West Harbour Financial Group

The plethora of new tax breaks and credits from the two big COVID relief bills are not automatically applied to your taxes. You have to know about them and apply the appropriate information and forms to your return manually. Yet another reason to confer with a professional who can help you do that.

A new benefit from the newest stimulus package... The $300 ($600 for joint returns) above-the-line charitable giving deduction for all taxpayers, whether they itemize or not, has been extended through the end of 2021. Corporations will also be allowed to deduct up to 25% of their taxable income for charitable contributions, which is an increase from the normal 10% allowed.

Have you heard about The Work Opportunity Tax Credit? This is a new credit available for business owners as part of the most recent relief bill. It's a nice bonus, depending on your hiring practices and the state of your business. This is a credit for hiring a person from certain categories (veterans, ex-felons, welfare recipients) but, more pertinent for many: people who have been jobless for more than six months. The credit, which is calculated per employee, ranges from $1,...200 to $9,600, and you would take this on your BUSINESS tax return. This is also available for pass-throughs (i.e. S-Corps, Partnerships). Be sure to bring this up when you file your taxes, and keep it in mind for future hires.

This is what you'll need to bring in for your tax appointment this year. This list has been updated to reflect both stimulus bills and their respective benefits.

Q&A on the PPP Question: If I received the "grant" portion of the EIDL, is this considered taxable income? Answer: No, it is not taxable income.

The IRS has apparently caught up on processing their backlogged mail that stacked up during COVID closures. Or, good enough, they say. They are now resuming the mailings of tax-due notices to taxpayers with outstanding tax bills. If you receive one of these notices, give us a call immediately.

Keeping personal and business separate is extremely important for your taxes. While there is some room for dual purpose expenses, far-reaching claims are easy pickings for IRS auditors.

"Hope someone can use some of these baseballs in the batting cages. I found them cleaning my garage. I pitched them to my son and grandson for countless rounds. My son is now 46 y/o and my grandson is 23 y/o. I am 72 and what I won't give to pitch a couple of buckets to them. They have both moved away. If you are a father cherish these times. You won't believe how quickly they will be gone. God bless P.S. Give them a hug and tell them you love them every chance you get."

A new QR code feature aims to help you access your taxpayer account info easier when receiving an overdue tax notice from the IRS. If you just need help setting up logistics to pay your bill, this will help you. But if you do not agree with their numbers or you can't pay, you will still want professional assistance.

There's lots of tax talk in this election season, as in every other, as both candidates are making promises about their tax policies. The BEST advice we can give about what to do for your individual and business tax plan right now is: wait and see. If new tax legislation is passed in 2021, it probably won't be effective until 2022. Congress very rarely makes tax changes that are retroactive. So ... wait and see. Then, we will listen together to see what whichever President we have says about their tax plans ... and react accordingly.

Organizing your financial world can feel like a daunting task, but some SIMPLE steps will go a long way. Watch our video -- doesn't this seem really doable?

Well, with yesterday's extended tax deadline behind us, one crazy and wild and completely unprecedented tax season comes to a close. Thank you for entrusting us with something as close to you as your finances -- we know how important each dollar is to each of you, and we're committed to helping you keep as many of them as you legally can. (And now, it's time for a very long nap this weekend, before we gear up for next year.)

The day has come. All 2019 returns that were given an extension to file are due to be submitted today, which means our most recent marathon is coming to an end. Next tax season is now not so very far away (along with the tax ramifications of what THIS tax season delivered). Are you ready for that? You will be ... with our help.

We've been telling you about some tax professional rumors circulating about "automatic forgiveness" for PPP loans under $150K. Well, they did it! Except it is for even smaller loans (under $50K). And it's not "automatic", but it is very, very easy. Here is the simplified application if your loan falls in that category. https://bit.ly/318OOYh

Here are some questions to consider for your 2020 taxes that will set you up for long-term success. We're here to help you walk through these answers and how to affect your tax status in a positive way. 1) Have you had a significant change in your wage income this year? 2) Have you taken capital gains or losses this year? Are you planning to? 3) Did you start or sell a business this year?... 4) Did you purchase real estate? 5) Did you make your full contributions to retirement accounts? 6) Have you considered a Roth IRA? 7) Did you withdraw from retirement accounts, and for what purpose? See more

Extension deadline is on THURSDAY, folks. Filing a tax return late (without reasonable cause) results in a 5% late FILING penalty (on whatever it is that you owe -- and the IRS will figure it for you if you don't), and an additional 5% for every month you wait to file. PLUS there is an additional 0.5% to 1% late PAYMENT penalty (per month) on whatever it is you owe. NOTE: this is ON TOP of late filing penalties. Then (yikes), interest accrues on both the late tax filing penal...ties AND the late payment penalties. That's a lot of penalty. And at least the first one is completely avoidable. If you can't pay the tax due on October 15, still file ... and talk to us about helping you set up an installment agreement or working out an offer in compromise to cover what you owe.

Another PPP loan update for businesses: If your PPP loan was less than $50K, a couple of time-consuming requirements have been removed from the forgiveness application, making the process *a little bit* less complicated. Automatic forgiveness for certain loans, while still being discussed, is not yet available.