistant Director of Professional Education and Outreach for the University of ..read more

The IRS has provided more guidance and a safe harbor for deducting expenses paid with tax-free PPP money. And they still don't want us to amend returns. Are they trying to tell us something? Video Links: Rev Proc 2021-20 Repaying APTC Blog Post May 17 guidance Blog Post Calculating Unemployment Compensation to Exclude Blog Post American Rescue Plan Updates Blog Post American Rescue Plan ..read more

Tom explains the 2021 changes to the child tax credit made by the American Rescue Plan. He also gets us thinking that perhaps having our clients receive advance payments in July through December could be a mistake. Video Links: American Rescue Plan IRS Guidance Video Transcript: Hello again everybody, from the University of Illinois Tax School. This is Tom O'Saben, Enrolled Agent, I'm ..read more