PTP Tax Center

2018 Personal Exemptions Did You Know? The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 nearly doubled the standard deduction for most taxpayers, but eliminated personal exemptions for yourself, your spouse, and/or your dependents for at least the years 2018 through 2025. The higher standard deduction may or may not make up for the loss of personal and dependent exemptions.... We recommend scheduling an appointment to go over your specific situation.

Six Month Filing Extension Deadlines If you requested an extra six-month extension in April to file your 2017 personal income tax return, that deadline to file is coming up on Monday, October 15th. If you are an employer that makes contributions into employee Simplified Employee Pension IRA accounts, October 15th is also the six-month extension deadline to make those deposits.

HSA Accounts - Did You Know? Health savings accounts or HSAs are often referred to as another form of retirement plan for those with access to them. An HSA is a medical savings account that may offer triple tax advantages. Contributions are pre-tax, the money can be withdrawn tax-free to pay for qualified medical and related expenses and any interest earned is tax-free as well. For those who can afford to allow their HSA to accumulate for retirement, they can be used to pay f...or Medicare premiums and other healthcare costs in retirement as unused funds can be carried over year-to-year. If you are over age 65, withdrawals for non-qualified expenses can be made without penalty, but subject to taxes just like an IRA An HSA can only be opened in connection with a high deductible health insurance plan as defined by the IRS. Contribution limits for 2018 are $3,450 for single people and $6,900 (this was reduced to $6,850 in March but has since been restored) for families, with an extra $1,000 for anyone age 55 or over.

Employer Family and Medical Leave Credit - Did You Know? If you are an employer who provided family and medical leave to your employees during 2018 and 2019, you may qualify for a new business tax credit. To be eligible, you must:... - Have a written policy that meets certain IRS requirements - Provide at least two weeks of paid family and medical leave to full-time employees, and a prorated amount of paid leave for part-time employees The credit may be available for wages paid during taxable years after Dec. 31, 2017, and before Jan. 1, 2020, and is generally 12.5 to 25 percent of paid family and medical leave for those employees that qualify.

Military Contractors and Employees Did You Know? If you perform services for the U.S. Military in a combat zone and meet eligibility requirements, you may now be able to exclude as much as $103,900 in earnings from the gross income you report on your tax return. In the past, to qualify for the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion, you had to live in a foreign country and not "maintain an abode" in the U.S. However, in February 2018, Congress removed this requirement for military... contractors and their employees working in registered combat zones. You can only exclude foreign income that you earned while working in support of the U.S. Armed Forces, and you can't claim any deductions or credits related to that income, such as business travel expenses. Still, if you've worked in a combat zone, this law change could save you a lot at tax time. The foreign earned income exclusion is not automatic. Please contact us to learn more about filing for this exclusion.