Tax News

Employers may offer employees certain tax-free transportation fringe benefits up to set dollar limits. These can be arranged through employer payments or employee payments on a pre-tax basis (salary r...

High deductible health plans (HDHPs) require minimum insurance deductibles to be met before insurance coverage begins. HDHPs are a prerequisite for contributing to a health savings account (HSA). The ...

Passenger vehicles, including light trucks and vans, that are purchased for business and placed in service in 2022 can be depreciated only up to a set dollar amount. And if the vehicles are leased, th...

Usually, farmers and fishermen are only required to make one estimated tax payment if they are “qualified.” Being qualified means having two-thirds of gross income in the current or previous year ...

On March 4, 2022, the IRS announced the start of the Taxpayer Experience Office, which is a new office designed to focus on taxpayer transactions with the Service (IR-2022-50). The Taxpayer Experience...

A short sale occurs when a homeowner in financial distress sells their property for less than the amount due on the mortgage. In one case, homeowners filed for bankruptcy and when their petition was ...

The IRS interest rates on underpayments and overpayments had remained unchanged since the first quarter of 2021. Starting April 1, 2022, the IRS interest rates increase by one percentage rate (Rev. Ru...

If you purchased health insurance through a government exchange, you may be eligible for the premium tax credit. In fact, you may even have received it on an advance basis to help pay premiums monthly...

The SECURE Act changed some of the rules for required minimum distributions (RMDs). It increased the starting age to 72 for those born after June 30, 1949. It effectively killed the “stretch IRA” ...

If you fail to submit your return on time—by the due date or the extended due date if you request an extension—you are subject to a late filing penalty. And if you fail to pay the taxes due by the...

Emergency financial aid grants made by a federal agency, state, Indian tribe, higher education institution or scholarship-granting organization (including a tribal organization) to a student because o...

The IRS treats cryptocurrency as property. This means when your Bitcoin or other digital asset is used to make a purchase, you have to figure gain or loss on the transaction. You can’t duck this res...

Usually, there’s a 10% penalty for distributions from an IRA. qualified employer plan, or a commercial annuity before age 59½. However, the penalty does not apply if distributions are taken in a se...

The National Taxpayer Advocate Erin M. Collins issued the required annual report to Congress detailing the past filing season and making recommendations for future legislation (IR-2022-11; https://www...

Transportation fringe benefits, which include free parking, transit passes, and van pooling, may be funded either by the employer as a tax-free benefit up to a monthly dollar limit ($280 per month in ...

Beneficiaries of 529 plans may withdraw up to $10,000 to pay their student loan debt. The funds may also be used to pay student loan debt of siblings. The dollar limit is for a lifetime. The IRS has m...

If you received advance child tax credits in 2021, you’re likely to receive a special IRS Letter 6519 (COVID Tax Tip 2022-03). Do not throw it out. It will be used to help you figure the amount of t...

If a business has losses year after year, the IRS may disallow them on the grounds that the owner is engaged in a hobby activity and lacks a profit motive. A finding that an activity is a hobby becaus...

A self-employed individual may deduct various business expenses. However, as a recent Tax Court decision points out, you must actually function as a going concern (an active trade or business) to take...

The IRS announced the optional standard rates that can be used for certain driving costs in lieu of deducting actual costs (Notice 2022-3). For 2022, the rate for business driving is 58.5 cents per mi...