Tax Tips

For most standard wage earners, preparing for your tax filing is fairly simple.  You receive a Form W2 in the mail and unless you have other rental properties or other complications, your return is relatively straightforward.  But for the freelancer, things aren’t quite as simple.

When you are a sole proprietor, independent contractor, freelancer, or other self-employed person, your will not receive a paycheck and subsequent W2 from the companies you work for.  Instead you will receive a Form 1099-Misc for any payments received via check or cash.  If you accept credit cards, these amounts will be reported to you by your processing company on Form 1099-K.  The amounts on these forms will be the gross amounts paid to you, as companies you work for will not deduct taxes from your pay.  The processing company will not indicate their fees on the form.  Both of these forms are also reported to the IRS.  This gross income needs to be reported on your annual tax filings.  It is important to note that you should keep separate records of your payments as well both for verification as well as the fact that companies are not required to report payments to you if they are made by credit card or under $600.  Income tracking is made easier if you keep a set of books and a separated bank account for your business.

After you have tracked and gathered all of your income, you will also need to report your expenses.  These items will help you reduce the income that results in your taxation.  It is important to remember that because expenses reduce your tax, the Internal Revenue Service scrutinizes what you are reporting. But what is a legitimate expense?  Legitimate deductions are ones that are necessary, helpful and appropriate for your trade or business.  Easy ones are things like office supplies, computer, advertising, banking and credit card fees.  Basically, if you need it to operate your business, then it is most likely a valid expense.  Always keep in mind that the IRS will require receipts for purchases that you are deducting.  For easy referencing at tax time, try to keep your expense by category with an efficient filing system throughout the year.  The standard categories will be broken down into:  accounting and banking, advertising, auto expenses, contract labor, computers and other equipment, meals and entertainment, memberships and dues, education and training, rents, insurance, interest, office expenses, supplies, repairs and maintenance, professional fees, cost of goods sold, and more. 

While some of these fees are straightforward, others are a bit trickier.  Take meals and entertainment for one.  The support of this type of expense could be an entry in a business calendar that you keep with all of your appointments, etc. Be sure to note who was at the event, when was it, what was the purpose, and how much was the cost. You also need to prove you spent the money by a debit card entry in a bank statement or a credit card statement. You get half of the total amount of the expense in this category, unless it meets other requirements.

Another area of contention is the home office.  One of the freedoms of being a freelancer is the potential to work from home.  But what makes up a true home office in the eyes of the IRS?  The office that is part of your home in eligible provided you can show that it is your principal place of business and used exclusively for your business.  So, if your office doubles as the kids’ homework center or a guest room, the IRS is not going to allow it.  If your space does qualify, you need to know the space used for your freelance work and the total space in your home.  Things like mortgage interest and real estate taxes or rent, utilities, insurance and repairs related to the space can be reported here.

There are many programs that can assist with tracking and categorizing your expenses.  When things get complicated or you get busy enough, it is advisable to see professional help.  Yes, a good accountant can be expensive, but they can also help you save time, money and a headache.  Often programs such as Turbo Tax ask questions that seem easy on the surface but are actually much more complicated.  For example, many of these self-filing programs will ask, do you have educational expenses?  And if you purchase manuals and other materials to educate yourself or your clients, you may click yes.  But unless you are a K-12 teacher, this deduction is not for you.

If you do not yet have an accountant or are not at the point where you feel you need one, but sure that you understand the tax requirements in your state as well as the federal ones.  Prepayment penalties are the biggest hits that most self-employed individuals take.  Without the withholding you receive from a W2 wage, you will need to pay into taxes throughout the year using estimated tax payments.   The tax rate for Self-Employment Tax is 15.3 percent, which puts 12.4 percent toward social security and 2.9 percent toward Medicare. Just remember, the SE Tax does not include all of your tax liability. You have to pay regular income tax on top of that 15.3 percent.  A good place to start is setting aside thirty percent.  While the actual amount may be higher or lower, this will put you in the ballpark.  If you live in a high-income state, aren’t married, have no other deductions or a variety of things that will give you a high-income amount, you may need to adjust this percentage.  Be sure to make your prepayment quarterly on the required dates.

Even though you made payments to the IRS throughout the year, you haven’t yet filed an annual return. There is a difference between those two actions.  You are still required to file an annual tax return just like a traditionally employed person. You probably also need to file a Schedule C, which reports the income or loss you generated from your business. Your tax return is due the same day as your traditionally employed friends, which for your 2019 tax return is April 15, 2020.

We’ve all heard it before.  That voice on the other end of the line that states that she or he is from the United States Treasury Department and you have an unpaid debt that needs to be settled, or else …  With the reduction in their workforce, the Internal Revenue Service has been authorized to utilize private debt collectors.  This has further complicated authenticity protocols for the taxpayer.  As tax season comes to a close, the increase in scams is well documented.  It is important to know what the Internal Revenue Service will and will not do if you do in fact owe a debt.

The first thing to note is that the Internal Revenue Service does not initiate contact with taxpayers through email, text messages or social media.  So even if you receive a communication of this nature that bares the IRS logo or other “identifying” marks, you should question its authenticity.  Very rarely in fact will the Internal Revenue Service initiate first contact by telephone or in person.  These cases are usually with the taxpayer already is aware of an overdue tax debt, an extremely late filed return or employment tax payments, or for a review of the work space during an audit.  And even in these cases, the taxpayer will have been notified with an IRS Notice through regular mail via the United States Postal Service.  When the IRS does make initial contact, they will not demand any immediate form of payment, and especially not through the use of a prepaid debt card, gift card or wire transfer.  The IRS will also not threaten to bring in police, immigration or other enforcement agencies and place you under arrest for failure to pay.  It cannot revoke your licenses or immigration status.  These are all tactics used by scammers to create chaos and bring stress into the conversation in the hopes that you will give them what they want without question.  Furthermore, the IRS will always require you to send payment made out to the “United States Treasury” or utilize a payment method through the IRS website at www.irs.gov.  Remember that you never want to give an unauthenticated person any of your personal or financial information.

If an IRS agent does visit you, the agent will provide two forms of credentials.  If these are not presented to you, you have the right to ask to see them before answering any questions.  You will also be provided with a phone number that you can call to verify the credentials.  If you feel that the agent’s identity is in question, you can call the RIS yourself instead of using the phone number provided.  If the collector is a private debt collector, it is important to know which debts go to these parties.  Private collection accounts are only accounts that the IRS is no longer actively working on collecting. In many cases, this means that the debt is old and not created from any new filings.  The IRS will also notify you in writing that they intend to turn over the debt to the private debt collector prior to doing so.  A second, separate letter will be received by the taxpayer once the transfer has occurred.  Private debt collectors must also follow the same standards of identification, and process as the IRS itself.  All payments must still be made out to the United States Treasury and should go directly to the IRS and not the private debt collector. 

If your account is under audit, you will receive a notification by mail first before any additional contact is made.  If the auditor wishes to come to your home or place of business, a call or other communication will have been made prior to arrange a date and time. As always, a notification of audit will have been sent via United States Postal Services prior to a telephone call.

As a taxpayer, it is your right to appeal or question the debt stated as owed on any notice.  You have a certain set of rights as a taxpayer, and the IRS must allow proper time for you to research and be heard.  Each notice sent by the IRS will contain a deadline with which you must contact them to submit your questions or appeal.  Often times, the IRS itself will extend their own response deadline after receiving information from the taxpayer in which to review and make further determinations.  You also have the right to have professional representation when going in front of the IRS.  Because of the complexity of tax law, it is advisable to seek out a tax professional or tax lawyer to aid you. 

As technology improves, scammers are getting increasingly sophisticated in their ability to mimic the IRS and other taxing authorities.  Phone number identifications can be altered to look like they come from IRS call centers.  Identification cards can look authentic and not be.  The safest way to ensure that you are not the victim of scammers is to remember that the IRS will never request immediate payment through prepaid debit cards, gift cards, or wire transfers.  All payments must be made out to the United States Treasury or through the IRS website – no credit card or debit card information will be requested over the phone or through email.  No other law-enforcement agency will be called to arrest or deport you by the IRS.  And the IRS cannot recall your licenses or immigration status.  You have the right to question or appeal any debt owed to the IRS.  And in all cases, you have the right to third party representation before the IRS or other taxing authority.

If you feel that you have been contacted by a scammer, or have been the victim of a scam, you can report it to the IRS.  This can be done by forwarding emails to phishing@irs.gov, informing the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration at 800-366-4484, and/or filing a Form 14039, Identity theft Affidavit.

Most of us have heard of the term Alternative Minimum Tax, Alt Min Tax, or AMT.  But what is it?  Alternative Minimum Tax is a tax system that parallels the standard tax systems and adds an additional level of taxation to baseline income tax for certain individuals, corporations, estates and trust.  Traditional tax is adjusted for certain items and computed differently for AMT.  Some of these items are depreciation, medical expenses, state taxes, certain mortgage interest, real estate and personal property taxes.  AMT was first introduced in 1969 when Congressed determined that a portion of the population with high incomes, roughly one-hundred-fifty-five million taxpayers, were able to utilize tax deductions and other tax breaks to the point where they were paying almost nothing in taxes.  The Reagan Administration created what we currently know as Alternative Minimum Tax that included more widespread exemptions and deductions while eliminating some of the investment deductions that only applied to the very wealthy.

For those that make more than the AMT exemption and utilize the deductions that are modified or disallowed, you must calculate your taxes twice.  Then, in accordance with AMT regulations, you must pay the higher of the two tax calculations.  One of the biggest issues with AMT is the fact that it was never indexed for inflation.  Therefore, more and more taxpayers are becoming subject to it.  Congress passed several patches throughout the years that raised the income thresholds.  Without these fixes, families with incomes as low as $30,000 would have been subject to AMT.  In 2013, the American Taxpayer Relief Act automatically adjusted the income thresholds.  In the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), the exemption limit was raised, as well as the phaseout levels, through 2025.  It also included an automatic cost of living adjustment.  Congress went on to eliminate AMT for corporations.

Alternative Minim Tax differs from the traditional tax rate because it does not make use of the standard deduction or any personal exemptions.  Nor does it allow for certain itemized deductions, as mentioned above.  AMT includes additional income streams as well.  These are the fair market value of incentive stock options that were exercised but not sold, tax-exempt interest from private activity bonds, foreign tax credits, passive income and losses, and net operating loss deductions.  These changes often make AMT tax rates higher that traditional rates.  The offset is that AMT tax rates are simpler.  There are only two rates instead of the rates that apply with traditional taxes, the twenty-eight percent rate and the thirty-nine-point-six percent rate.  The exemption is larger than that of the traditional tax rate, but also has a phaseout limitation.  For 2018 through 2025 the exemption is $70,300 for Single and Head of Household, while it is $109,400 for Married Filing Jointly.  The phase out for each begins at $500,000 and $1 Million respectively.

It is important to note that before TCJA, many high-income taxpayers weren’t affected by the Alternative Minimum Tax, even though this was the reason for AMT’s original creation and installation.  This was due to the fact that, after multiple legislative changes, many of their tax breaks were already cut back or eliminated under the regular income tax rules.  Therefore, there was no need to address the AMT issues.  If the taxpayer’s income exceeded certain levels, phaseout rules chipped away and/or eliminate other tax breaks.  As a result, higher-income taxpayers had little or nothing left to lose by the time they got to the AMT calculation, while many upper-middle-income folks still had plenty left to lose.  Also, the highest earners were in the 39.6% regular federal income tax bracket under prior law, which made it less likely that the Alternative Minimum Tax, with a maximum twenty-eight percent tax rate, would affect them.  In addition, the AMT exemption is phased out as income goes up.  This amount is deducted in calculating AMT income. Under previous law, this exemption had little or no impact on individuals in the top bracket because the exemption was completely phased out. But the exemption phaseout rule made upper-middle-income taxpayers more likely to owe AMT under previous law. Suffice it to say that, under the TCJA, high-income earners are back in the AMT spotlight. So, proper planning is essential.

The first thing you must do is figure out if you are subject to AMT.  Most tax software runs a side by side calculation for you, and there are many calculators online.  Various factors make it difficult to pinpoint exactly who will be subject to AMT.  Those with higher income, from any source, should be aware of AMT and the AMT phaseout.  With the exemption and phase out adjustments from the TCJA, the higher income taxpayers will be faced with the phase out, while the upper-middle class will still see a benefit from the full exemption.  So, although TCJA reduces the odds that you will owe AMT, be sure not to assume that you are AMT exempt.  Once you have determined that you fall under AMT rate, there isn’t much you can do about it unfortunately.  A few things you can do to plan ahead are:  lowering your adjusted gross income by maxing contributions to a 401(k), IRA or health savings account; reducing itemized deductions; increase charitable contributions; and paying attention to long-term capital gains.

Once you qualify for AMT and have paid it in the past, you may qualify for the Alternative Minimum Tax Credit.  This credit is calculated using the amount of deferred items, which generate credit in subsequent years, versus the excluded items, which are not deductible and are consequently lost.  Other items create timing differences, such as depreciation, can also be used to create this credit and help you reduce your taxes in the future. Also, be sure to check your prior return for any business credit that may carry forward.

AMT can be a confusing topic.  With the new changes to the standard deduction, exemptions and Alternative Minimum Tax requirements brought on by TCJA, it is more important now to seek the advice of a tax professional if you feel that AMT may apply to you.

We’ve all thought it…  Sitting on the beach in a tropical place while attending a quick meeting via your laptop before hitting the waves in the afternoon sun.  Many people imagine that all they must do is get a work Visa, wave good-bye to family and friends and head to sunnier shores for a bit.  Before you jump ship, or hop a plane, there are important tax items to take into consideration.  The Internal Revenue Service will not ignore you just because you live in a remote village on a Fijian island.  United States citizens (and resident aliens) for the most part, are subject to federal income tax on all worldwide income.  There are a few ways to exclude some up to all of that income, depending on what you earn and how far you are willing to go to make that income not taxable to the federal government.

The first and easiest method is the  Foreign Earned Income Exclusion.  This allows a qualified individual to exclude up to $104,100 (in 2018) of previously taxable earned income.  Earned income is defined by the IRS as taxable wages and employee pay, certain disability or union benefits, and net earnings from self-employment.  This means that you cannot exclude income from interest and dividends, capital gains, retirement account distributions, Social Security, unemployment, passive rental income, alimony or child support.  This income will still be reportable and potentially taxed regardless of if you meant the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion requirements.

The first requirement for the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion is that you must reside and work outside of the United States.  Additionally you must also meet the Physical Presence Test or Bona Fide Residence Test.  The Physical Presence Test requirements are that you must be physically present in a foreign country for three-hundred-and-thirty non-consecutive full days (24 hours) during a twelve-month period.  You do not have to be in the same foreign country for the entire period.  However, international waters do not count.  It is also crucial to make sure you are fully out of United States airspace when you begin your twenty-four hour count.   One advantage is that because the twelve-month period can consist of any uninterrupted twelve-month period, it can overlap years.  This can bring on the extra challenge of filing for and planning for the Physical Presence Test at times.  The three-hundred-and-thirty-day requirement also greatly limits the number of days you can return to the States.  Some people have gone as far as to break as many ties as possible with the United States and their residency terms in order to show physical presence.  This can mean being as extreme as giving up your house, apartment and/or office, disposal of your vehicle and ceasing the use of any storage facility.  This creates room for the Bona Fide Residence Test.

The Bona Fide Residence Test states that you must be a resident of the foreign country for an uninterrupted period that is an entire tax year.  This is different than the Physical Presence Test in that in must be for a calendar year, thereby eliminating the ability to choose the twelve-month period that brings you the biggest chance for the exclusion.  Additionally, the term resident carries a different meaning than physical presence.  You must set up permanent housing in the foreign country, even if you intend to return to your home in the United States at some point in the future.  This does not mean that you must purchase a home in the foreign country, as a long-term lease also qualifies.  You must at no time during the year make any statement that you are not a resident of the foreign country, nor can you avoid paying taxes in that country if you qualify for their thresholds.  Many factors go into qualifying for the Bona Fide Residence Test, and often those are made at the time of the filing of your annual federal return.  Additionally, if you are married, moving the spouse or family there can often aid in your position, although it is not required.  And while you can travel on vacations, they must be short, and intentional.

If you meet the Physical Presence Test or the Bona Fide Residence Test, there is an additional component of possible tax savings called the Foreign Housing Exclusion.  This allows you to potentially deduct a portion of your housing costs related to your foreign residence.  The Foreign Housing Exclusion requires that you utilize employer-provided funds.  This does not mean that the employer must pay for the housing.  It simply means that the funds used must be traced back to the employer and not say a pre-established savings account.  Housing in this case includes rent, fair rental value of housing provided in kind by your employer, repairs, certain utilities, insurance, parking and other similar items.  It does not include extravagant items such as domestic labor, or improvements to the property, property taxes or interest.  The deductible portion of this is only the amount that is over and above the base housing amount.  The base housing amount is sixteen percent of the maximum foreign earned income exclusion for the year.  It is important to note that your foreign earned income will be reduced by your Foreign Housing Exclusion.  This means that there are times that the Foreign Housing Exclusion may not be beneficial, such as if your total foreign income is close to the sixteen percent non-deductible base housing amount.  There are also limits to how much of your housing may be deductible.  So this plays an important factor in the calculation of possible taxable income deductions.

It is also important to determine what the taxation rules are of the country you intent to reside in.  Generally, if you spend more than one-hundred-and eighty-three days in another country, you are considered to be a fiscal resident of that country.  If you are aiming to utilize the Physical Presence Test and move from country to country, the likelihood that you will fall into the fiscal residence category is fairly small.  However, if you intend to qualify under the Bona Fide Residence Test, things will get a bit harder.  Some countries have high tax rates while others have low rates and still other have no taxes at all.  Choosing a country with the best tax treatment may not always be possible or preferable.  Additionally, the rule of thumb surrounding the one-hundred-and-eighty-three-days does not hold true for all countries.  It is important to research each potential location prior to moving.  Seeking the advice of a tax professional prior to packing your bags with a one-way ticket in hand is also advisable.

As the IRS has noted in its alerts to the public, a variety of different tax scams continue to rob people of millions of dollars and trick them into handing over sensitive personal information. Scammers use the regular mail, telephone, fax or email to set up their victims. This article, based directly on a number of IRS publications, is an update to prior blog articles that look at different, new scams affecting individuals, businesses, and tax professionals and offer tips on what do if you if you spot a tax scam.

Scams Targeting Tax Professionals

The IRS notes the following:

These criminals – many of them sophisticated, organized syndicates - are redoubling their efforts to gather personal data to file fraudulent federal and state income tax returns. The Security Summit has a campaign aimed at increasing awareness among tax professionals: Protect Your Clients; Protect Yourself. The Security Summit created the “Protect Your Clients, Protect Yourself” campaign to raise awareness among tax professionals about their legal obligation to protect taxpayer data as well as highlight security threats they face from identity thieves.

Some of the recent scams that target the tax professional community include the following (though it should be noted that the tactics of the scammers continue to evolve rapidly and these tactics may change or become more sophisticated):

• Tax Professionals Warned of e-Services Scam.
• Tax Professionals Warned of New Scam to “Unlock” Tax Software Accounts.
• A phishing scheme mimicking software providers targets tax professionals.
• Criminals target tax professionals to steal data such as PTINs, EFINs or e-Service passwords.
• Also see this resource: IRS Warns Tax Preparers to Watch out for New Phishing Scam; Don’t Click on Strange Emails or Links Seeking Updated Information

Scams Targeting Taxpayers

In addition, scammers are targeting individual taxpayers directly through increasingly subtle, hard-to-spot methods, including the following as observed by the IRS.

• IRS Impersonation Telephone Scams: An aggressive and sophisticated phone scam targeting taxpayers, including recent immigrants, has been making the rounds throughout the country. Callers claim to be employees of the IRS, using fake names and bogus IRS identification badge numbers. They may know a lot about their targets, and they usually alter the caller ID to make it look like the IRS is calling. 
• Victims are told they owe money to the IRS and it must be paid promptly through a pre-loaded debit card or wire transfer. Victims may be threatened with arrest, deportation or suspension of a business or driver’s license. In many cases, the caller becomes hostile and insulting. Or, victims may be told they have a refund due to try to trick them into sharing private information. If the phone isn't answered, the scammers often leave an “urgent” callback request.
• For More Info Please See: Consumer Alert: Scammers Change Tactics, Once Again
• Soliciting Form W-2 Information From Payroll and Human Resources Professionals: The IRS has established a process that will allow businesses and payroll service providers to quickly report any data losses related to the W-2 scam currently making the rounds.
• See details at Form W2/SSN Data Theft: Information for Businesses and Payroll Service Providers.
• Also see: IRS, States and Tax Industry Renew Alert about Form W-2 Scam Targeting Payroll, Human Resource Departments
• IRS Alerts Payroll and HR Professionals to Phishing Scheme Involving W-2s
• Surge in Email, Phishing and Malware Schemes: When identity theft takes place over the web (email), it is called phishing. The IRS has issued several alerts about the fraudulent use of the IRS name or logo by scammers trying to gain access to consumers’ financial information to steal their identity and assets. 

As the IRS recommends, it is crucial to understand that the IRS does not initiate contact with taxpayers by email, text messages or social media channels to request personal or financial information.

That just does not happen. If it is happening to you, it is fraudulent.

In addition, the IRS does not threaten taxpayers with lawsuits, imprisonment or other enforcement action. Recognizing these telltale signs of a phishing or tax scam could save you from becoming a victim.

Do not let the scammers care you into giving them your personal information, in other words.

In conclusion, we think it is prudent that you engage the services of a reputable professional such as an IT expert or system security specialist who can provide you with a risk assessment or “system audit” as to your vulnerability to attack by system scammers.

It’s also worth remembering the old adage that “you’re only as strong as your weakest link.” If one element in the chain of players in the business process falls short when implementing adequate security measures then all other dependent players in the chain are more susceptible to harm.

An adoption tax credit is a tax credit offered to adoptive parents to encourage adoption. Section 36C of the United States Internal Revenue code offers a credit for “qualified adoption expenses” paid or incurred by individual taxpayers.

The tax code provides an adoption credit of up to $13,570 of qualified expenses (in 2017) for each child adopted, whether via public foster care, domestic private adoption, or international adoption.

As the Tax Policy Center notes: 

The adoption credit is available to most adoptive parents, with some exceptions. The credit is not available to taxpayers whose income exceeds certain thresholds. In 2017 the credit begins to phase out at $203,540 of modified adjusted gross income and phases out entirely at income of $243,540. The credit also is not available for adoptions of stepchildren. The adoption tax credit is nonrefundable but can be carried forward for up to five years. The credit is thus of little or no value to low-income families who pay little or no income tax over a period of years. In fiscal year 2015, credit claims reduced tax liability by $300 million, according to the US Department of Treasury.

2017 Adoption Tax Credit-None Special Needs Adoption

As this report observes, the amount allowed in 2017 for the Adoption Tax Credit for non special-needs adoptions, both domestic and international, is $13,570 for “qualified adoption expenses.” The definition of what IRS considers a qualified adoption expense has not changed, and families must be able to document these expenses, if requested by the IRS. This amount is up slightly from 2016 ($13,460).

2017 Adoption Tax Credit-Special Needs Adoption

Families who adopt a child with special needs from US foster care are eligible to claim the Federal Adoption Tax Credit in 2017 of $13,570 whether or not they actually incurred any adoption expenses. A child is considered to have “special needs” if they receive an adoption assistance/subsidy benefits from the state. Children adopted internationally, even if they have diagnosed special needs, are not considered as a “special needs adoption” by the IRS and parents can only claim the credit for qualified adoption expenses.

Will the Adoption Tax Credit Be Refundable In 2017?

The Adoption Tax Credit for taxes filed in 2017 is not refundable. A refundable tax credit is one you get back regardless of what you owe or paid in taxes for the year. When the credit is not refundable, you receive only what you have in federal income tax liability.

Will Trump’s Tax Plan Repeal the Adoption Credit?

For thousands of families who are going through the process of adoption or who have recently finalized an adoption, Trump’s tax plan would have serious implications. Unfortunately, there’s a real chance it could go away. Because the Adoption Tax Credit is not a deduction, it’s not currently clear whether the adoption tax credit will get the axe under Trump’s plan. 

In order to take advantage of the Adoption Tax Credit, we strongly recommend that you consult with a tax professional to determine the extent of the tax credit available to you.

Do you feel overwhelmed around tax time when trying to select a qualified and suitable tax return preparer? The Internal Revenue Service has published the following Tax Topic 254 as a guide for taxpayers when selecting a tax return preparer.

If you choose to have someone prepare your tax return, choose that preparer wisely. A paid tax return preparer is primarily responsible for the overall substantive accuracy of your return and, by law, this person is required to sign the return and include their preparer tax identification number (PTIN) on it. Although the tax return preparer always signs the return, you are ultimately responsible for the accuracy of every item reported on your return. Anyone paid to prepare tax returns for others should have a thorough understanding of tax matters and is required to have a PTIN. You may want to ask friends, co-workers or your employer for help in selecting a competent tax return preparer.

When you choose a tax return preparer, choose one who is easy to contact in case the IRS examines your return and has questions regarding how your return was prepared. You can designate your paid tax return preparer or another third party to speak to the IRS concerning the preparation of your return, payment/refund issues, and mathematical errors. The third party authorization checkbox on IRS tax forms gives the designated party the authority to receive and inspect returns and return information for one year from the original due date of your return (without regard to extensions).

See Topic 312 for information on how to extend the authority to receive and inspect returns and return information to a third party using Form 8821 (PDF), Tax Information Authorization.

Steps You Should Take to Find a Tax Return Preparer

Most tax return preparers are professional, honest, and they provide excellent service to their clients. However, dishonest and unscrupulous tax return preparers who file false income tax returns do exist, unfortunately. You should always check your return for errors to avoid potential financial and legal problems.

The following points will assist you when selecting a tax return preparer:

• Be wary of tax return preparers who claim they can obtain larger refunds than others can.

• Avoid tax return preparers who base their fees on a percentage of the refund or who offer to deposit all or part of your refund into their financial accounts.

• Ensure you use a preparer with a preparer tax identification number (PTIN). Paid tax return preparers must have a preparer tax identification number to prepare all or substantially all of a tax return.

• Use a reputable tax professional who furnishes their PTIN, signs the tax return, and provides you a copy of the return (as required).

• Consider whether the individual or firm will be around for months or years after filing the return to answer questions about the preparation of the tax return.

• Check the person's credentials. Only attorneys, CPAs, and enrolled agents can represent taxpayers before the IRS in all matters, including audits, collections, and appeals. Other tax return preparers may only represent taxpayers for audits of returns they actually prepared.

Additional Resources

To help you find a tax professional with credentials and select qualifications to prepare your tax return, refer to the following sources of additional information.  

• Directory of Federal Tax Return Preparers with Credentials and Select Qualifications, (https://irs.treasury.gov/rpo/rpo.jsf)

• Choosing a Tax Professional, (https://www.irs.gov/tax-professionals/choosing-a-tax-professional)

• IRS Tax Pro Association Partners,

• PTIN Requirements for Tax Return Preparers.

In our March 2014 newsletter, we provided a discussion entitled “What Are The Chances of Being Audited.” The article focused on the relative possibility of an audit given different levels of income. To more completely address the question of “What Are The Chances of Being Audited,” this article goes beyond income level and addresses the impact of different types of transactions and deductions on the relative chance for a tax audit.

Self Employed (Schedule C) Losses

Schedule C is the official IRS form for reporting items of income and expense as it pertains to taxpayers who are self-employed. Schedule C sources of income (“self-employment income”) are usually reported to the taxpayer filing self-employed status on Form 1099. W-2 income, on the other hand, is reported to the taxpayer on Form W-2 and not on Schedule C. Schedule C filers tend more to co-mingle business and personal expenses or to incorrectly treat personal expenses as business expenses in an attempt to hide taxable income. Tax Payer Resolution also notes that self-employed taxpayers generally fail to keep detailed, accurate, and complete accounting records that are required by law.

As explained in the Tax Payer Resolution article linked above: “The audits or examinations of self-employed taxpayers have a far greater degree of success by the IRS. The IRS’s National Research Program estimated that unreported business income by sole proprietors accounted for $68 billion (or 20 percent) of the $345 billion tax gap. The IRS estimates that as many of 70% of taxpayers who report net losses on a Schedule C have artificially inflated expenses to create losses.” Thus, taxpayers who file Schedule C tax returns reporting net losses have the attention of the Internal Revenue Service and are highly susceptible to being audited.   

Home Office Deduction

The home office deduction is available to certain taxpayers who meet strict guidelines, including a business purpose for the amount claimed, as promulgated by the IRS. So strict are the guidelines that merely filing a return based in part on the home office deduction appears to be enough of a flag to increase the risk of an audit.

According to TaxBrain.com, some taxpayers have included their entire home for the deduction. However, your home office must be exclusively used for business purposes and not for other activities. The guidelines contained within IRS Publication 587 should be adhered to in order to ensure you qualify for the home office deduction.

Meals, Travel and Entertainment

In order to qualify as deductible expenditures for meals, travel, and entertainment, the expenditures must satisfy strict substantiation guidelines. The IRS recognizes that the substantiation process is a tedious process prone to “short-cutting” and therefore more susceptible to error or fraud.

IRS Publication 463 governs the deductibility of meals, travel, and entertainment. The evidentiary framework that is illustrated at Table 1-1, Table 2-1, Table 5-1, and Table 5-2 at the IRS.gov page, if complied with, will satisfy the substantiation requirements for deducting meals, travel, and entertainment. If not complied with, the deductibility of these items is at risk.

Gambling Winnings & Losses

Just when you thought that the “winner takes all” in your mega-gambling haul, you receive a wakeup call in the middle of the night from the IRS. The IRS insists on getting, and is entitled to receive, its share of your gambling winnings in the form of federal income tax. Making matters worse, you could also be in a state that taxes gambling winnings.

The following tips come from IRS Topic 419 “Gambling Income and Losses,” and are applicable to casual, not professional, gamblers.

• Gambling winnings are fully taxable and you must report them on your tax return.

• A payer is required to issue you a Form W-2G, Certain Gambling Winnings, if you receive certain gambling winnings or if you have any gambling winnings subject to federal income tax withholding.

• You must report all gambling winnings on your Form 1040 as "Other Income"

• You may deduct gambling losses only if you itemize deductions. However, the amount of losses you deduct may not be more than the amount of gambling income reported on your return.

• Claim your gambling losses on Form 1040 Schedule A as an "Other Miscellaneous Deduction" that is not subject to the 2% limit.

• It is important to keep an accurate diary or similar record of your gambling winnings and losses. To deduct your losses, you must be able to provide receipts, tickets, statements, or other records that show the amount of both your winnings and losses.

Hobby Losses

When determining a “hobby loss,” it depends on whether the activity that produces the loss is a “for-profit trade or business activity” (not a hobby) or a “not for profit non-trade or business activity” (is a hobby). If the activity is deemed to be a for-profit trade or business activity, then the loss generated by the for-profit activity is properly treated as a fully deductible loss without limitation.

However, if the loss is deemed to flow out of a true hobby activity (not for profit scenario), then the hobby loss is deductible subject to strict limitations.

Internal Revenue Code Section 183 governs the deductibility of hobby losses. Under this code section, “an activity is presumed for profit if it makes a profit in at least three of the last five tax years, including the current year (or at least two of the last seven years for activities that consist primarily of breeding, showing, training or racing horses).”

Furthermore, under Code Section 183, “if an activity is not for profit, losses from that activity may not be used to offset other income. An activity produces a loss when related expenses exceed income. The limit on not-for-profit losses applies to individuals, partnerships, estates, trusts, and S corporations. It does not apply to corporations other than S corporations.”

Labor Day signifies the end of summer and comes with a three-day weekend; maybe a trip to the beach, the lake, or the the cabin, and a barbecue.  

Labor Day became a federal holiday in 1894, but it was first celebrated as a holiday in the United States on February 21, 1887. Of course, Labor Day is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of workers, but who wants to think about work on a federal holiday?

This Labor Day might be a good time to think about how you can use your travel as a tax deduction to offset some of the expense.

The most important thing to remember in the case of any tax write off is to keep organized receipts and diligently track your expenses. Those receipts along with itineraries, agendas, and other documentation of your expenses will come in handy if the IRS ever comes knocking.

In general, for domestic travel, if over 50 percent of the time you spend on your trip is for business, the expenses can be deducted. International travel requires 75 percent of your trip to be business.

If you do your homework, like reading IRS Publication 463, and speaking with your financial advisers, you can help offset travel and vacation expenses by combining business and leisure.

Whether you just spent the entire summer paying for child care and are happy to know that you now have a safe place to drop off your children Monday through Friday or you are wondering where your kids are going to be between the end of the school day and the end of your work day, child care is something that parents are all thinking about and trying to find solutions for at this time of year.  In either case you need to know that your child care expenses are often tax deductible, however there are rules to consider, preparations to be made, and documents to save.

The care must be provided for qualifying persons, children age 12 or younger,  and for the purpose of you (or you and your spouse if filing jointly) working or looking for work.

You must identify the care providers on your tax return and they may not be your spouse, someone you claim as a dependent, or your child who will not be aged 19 or older by the end of the year even if he/ she is not your dependent.

The credit can be up to 35% of your qualifying expenses, depending on your income.

More information is available on the IRS website and you should discuss child care deductions with your accountant.