Newsletters

The IRS announced broad-based penalty relief for taxpayers affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The relief applies to failure to file penalties and certain international information return (IIR) penalties with respect to tax returns for tax years (TY) 2019 and TY 2020, filed on or before September 30, 2022.

The IRS announced broad-based penalty relief for taxpayers affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The relief applies to failure to file penalties and certain international information return (IIR) penalties with respect to tax returns for tax years (TY) 2019 and TY 2020, filed on or before September 30, 2022. Relief is also provided to banks, employers and other businesses from certain information return penalties with respect to TY 2019 returns filed on or before August 1, 2020, and with respect to TY 2020 returns that were filed on or before August 1, 2021.

The relief will also help the IRS focus resources on processing backlogged tax returns and tax correspondence.

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the IRS issued a series of notices and other guidance to provide relief to affected taxpayers, including:

• postponing the due date for certain Federal income tax payments ( Notice 2020-17, I.R.B. 2020-15, 590);
• expanded relief postponing the due date for filing Federal income tax returns originally due April 15, 2020, to July 15, 2020, among other things ( Notice 2020-18, I.R.B. 2020-15, 590); and
• postponing the due date for filing Federal income tax returns in the Form 1040 series and making certain Federal income tax payments that were originally due on April 15, 2021, due on May 17, 2021 ( Notice 2021-21, I.R.B. 2021-15, 986.

Waiver and Abatement of Certain Penalties

The IRS will not impose penalties with respect to specifically identified tax returns for TY 2019 and TY 2020, filed on or before September 30, 2022. The relief will be automatically applied-taxpayers do not have to request relief.

The IRS will not impose additions to tax under Code Sec. 6651(a)(1) for failure to file the following income tax returns:

• Form 1040, U.S. Individual Income Tax Return, and others in the series;
• Form 1041, U.S. Income Tax Return for Estates and Trusts, and others in the series;
• Form 1120, U.S. Corporation Income Tax Return, and others in the series;
• Form 1066, U.S. Real Estate Mortgage Investment Conduit (REMIC) Income Tax Return; and
• Form 990-PF, Return of Private Foundation or Section 4947(a)(1) Trust Treated as Private Foundation and Form 990-T, Exempt Organization Business income Tax Return (and Proxy Tax under Code Sec. 6033(e)).

Further, certain penalties will not be imposed under Code Secs. 6038, 6038A, 6038C, 6038F [ 6039F] and 6677 for failure to timely file several IIRs, such as Form 5471, Information Return of U.S. Persons With Respect to Certain Foreign Corporations.

Comment. Note that the Notice refers to Code Sec. 6038F, which does not exist. The context indicates that the reference should be to Code Sec. 6039F. The IRS may issue a correction.

Certain penalties will not be imposed under Code Sec. 6698(a)(1) and (2) for failure to timely file and show the required information on a Form 1065, U.S. Return of Partnership Income.

Certain penalties will not be imposed under Code Sec. 6699(a)(1) and (2) for failure to timely file and show the required information on a Form 1120-S, U.S. Income Tax Return for an S corporation.

In addition, the IRS will not impose the penalties under Code Sec. 6721(a)(2)(A) for failure to timely file any information return as defined under Code Sec. 6724(d)(1) that includes (1) 2019 returns that were filed on or before August 1, 2020, with an original due date of January 31, 2020, February 28, 2020 (if filed on paper) or March 31, 2020 (if filed electronically) or March 15, 2020; and (2) 2020 returns that were filed on or before August 1, 2021, with an original due date of January 31, 2021, February 28, 2021 (if filed on paper) or March 31, 2021 (if filed electronically) or March 15, 2021.

Exceptions

The penalty relief does not apply to any penalties not listed. Additionally the penalty relief does not apply to returns for which the penalty for fraudulent failure to file under Code Sec. 6651(f) or the penalty for fraud under Code Sec. 6663 apply. The penalty relief also does not apply to penalties in an accepted offer in compromise under Code Sec. 7122 or any penalty settled in a closing agreement under Code Sec. 7121 or finally determined in a judicial proceeding.

NTA Applauds IRS Move To Provide Late Filing Penalty Relief

National Taxpayer Advocate Erin Collins applauded the Internal Revenue Service’s decision to provide late-filing penalty relief to taxpayers who filed late tax returns for tax years 2019 and 2020.

"The IRS has taken a major step in providing broad, taxpayer-favorable relief from late-filing penalties for 2019 and 2020 tax years," Collins said in an August 24, 2022 blog post, adding that the agency " deserves substantial credit for its willingness to listen to Congress, stakeholders, and TAS [Taxpayer Advocate Service], and undertake a bold step requiring significant administrative effort and resources to benefit all taxpayers affected by the pandemic".

The IRS has issued guidance to taxpayers, who have inappropriately received forgiveness of their Paycheck Protection Program ('PPP') loan, and has encouraged them to take steps towards compliance, such as filing amended returns that include the forgiven loan amounts, as income.

The IRS has issued guidance to taxpayers, who have inappropriately received forgiveness of their Paycheck Protection Program ('PPP') loan, and has encouraged them to take steps towards compliance, such as filing amended returns that include the forgiven loan amounts, as income. The PPP loan program was established by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) to assist small US businesses that were adversely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic in paying certain expenses and was further extended by the Economic Aid to Hard-Hit Small Businesses, Nonprofits and Venues Act. The IRS has discovered that, some recipients received forgiveness of their PPP loan through misrepresentation or omission and either did not qualify to receive a PPP loan or misused the loan proceeds. Under the terms of the PPP loan program, lenders could forgive the full amount of the loan, if the loan recipient meets three conditions, namely:

• Eligible Recipient: The loan recipient was eligible to receive the PPP loan if they were a small business concern, independent contractor, eligible self-employed individual, sole proprietor, business concern, or a certain type of tax-exempt entity, and was in business on or before February 15, 2020, and had employees or independent contractors who were paid for their services, or was a self-employed individual, sole proprietor or independent contractor.
• Eligible Expenses: The loan proceeds had to be used to pay eligible expenses, such as payroll costs, rent, interest on the business’ mortgage, and utilities.
• Application for loan forgiveness: The loan recipient had to apply for loan forgiveness, which requires a loan recipient to attest to eligibility, verify certain financial information, and meet other legal qualifications.

The IRS has stipulated that, if the above conditions are not met, then the amount of the loan proceeds that were forgiven, must be included in income and any additional income tax must be paid. The IRS has also informed that, reporting tax-related illegal activities relating to PPP loans, may be done through submission of Form 3949-A, Information Referral.

The IRS has reminded taxpayers to develop emergency preparedness plans due to the upcoming hurricane season and the ongoing threat of wildfires in some parts of the country.

The IRS has reminded taxpayers to develop emergency preparedness plans due to the upcoming hurricane season and the ongoing threat of wildfires in some parts of the country. September is declared as the National Preparedness Month. The IRS advised taxpayers to:

• secure critical documents such as tax returns, birth certificates, deeds, titles, and insurance policies inside waterproof containers in a secure space;
• duplicate and scan key documents for backup storage on electronic media that provide security and easy portability, such as a flash drive, a CD, or in the cloud;
• reconstruct records after a disaster for tax purposes, getting federal assistance or insurance reimbursement; and
• record all property, especially expensive and high value items—the IRS disaster-loss workbooks in Publication 584 and Publication 584-B can help individuals and businesses compile lists of belongings or business equipment.

In addition, the IRS recommends the following for employers:

• employers should create an Electronic Federal Tax Payment System account at EFTPS.gov to monitor their payroll tax deposits and receive email alerts; and
• employers who use payroll service providers should check the payroll service provider’s fiduciary bonds as they could protect the employer in the event of default by the provider.

Taxpayers who have lost some or all their records during a disaster can visit the IRS's Reconstructing Records webpage. In addition, taxpayers residing in a federally declared disaster can check for the available disaster tax relief on the IRS Tax Relief in Disaster Situations or Around the Nation webpages.

The IRS automatically identifies taxpayers located in the covered disaster area and applies filing and payment relief. Taxpayers affected by a disaster can contact the IRS at 866-562-5227 to speak with an IRS specialist trained to handle disaster-related issues. Further, taxpayers affected by a disaster outside of a federally declared disaster area may qualify for disaster relief. This includes taxpayers who are not physically located in a disaster area but who have records essential for filing or payment deadlines postponed during the relief period that are located in a covered disaster area. In addition, a special rule allows both individuals and businesses to choose to deduct uninsured or unreimbursed disaster losses on either the tax return for the year the disaster occurred, or the return for the previous year.

The IRS has released information regarding the pre-screening and certification process for employers taking advantage of the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC). 

The IRS has released information regarding the pre-screening and certification process for employers taking advantage of the Work Opportunity Tax Credit (WOTC). The information relates to hiring designated categories of workers who face significant barriers to employment, including:

• Qualified IV-A Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) recipients;
• Certain veterans, including unemployed or disabled veterans;
• Qualified long-term unemployment recipients; and
• Long-term family assistance recipients

The WOTC, which succeeded the Targeted Jobs Tax Credit (TJTC), included the requirement for employers to pre-screen job applicants. To pre-screen a job applicant, on or before the day a job offer is made, a pre-screening notice (Form 8850, Pre-Screening Notice and Certification Request for the Work Opportunity Credit) must be completed by the job applicant and the employer. After pre-screening a job applicant, the IRS requires the employers to make a request for certification by submitting Form 8850 to the appropriate state workforce agency, no later than 28 days after the employee begins work.

The Service also notified that, tax-exempt organizations can claim the WOTC against the employer’s share of social security tax for hiring qualified veterans, by filing Form 5884-C, Work Opportunity Credit for Qualified Tax-Exempt Organizations Hiring Qualified Veterans. Further information can be found in the Form 8850 instructions or on the WOTC page on IRS.gov.

Businesses are still waiting for pandemic relief made available to them during the COVID-19 outbreak amid ongoing processing delays at the Internal Revenue Service, according to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration.

Businesses are still waiting for pandemic relief made available to them during the COVID-19 outbreak amid ongoing processing delays at the Internal Revenue Service, according to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration.

According to an August 31, 2022, report posted to the TIGTA web site, the IRS "did not begin processing claims for qualified Sick and Family Leave Credits and the Employee Retention Credit for 12 months and claims for the Social Security Tax Deferral for 16 months after the pandemic relief legislation was enacted."

TIGTA attributed this delay to a "lack of updated programming and procedural guidance," as well as a "lack of training, erroneously suspended claims, and a lack of prioritization of claims" that contributed to the delays in processing claims.

Employers filing claims for these pandemic benefits would have filed a Form 941-X, which would have amended a previously filed Form 941 if they did not make the initial claim for these benefits on the Form 941 or if they needed to amend the amount of original claim on the already-filed Form 941.

"As of February 1, 2022, there were 447,435 Forms 941-X waiting to be processed," the report states. "Over 90 percent (402,814) of these Forms 941-X were over-aged, i.e. have not been processed within 45 calendar days. In addition, 60,885 (13.6 percent of the Forms 941-X were not processed within 180 calendar days."

TIGTA described the over-aged inventory as "an ongoing challenge for the IRS."

Additionally, the IRS watchdog found claims that should have been reviewed but were not resulted "in $45 million in potentially erroneous nonrefundable employer tax credits being allowed" when they otherwise might not have had proper reviews been conducted.

TIGTA recommends that IRS develop a plan to prioritize processing backlogged claims, update the examination referral process, and update training for IRS employees regarding referrals. IRS did not agree with the latter recommendations, but did all others stated in the report.

"Management stated they completed subsequent review of completed Form 941-X claims and determined no additional training was needed," the report states. "However, the IRS’s subsequent reviews do not address the concerns identified in our report. Accounts Management employees cited unclear guidance and training as to why 73 percent of claims were not referred when required."

The IRS has released a list of exceptions for the inclusion of a cancelled student loan debt in income. Generally, had a taxpayer's student loan been cancelled or repaid by someone else, the taxpayer was mandated to include the cancelled or repaid loan amount as part of their gross income, for tax purposes. 

The IRS has released a list of exceptions for the inclusion of a cancelled student loan debt in income. Generally, had a taxpayer's student loan been cancelled or repaid by someone else, the taxpayer was mandated to include the cancelled or repaid loan amount as part of their gross income, for tax purposes. However, the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 has modified the treatment of student loan forgiveness for discharges in 2021 through 2025, wherein the taxpayer may be able to exclude the repaid or cancelled loan amount from his gross income, if the loan could be categorized as one of the following:

• A loan for post-secondary educational expenses.
• A private education loan.
• A loan from an educational organization described in Code Sec. 170(b)(1)(A)(ii).
• A loan from an organization exempt from tax under Code Sec. 501(a) to refinance a student loan.

Taxpayers can find more information about the list of exceptions to canceled student loan debt in income https://www.irs.gov/forms-pubs/modified-treatment-of-student-loan-forgiveness-for-discharges-in-2021-through-2025.

Upgrading the Internal Revenue Service’s antiquated information technology infrastructure will help honest taxpayers, especially those making $400,000 or less, from being audited, Department of the Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said.

Upgrading the Internal Revenue Service’s antiquated information technology infrastructure will help honest taxpayers, especially those making $400,000 or less, from being audited, Department of the Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said.

Speaking September 15, 2022, at an IRS facility in New Carrollton, Md., Yellen reiterated that the $80 billion in additional funds allocated to the IRS in the recent Inflation Reduction Act would not be used to increase audits on lower earning taxpayers.

"I’ve directed that enforcement resources will not be used to raise audit rates for households making under $400,000 a year relative to historical levels," Yellen said, according to the prepared remarks posted on the Treasury Department website. "In fact, we expect audit rates for honest taxpayers to decline, once the IRS has the right technological infrastructure in place. This means a simpler tax filing season for taxpayers who are doing everything right."

The Treasury Department’s focus on getting high income individual taxpayers and corporations to pay their fair share of taxes has been a consistent message Sec. Yellen and other Treasury and IRS officials have been sending since the funding was approved.

"In 2019, the top one percent of Americans was estimated to owe over a fifth of unpaid taxes – totaling around $160 billion," Yellen said, "Data shows that less than half of all taxes from more complex sources of income are paid. Yet nearly all taxes due from wages and salaries – which are earned by ordinary Americans – are paid," adding that "working families are shouldering a disproportionate burden of investing in our roads, schools, military, and more."

She called that inequity "unacceptable," and said that the funding from the Inflation Reduction Act "will go toward auditing more high earners who have not paid their full bill. With it, we are estimated to raise hundreds of billions of dollars in revenue."

Sec. Yellen also suggested that tax filing could become simpler as the agency updates its IT infrastructure. She cited a statistic that it takes an average American 13 hours to file a tax return, while in Sweden, some can simply file with a text message.

"The Inflation Reduction Act finally provides the funding to transform the IRS into a 21st century agency," she said. "While all the improvements won’t be done overnight, taxpayers can expect to feel real differences during the next filing season."

The most immediate difference will be with those seeking assistance. Yellen said Tax Assistance Centers will be fully staffed for the next tax season, allowing for the IRS to help "at least 2.7 million Americans," up from 900,000 Americans helped in the previous year.

Similarly, the IRS is increasing staffing at its call centers and is targeting an 85 percent level of service (meaning between 8 and 9 of every 10 calls is answered) up from the current level of 10 to 15 percent during the most recent tax filing season. It is also targeting a reduction of wait times to less than 15 minutes from the near 30 minutes of wait time during the 2022 tax filing season.

Sec. Yellen also committed to the digitization of paper tax returns through some form of scanning and moving away from the current use of manual transcribing, something both tax professionals and the National Taxpayer Advocate have been calling for.

"For taxpayers, this means faster processing and faster refunds," she said. "The IRS will also build online capabilities to enable taxpayers to fully interact with the agency digitally. Currently, when taxpayers receive a notice from the IRS, they generally must respond via mail. During this coming filing season, millions of taxpayers will be able to receive and respond to notices online."

NTA Offers Suggestions on How New IRS Funding Should Be Allocated

National Taxpayer Advocate Erin Collins offered suggestions on how the Internal Revenue Service should spend the $80 billion in additional funding it received from Congress in the Inflation Reduction Act, signed into law earlier this year.

In the first of two blog posts on the subject posted September 14, 2022, Collins focused on the immediate needs of the agency.

She wrote that before the IRS moves forward in plans to improve its overall operations, "it is imperative that it fulfills its core filing season mission by eliminating the backlog of unprocessed original and amended paper-filed tax returns, pay all pending refunds, and work through its backlog of overaged correspondence."

To achieve this, she outlined the following recommendations:

• hire or re-assign employees to process the backlog of paper-filed tax returns and correspondence;
• hire enough employees to answer 85 percent of taxpayer phone calls and institute “customer callback” technology on all toll-free lines;
• improve services for taxpayer professionals;
• continue to suspend automated collection notices until the backlog is eliminated; and
• hire enough employees to fully staff Taxpayer Assistance Centers and extend walk-in capabilities.

The recommendations preceded remarks made by Department of the Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on September 15, 2022, in which she highlighted a number of these recommendations as priorities for the IRS, including fully staffing Taxpayer Assistance Centers and improving call center service levels.

Longer Term Recommendations

In her second blog post on the subject, posted September 15, 2022, Collins focused more on long-term initiatives the IRS can embark on to improve the taxpayer experience.

The recommendations ranged from the basic, such as hiring more human resource employees and ensuring proper training for all IRS employees to updating antiquated information technology infrastructure, improving transparency and issuing clear notices and guidance.

On the IT side, Collins’ recommendation topics touched on some of the usual suspects, including improving online functionality and access to tax records and automating the scanning process for paper filings. She also called for implementing technology to allow taxpayers and tax professionals to upload documents for auditors, as well as improving the readability of transcripts, and enabling all taxpayers to have the ability to electronically file their tax returns.

Other technology recommendations include improving the voicebots and chatbots as well as overhauling the IRS website to make it more user friendly.

In the area of improving transparency, Collins noted that during the 2020 and 2021 filing seasons, the IRS "failed to provide weekly reports proving tax return processing timeframes so that taxpayers would know what to expect when they filed their returns or submitted correspondence. This lack of proactive transparency and timely information left taxpayers confused and frustrated, reaching for the phones, searching the Internet, and looking for tax professionals to help."

As for improving notices and guidance, Collins noted that despite improvements over the years, "some critical notices remain confusing and vague, and don’t provide taxpayers with adequate IRS contact information. In some cases, the IRS limits the number of characters and words in its notices."

She noted that under the Taxpayer Bill of Rights that taxpayers have the right to be informed. If the IRS knows something, "it needs to timely, accurately, and clearly say it," Collins wrote. "Failure to do so may well lead to more complications and problems for taxpayers, requiring additional time and resources by taxpayers, tax professionals, and the IRS to resolve them."

Finally, Collins called for an increase to the Taxpayer Advocate Service funding, noting that its "case advocacy operations are already stretched thin, and we will need to hire additional employees if the IRS ramps up its compliance activities, as that inevitably will lead to more TAS cases."

"IRS leaders often tell us they agree with our recommendations in concept, but they lack the resources to implement them," Collins wrote in the second blog post. "With the supplemental funding it has received, these initiatives can now be undertaken."

In what undeniably came down to the wire in the early hours of January 1, 2013, the Senate passed the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012, which, along with many other provisions, permanently extends the so-called Bush-era tax cuts for individuals making under $400,000 and families making under $450,000 (those above those thresholds now pay at a 39.6 percent rate). The House followed with passage late in the day on January 1; and President Obama signed the bill into law on January 2. Thus, the more than decade-long fight over the fate of the tax cuts, originally enacted under the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 (EGTRRA), accelerated under the Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003 (JGTRRA) and extended by Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010 (2010 Tax Relief Act) comes to an end.

In what undeniably came down to the wire in the early hours of January 1, 2013, the Senate passed the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012, which, along with many other provisions, permanently extends the so-called Bush-era tax cuts for individuals making under $400,000 and families making under $450,000 (those above those thresholds now pay at a 39.6 percent rate). The House followed with passage late in the day on January 1; and President Obama signed the bill into law on January 2. Thus, the more than decade-long fight over the fate of the tax cuts, originally enacted under the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 (EGTRRA), accelerated under the Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003 (JGTRRA) and extended by Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010 (2010 Tax Relief Act) comes to an end.

Prelude to the Fiscal Cliff

On May 26, 2001, Congress passed the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001 (EGTRRA). The legislation was hailed as the largest tax cut in 20 years and dramatically changed the landscape of the federal tax code. Two years later, the Jobs and Growth Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2003 (JGTRRA) was signed into law and accelerated many of the tax cuts set in motion under EGTRRA. Originally scheduled to sunset, or expire, after December 31, 2010, Congress extended these popular provisions for another two years in late 2010 with the passage of the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization, and Job Creation Act of 2010. In 2010, Congress acted before the end of the year to extend the cuts. At the end of 2012, Congress and President Obama engaged in intense negotiations over the “fiscal cliff,” a term that came to combine many federal laws that had a deadline of December 31, 2012, including the Bush-era tax cuts. Congress then passed the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 on New Year’s Day, 2013, effectively averting the fiscal cliff.

What Does This Mean for You?

The new law extends a majority of the Bush-era tax cuts in the same form as they have existed since 2001 or 2003 when initially enacted. However, major exceptions include a rise in rates, including a maximum 20 percent on capital gains and dividends, on higher-income individuals, as described above, and an increase in the estate tax rate from 35 to 40 percent. In addition to a general extension of the tax rates, many other provisions, including some not affected by the sunset of the Bush-era tax cuts, are significantly or permanently extended, including:

• Marriage penalty relief;
• Inflation protection against the alternative minimum tax (AMT);
• Deductions for student loan interest and tuition and fees;
• Enhanced child tax and child and dependent care credits;
• Simplified earned income credit;
• Deductions for primary and secondary school teacher expenses;
• Deductions for state and local sales taxes;
• Research credits;
• Energy-efficiency credits for homes and vehicles; and
• Many more provisions.

Unfortunately, the new law is also significant in what it does not do in one important respect. It does not renew the so-called payroll tax holiday that had been in effect during 2011 and 2012. As a result, employees and self-employed individuals will be paying 2 percent more employment tax on their earnings up to the Social Security wage base (which is up to $113,700 for 2013).

Finally, the American Taxpayer Relief Act also includes extensions of provisions that expired at the end of 2011, but now apply to the 2012 tax year. That means it has immediate effect on the 2013 filing season.

The landscape of federal tax law has changed once again, and with it the need to reassess present tax strategies. Please call this office if you have any questions about the new law or how it impacts you directly.

Beginning with 2012 Forms W-2, large employers must report the aggregate cost of employer-sponsored health insurance provided to employees. 2012 Form W-2s must be furnished to employees by January 31, 2013.

Beginning with 2012 Forms W-2, large employers must report the aggregate cost of employer-sponsored health insurance provided to employees. 2012 Form W-2s must be furnished to employees by January 31, 2013.

For tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2011, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA) required that employers report the aggregate cost of employer-sponsored health insurance provided on Form W-2, Wage and Tax Statement. The IRS then exempted all employers from the requirement for 2011, making 2011 reporting optional.

Reporting took effect in early 2012, but only for large employers filing 250 or more Forms W-2 for the preceding calendar year (2011). Small employers are exempt from reporting for 2012 and beyond, until the IRS issues further guidance. An employer does not have to report the cost if it is not required to issue a Form W-2. This would be the case for a retiree or other former employee who does not receive compensation.

The aggregate reportable cost should be shown on Form W-2, Box 12, using Code DD. The IRS has reiterated that reporting is for informational purposes only, and that the cost of health insurance generally remains excludable from income.

Reporting applies to applicable coverage under any group health plan provided by an employer or employee organization, if the coverage is excludable from the employee's income or would have been excludable if provided by the employer. Costs for self-insured plans and plans of self-employed persons are covered, unless the only coverage provided by the employer is a self-insured plan that is not subject to COBRA continuation coverage requirements (e.g. a self-insured church plan). Coverage does not include long-term care; accident or disability coverage; coverage for treatment of the mouth; and coverage only for a specified illness or disease.

Reportable costs include both employer costs and employee costs for the health insurance, even if the employee paid his or her share through pre-tax or salary reduction contributions. The aggregate cost includes the cost of coverage included in the employee's income, such as the cost of coverage for a person who is not a dependent or a child under age 27.

However, costs do not include amounts contributed to an Archer Medical Savings Account, health savings account, or health reimbursement arrangement, and salary reduction contributions made to a flexible spending arrangement.

Reporting is required of most employers, including federal, state, and local governments, and churches and other religious organizations.

Please contact this office if you would like further information on how these new reporting obligations may apply to your business.

As an individual or business, it is your responsibility to be aware of and to meet your tax filing/reporting deadlines. This calendar summarizes important tax reporting and filing data for individuals, businesses and other taxpayers for the month of January 2013.

As an individual or business, it is your responsibility to be aware of and to meet your tax filing/reporting deadlines. This calendar summarizes important tax reporting and filing data for individuals, businesses and other taxpayers for the month of January 2013.

January 3
Employers. Semi-weekly depositors must deposit employment taxes for payroll dates December 26-28.

January 4
Employers. Semi-weekly depositors must deposit employment taxes for payroll dates December 29-January 1.

January 9
Employers. Semi-weekly depositors must deposit employment taxes for payroll dates January 2-4.

January 10
Employees who work for tips. Employees who received $20 or more in tips during December must report them to their employer using Form 4070.

January 11
Employers. Semi-weekly depositors must deposit employment taxes for payroll dates January 5-8.

January 16
Employers. Semi-weekly depositors must deposit employment taxes for payroll dates January 9-11.

January 18
Employers. Semi-weekly depositors must deposit employment taxes for payroll dates January 12-15.

January 24
Employers. Semi-weekly depositors must deposit employment taxes for payroll dates January 16-18.

January 25
Employers. Semi-weekly depositors must deposit employment taxes for payroll dates January 19-22.

January 30
Employers. Semi-weekly depositors must deposit employment taxes for payroll dates January 23-25.

February 1
Employers. Semi-weekly depositors must deposit employment taxes for payroll dates January 26-29.

February 6
Employers. Semi-weekly depositors must deposit employment taxes for payroll dates January 30-February 1.

President Obama’s health care package enacted two new taxes that take effect January 1, 2013. One of these taxes is the additional 0.9 percent Medicare tax on earned income; the other is the 3.8 percent tax on net investment income. The 0.9 percent tax applies to individuals; it does not apply to corporations, trusts or estates. The 0.9 percent tax applies to wages, other compensation, and self-employment income that exceed specified thresholds.

President Obama’s health care package enacted two new taxes that take effect January 1, 2013. One of these taxes is the additional 0.9 percent Medicare tax on earned income; the other is the 3.8 percent tax on net investment income. The 0.9 percent tax applies to individuals; it does not apply to corporations, trusts or estates. The 0.9 percent tax applies to wages, other compensation, and self-employment income that exceed specified thresholds.

Additional tax on higher-income earners

There is no cap on the application of the 0.9 percent tax. Thus, all earned income that exceeds the applicable thresholds is subject to the tax. The thresholds are $200,000 for a single individual; $250,000 for married couples filing a joint return; and $125,000 for married filing separately. The 0.9 percent tax applies to the combined earned income of a married couple. Thus, if the wife earns $220,000 and the husband earns $80,000, the tax applies to $50,000, the amount by which the combined income exceeds the $250,000 threshold for married couples.

The 0.9 percent tax applies on top of the existing 1.45 percent Hospital Insurance (HI) tax on earned income. Thus, for income above the applicable thresholds, a combined tax of 2.35 percent applies to the employee’s earned income. Because the employer also pays a 1.45 percent tax on earned income, the overall combined rate of Medicare taxes on earned income is 3.8 percent (thus coincidentally matching the new 3.8 percent tax on net investment income).

Passthrough treatment

For partners in a general partnership and shareholders in an S corporation, the tax applies to earned income that is paid as compensation to individuals holding an interest in the entity. Partnership income that passes through to a general partner is treated as self-employment income and is also subject to the tax, assuming the income exceeds the applicable thresholds. However, partnership income allocated to a limited partner is not treated as self-employment and would not be subject to the 0.9 percent tax. Furthermore, under current law, income that passes through to S corporation shareholders is not treated as earned income and would not be subject to the tax.

Withholding rules

Withholding of the additional 0.9 percent Medicare tax is imposed on an employer if an employee receives wages that exceed $200,000 for the year, whether or not the employee is married. The employer is not responsible for determining the employee’s marital status. The penalty for underpayment of estimated tax applies to the 0.9 percent tax. Thus, employees should realize that the employee may be responsible for estimated tax, even though the employer does not have to withhold.

Planning techniques

One planning device to minimize the tax  would be to accelerate earned income, such as a bonus, into 2012. Doing this would also avoid any increase in the income tax rates in 2013 from the sunsetting of the Bush tax rates. Holders of stock-based compensation may want to trigger recognition of the income in 2012, by exercising stock options or by making an election to recognize income on restricted stock.

Another planning device would be to set up an S corp, rather than a partnership, for operating a business, so that the income allocable to owners is not treated as earned income. An entity operating as a partnership could be converted to an S corp.

If you have any questions surrounding how the new 0.9 percent Medicare tax will affect the take home pay of you or your spouse, or how to handle withholding if you are a business owner, please contact this office.

No use worrying. More than five million people every year have problems getting their refund checks so your situation is not uncommon. Nevertheless, you should be aware of the rules, and the steps to take if your refund doesn't arrive.

Average wait time

The IRS suggests that you allow for "the normal processing time" before inquiring about your refund. The IRS's "normal processing time" is approximately:

• Paper returns: 6 weeks
• E-filed returns: 3 weeks
• Amended returns: 12 weeks
• Business returns: 6 weeks

IRS website "Where's my refund?" tool

The IRS now has a tool on its website called "Where's my refund?" which generally allows you to access information about your refund 72 hours after the IRS acknowledges receipt of your e-filed return, or three to four weeks after mailing a paper return. The "Where's my refund?" tool can be accessed at www.irs.gov.

To get out information about your refund on the IRS's website, you will need to provide the following information from your return:

• Your Social Security Number (or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number);
• Filing status (Single, Married Filing Joint Return, Married Filing Separate Return, Head of Household, or Qualifying Widow(er)); and
• The exact whole dollar amount of your refund.

 Start a refund trace

If you have not received your refund within 28 days from the original IRS mailing date shown on Where's My Refund?, you can start a refund trace online.

Getting a replacement check

If you or your representative contacts the IRS, the IRS will determine if your refund check has been cashed. If the original check has not been cashed, a replacement check will be issued. If it has been cashed, get ready for a long wait as the IRS processes a replacement check.

The IRS will send you a photocopy of the cashed check and endorsement with a claim form. After you send it back, the IRS will investigate. Sometimes, it takes the IRS as long as one year to complete its investigation, before it cuts you a replacement check.

A bigger problem

Another problem may come to the fore when the IRS is contacted about the refund. It might tell you that it never received your tax return in the first place. Here's where some quick action is important.

First, you are required to show that you filed your return on time. That's a situation when a post-office or express mail receipt really comes in handy. Second, get another, signed copy off to the IRS as quickly as possible to prevent additional penalties and interest in case the IRS really can prove that you didn't file in the first place.

Minimize the risks

When filing your return, you can choose to have your refund directly deposited into a bank account. If you file a paper return, you can request direct deposit by giving your bank account and routing numbers on your return. If you e-file, you could also request direct deposit. All these alternatives to receiving a paper check minimize the chances of your refund getting lost or misplaced.

If you've moved since filing your return, it's possible that the IRS sent your refund check to the wrong address. If it is returned to the IRS, a refund will not be reissued until you notify the IRS of your new address. You have to use a special IRS form.

IRS may have a reason

You may not have received your refund because the IRS believes that you aren't entitled to one. Refund claims are reviewed -usually only in a cursory manner-- by an IRS service center or district office. Odds are, however, that unless your refund is completely out of line with your income and payments, the IRS will send you a check unless it spots a mathematical error through its data-entry processing. It will only be later, if and when you are audited, that the IRS might challenge the size of your refund on its merits.

IRS liability

If the IRS sends the refund check to the wrong address, it is still liable for the refund because it has not paid "the claimant." It is also still liable for the refund if it pays the check on a forged endorsement. Direct deposit refunds that are misdirected to the wrong account through no fault of your own are treated the same as lost or stolen refund checks.

The IRS can take back refunds that were paid by mistake. In an erroneous refund action, the IRS generally has the burden of proving that the refund was a mistake. Nevertheless, although you may be in the right and eventually get your refund, it may take you up to a year to collect. One consolation: if payment of a refund takes more than 45 days, the IRS must pay interest on it.

If you are still worrying about your refund check, please give this office a call. We can track down your refund and seek to resolve any problem that the IRS may believe has developed.