On October 8, 2019, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced that private debt collectors can now accept direct debits from taxpayers. If a collection agency is handling your tax debt, this means that you can provide your banking details and let the agency take one or more payments directly from your checking or savings ... Read More
Tax News
Why Do We Pay Taxes? Types of Taxes & Where They Go
Why do people have to pay taxes? What does the government do with that money? If you've ever asked questions like this, you are not alone. When many people receive their paychecks, they wonder why their take-home pay is less than they earned. Similarly, if you work for yourself as a freelancer or a sole proprietor, you may also ... Read More
Why Are Tax Refunds Lower This Year? Spoiler Alert: Most People Actually Owe Less Tax
Why is my tax refund smaller than last year? On social media, thousands of users are posting this question, and their concerns are well-founded — tax refunds for the 2018 tax year are smaller than tax refunds from previous years. According to some sources, average refunds have dropped 8.7% from $2,135 to $1,949, and about a ... Read More
Sales Tax Implications of the U.S. Supreme Court’s Wayfair Decision
The recent U.S. Supreme Court decision in South Dakota vs. Wayfair has opened the door for states to collect sales tax from online retailers who conduct business—but don’t have a physical presence within the state. The court overturned the case of Quill Corp. v. North Dakota. It established the physical presence rule in 1992. ... Read More
The Final Tax Bill Reduces the Estate Tax
If you're worried about the estate tax, the recent or final tax bill reduces the estate tax. The estate tax exemption has been doubled, helping thousands of American families to avoid this tax. Here's a look at what's changing and what's staying the same. The New Estate Tax Exemption Under the old rules, individual taxpayers ... Read More
IRS Tax Levies, Seizures, & Liens Fall With Audits At 10+ Year Low in 2017
The IRS yesterday released the 2017 IRS Databook. It provides an overview of the IRS's activities over the past fiscal year. In other words, it includes activities from October 1st, 2016 to September 30th, 2017. IRS enforcement actions, which include tax levies, liens, and seizures fell in comparison to the previous year. IRS ... Read More
Key Details You Should Know About the Trump Tax Plan
The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (aka Trump Tax Plan) will be a game changer for corporations; the elimination of the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) and consolidation of tax rates down to 21 percent – are all permanent. But, what does it mean for individual taxpayers? Instead of sweeping reform, the new tax laws are a hodge-podge of ... Read More
What’s Really at Stake if the Proposed Estate Tax Is Repealed?
Tax reform is coming, and it could happen very soon now that GOP lawmakers in both the House and Senate have agreed upon a reform plan. Depending on whom you believe, the changes will help all taxpayers, or they will just make the rich, richer and give even more tax breaks to large corporations. But no matter whom you believe, ... Read More
Republican Tax Plan Released – Controversial Items Explained
It's finally here! No not Christmas, but that is just around the corner. I'm not talking about tax season either. The "it" I'm referring to is the Republican tax reform plan. House Republicans released their long-awaited tax plan last week and as one might expect there is a lot to digest. So let's take a look at the some of the ... Read More
Billionaire Calls Eliminating Estate Tax “Terrible Mistake”
As the saying goes, there are two certainties in life: death and taxes. If you’re among the very wealthy then you can actually count on those two things going hand-in-hand, thanks to the federal estate tax. As it currently stands the federal estate tax only applies to a very small part of the population. That’s because the ... Read More
How Will the Equifax Data Breach Affect Your Tax Return?
Filing your next tax return is probably the furthest thing from your mind right now. But you might want to give it at least a little attention. It’s only September, but in case you haven’t heard there was a massive data breach recently and nearly half of the entire country was likely affected. 143 Million People Potentially ... Read More
New Phishing Scam Taking Dead Aim at Tax Pros
It’s no secret that scammers continuously prey on innocent victims in an effort to steal their tax records. In many cases, they even commit identity theft by accessing their personal information. Scammers prey on anyone they can but often focus on the elderly, who can be more vulnerable to these types of attacks. Furthermore, ... Read More
