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Trump Signs Paycheck Protection Program Flexibility Act Into Law
President Donald Trump signed into law the bipartisan Paycheck Protection Program Flexibility Act of 2020 (P.L. 116-142) on June 5. The legislation aims to expand usability of the Coronavirus Aid, Rel...

Treasury, SBA Issue Updated PPP Guidance, Revised Application and Forgiveness Forms, New EZ Forgiveness Form
In consultation with Treasury Department, the Small Business Administration (SBA) has issued......

IRS Postpones More Deadlines Due to COVID-19 Emergency
The IRS is postponing deadlines for certain time-sensitive actions due to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) emergency. This relief affects employment taxes, employee benefit plans, exempt organi...

Coronavirus-Related Distributions and Plan Loan Guidance
The IRS has issued guidance on coronavirus-related distributions and plan loans....

IRS Temporarily Allows Certain Retirement Plan Participants to Sign Elections Remotely
The IRS has released guidance that provides temporary administrative relief to help certain retirement plan participants or beneficiaries who need to make participant elections by allowing flexibility...

IRS Provides COVID-19 Related Safe Harbors for Determining Tax Status of Arrangements that Hold Real Property as Trusts
The IRS has released a revenue procedure that describes temporary safe harbors for the purpose of determining the federal tax status of certain arrangements that hold real property as trusts in respon...

Deadlines Extended for Qualified Opportunity Funds and Investors
The IRS has announced various extensions of deadlines for qualified opportunity funds and their investors due to the Coronavirus pandemic....

Proposed Regulations Issued Updating Definition of Qualifying Relative for Child-Related Tax Benefits
The IRS has issued proposed regulations clarifying the definition of a qualifying relative for various tax benefits for tax years 2018 through 2025 in which the dependent exemption amount is zero. Dur...

Proposed Regs Address Eliminated Qualified Transportation Fringe Deduction
Proposed regulations provide guidance regarding the elimination of the deduction for expenses related to qualified transportation fringe benefits (QTFs) provided to an employee. The Tax Cuts and Jobs ...

IRS Proposes Treating Payments for Direct Primary Care Arrangements and Health Care Sharing Ministry Memberships as Medical Care Payments
Proposed regulations would define expenditures for direct primary care arrangements and health care sharing ministry memberships as amounts paid for medical care. Thus, amounts paid for those arrangem...

Proposed Reliance Regs Define “Real Property”” for Like-Kind Exchanges
Proposed reliance regulations clarify the definitions of "real property" that qualifies for a like-kind exchange, including incidental personal property. Under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJ...

FAQ: What is the self-rental rule?
Under Code Sec. 469, passive losses can only be used to offset passive income. Taxpayers who have losses from a passive activity cannot use losses from a passive activity to offset nonpassive inc...

How do I? Prove business expenses
Everyone in business must keep records. Among other things, good records will help a business prepare the business tax returns, and will support items reported on tax returns. Taxpayers also must keep...

FAQ…do I need a receipt for every gift to charity
The IRS requires that taxpayers substantiate their donations to charity. Whatever the donation is, whether money or a household item or clothing, the substantiation rules must be followed. The rules a...

IRS provides repair regulations relief for small businesses
In Rev. Proc. 2015-20, the IRS substantially simplified the requirements for small businesses to adopt the tangible property regulations (the "repair regulations") for 2014. The relief allows small bu...

FAQs: How are qualified longevity annuity contracts reported?
The required minimum distribution (RMD) rules require participants to start taking distributions when they turn age 70½. Treasury and the IRS have developed a new concept to enable retirees to ...

Employers prepare for employer mandate and Code Sec. 6056 reporting
As January 1, 2015 draws closer, many employers are gearing up for the “employer mandate” under the Affordable Care Act. For 2015, there is special transition relief for mid-size employers...

IRS final rules encourage longevity annuity purchases
Life expectancies for many Americans have increased to such an extent that most taxpayers who retire at age 65 expect to live for another 20 years or more. Several years ago, a number of insurance com...

How do I? As an employer, report health insurance coverage?
One of the most complex, if not the most complex, provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is the employer shared responsibility requirement (the so-called "employer mandate") and ...

FAQ: What is an information document request (IDR)?
When an IRS is conducting a detailed audit of a taxpayer, it may want to see documents and records retained by the taxpayer. The examiner will ask the taxpayer what type of documents are maintained, a...

Final employer mandate regulations include transition relief for mid-size employers
Mid-size employers may be eligible for recently announced transition relief from the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act's employer shared responsibility requirements. Final regulations issued ...

Treasury set to develop new retirement savings vehicle: myRAs
In his January 2014 State of the Union address, President Obama instructed the Treasury Department to develop a new savings vehicle called "myRA." The new savings arrangements share many similarities ...

Keeping good records for the upcoming tax-filing season and beyond
Good recordkeeping is essential for individuals and businesses before, during, and after the upcoming tax filing season....

FAQ: What are the tax rates on capital gains and dividends?
Despite the passage of the American Tax Relief Act of 2012 - which its supporters argued would bring greater certainty to tax planning - many taxpayers have questions about the tax rates on qualified ...

FAQ: To what extent are business meals deductible?
A business can deduct only ordinary and necessary expenses. Further, the amount allowable as a deduction for business meal and entertainment expenses, whether incurred in-town or out-of-town is genera...

How do I? Deduct employee compensation given as year-end bonuses
Whether or not the IRS will allow a deduction for year-end bonuses for services performed during that year depends not only on the timing of the payment, but also the events surrounding the payment. I...

Coming soon: greater tax-wise retirement options
Retired employees often start taking benefits by age 65 and, under the minimum distribution rules, must begin taking distributions from their retirement plans when they reach age 70 ½. Accordin...

How do I… Guard against taxpayer identity theft?
The number of tax return-related identity theft incidents has almost doubled in the past three years to well over half a million reported during 2011, according to a recent report by the Treasury Insp...

Sweeping new IRS "repair regulations" impact most businesses
The IRS has released much-anticipated temporary and proposed regulations on the capitalization of costs incurred for tangible property. They impact how virtually any business writes off costs that rep...

The tricky distinction between employees and independent contractors
In light of the IRS’s new Voluntary Worker Classification Settlement Program (VCSP), which it announced this fall, the distinction between independent contractors and employees has become a &ldq...

FAQ: Are Social Security survivor benefits received by children taxable income?
When an individual dies, certain family members may be eligible for Social Security benefits. In certain cases, the recipient of Social Security survivor benefits may incur a tax liability....

Common IRA contribution and distribution mistakes
Individual retirement accounts (IRAs) -- both traditional and Roth IRAs -- are among the most popular retirement savings vehicles today. Protecting the value of your IRA (and other retirement accounts...

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