FAQs
Tax Planning
- I’m starting a new business. What affect will this have on my tax obligations?
- Self-Employment taxes in addition to income taxes
- Employees? : Additional filing and paying of tax deadlines
- My business is growing. How might that change my taxes?
- Retirement: IRA, Roth, Simple, and 401K options
- College Savings
- Investments : Building and equipment
- Pay quarterly estimated tax payments
- How are my taxes affected by marriage/divorce/children?
- W2 withholdings
- Standard and exemption deductions
- Child Tax and Dependent Care Credits
- EITC
- Pay quarterly estimated tax payments
- I am an active gambler. What do I need for tax purposes?
- Use the Casino Players Card
- Retrieve the year end printout from all casinos
- How do I handle an Estate and tax consequences of the inheritance?
- Schedule an appointment
- Is there an enforced will or trust?
- Identify assets, state of ownership, and values
- Any additional income still being produced?
- Should I contribute to a retirement plan? What type is right for me?
- Purpose of your retirement account?
- How much estimate yearly income needed at age of retirement?
Tax Preparation
- When should I bring my tax information to you, what do I need to bring and how long do I need to keep my records?
- Bring ALL tax information necessary to complete an accurate tax return As Soon As all forms have been received
- All forms issued, plus substantiation of any and ALL other income and expenses
- On the average, keep all information for five years
- All answers depend on certain circumstances and you should call with any and all question to verify
- What types of returns do you prepare?
- Sales Tax
- Partnership
- Payroll Reports
- Mixed Beverage Tax
- Corporate Return
- Gift Tax
- Estate Tax
- Trusts / Fiduciary Returns
- Personal
- How much will it cost and how long will it take?
- Our minimum fee is $95 plus per form charges and comparison of time to prepare
- Time depends on organization of records, difficulty of the tax return, and seasonal workflow
- What expenses can I deduct and do you need me to bring all of my receipts?
Payroll Services
- What are the differences between an Employee and Independent Contractor?
- I am unfamiliar with payroll rules and regulations. Where do I start?
- Know Federal minimum wage requirements
- Salary versus Hourly requirements
- Calculations for taxes to withhold from payroll checks
- Paperwork, paperwork, paperwork
- Which entities do I need to report to and how often?
- EFTPS for Federal required deposits biweekly/monthly/quarterly
- US Treasury for Federal reporting quarterly or yearly
- State reporting for Unemployment and State Income Tax withholding depending on where the employees are physically working
- Social Security and/or State yearly for W2 reporting
- All answers depend per required limits and we can file ALL electronically
- What if I can’t afford to pay my payroll taxes this month/quarter?
- Pay current payroll taxes
- Call to setup an appointment to discuss your options
- What do I need to do before I fire an employee?
- Do substantial documentation to support the reason?
- Have the employee sign the documentation to support your reasoning
- Retain a signed Final privacy disclosure statement of the business
Bookkeeping
- Can I afford to hire a bookkeeping service and what information do I need to provide?
- Prices vary depending on time and services need to support your business to make it profitable
- Information could include: Bank Statements, check stubs, invoices, receipts, etc
- Should I do the bookkeeping monthly or quarterly? How about just annually?
- Monthly is based on management purposes
- Quarterly is usually for management and/or tax planning purposes
- Annually is usually for tax return purposes
- My financial institution has asked for financials. What is an Income or Profit and Loss Statement? What is a Balance Sheet?
- Income Statement shows Income and related expenses for an accumulated time period such as 3 months for a predetermined 12 months
- Balance Sheet shows what you own (Assets) minus what you owe on what you own (Liabilities) at a specified date in time, 3/31/2012.
- I need help with my Accounts Payable and Accounts Receivable.
- We are able to help you process and maintain
- Each situation is different, so call us to help
- Do I need a sales tax permit or tax ID? How do I do this?
- Sales tax permit is based on the type of business being conducted
- Tax ID is mainly used for businesses that have employees, but can also help with tax purposes and state reporting.
- Call for an appointment and we can help with the process
Business Planning
- Should my business be a Sole Proprietorship, an LLC, or a Corporation?
- Sole Proprietorship files with your personal tax return (Form Sch C) and you are personally liable
- LLCs are formed at the State level and protect / transfer the liability to the company instead of you personally, but can still be filed with your personal return
- Corporations have separate and distinct roles for Directors, Officers, and Shareholders severing the liability between the Shareholders and Corporation and separate forms are filed for tax purposes.
- What are the pros and cons to hiring employees?
- Paperwork, paperwork, paperwork
- Policy and procedures need to be developed
- They help complete the work, but it will take time to see the benefits
- Do I need an Employer Identification Number (EIN)? How do I obtain one?
- Tax ID is mainly used for businesses that have employees, but can also help with tax purposes and state reporting.
- Apply on-line at IRS.gov
- How do I get set up with various taxing and regulatory agencies at the local and state levels?
- There are many different applications that need to be filed depending on your type of business
- We have experience in obtaining the necessary permits / licenses to help you legally conduct your business
- Should I lease or purchase a vehicle for my business? Should it go under my name or my business name?
- How often do you expect to change vehicles?
- Deductible expenses vary with each option and needs to be considered
- How is your business structured and taxed?
- Should I maintain separate bank accounts for my business and myself?
- ABSOLUTELY!
- How does the new Health Care Bill affect my business?
- Do you have employees?
- Do you currently offer Health Insurance for your business?
Back Taxes
- What do I need to do if I owe back taxes?
- Call to schedule an appointment
- Obtain All IRS / State agency correspondence
- Obtain any copies of filed reports related to taxes due
- I have not filed tax returns for previous years. What do I do?
- Call to schedule an appointment
- Power of Attorney will need to be completed
- Gather all income and expense related to missing years
- Collect all documentation to support the income and expenses
- Bank statements
- Receipts
- Deposits / invoices
- W-2s, 1099s, 1099-Rs, etc
- I have been contacted by the IRS. What do I do next?
- How were you contacted
- What is the reason or purpose of the contact
- How much does the IRS charge for Penalty and Interest?
- Late Filing
- Late Paying
- What is the statute of limitations on IRS audits of previous tax years?
- Generally 3 years
- If criminal, 6 years
- If fraudulent, never
- How many years back can you go to prepare tax returns?
- Generally 6 years or until you last filed
- Circumstance are different per each case