Taxes

Two weeks ago the Treasury Department warned American taxpayers that the 2022 filing season would probably be messy and that many taxpayers could once again experience delayed tax refunds. As daunting as the warning is for regular do-it-yourself filers and tax professionals, it may have first-time filers paralyzed with fear. Bill Smith, National Director for

Beverly Winstead of the Law Office of Beverly Winstead LLC and Paul Miller of Miller & Co. LLP discuss the 2022 filing season’s challenges and considerations in the third year of the pandemic. This transcript has been edited for length and clarity. David D. Stewart: Welcome to the podcast. I’m David Stewart, editor in chief of Tax

No one likes receiving Forms 1099, since they saddle you with income you have to report. Actually, of course, if you have income, you must report it, whether or not you receive a Form 1099. But think of the Form 1099 as a pretty strong nudge, you better list it. And seeing the dollars reported

This week we dabble in cross-disciplinary thinking. The proposition is that wisdom from other social sciences can help explain some of the odd things we encounter in the tax world — specifically regarding EU governance. Strategic forbearance has been gaining intellectual traction in recent years, thanks in part to the writing of Alisha Holland, an

Today’s Social Security column addresses questions about whether a new application is necessary to receive retirement benefits after taking spousal benefits, taking early survivor’s benefits before retirement benefits and when Social Security considers you to be 70. Larry Kotlikoff is a Professor of Economics at Boston University and the founder and president of Economic Security

Clergy housing is back in the news as Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch dissented from the Court’s decision to not hear the appeal in the case of Trustees of the New Life in Christ Church v. City of Fredericksburg. The economic issue was real estate tax exemption for a residence on Church property occupied by Josh

The beauty of Combined Federal State Filing is that you don’t have to report the same information twice for your federal and state/local taxes. But last year, the IRS didn’t include its new form for reporting non-employee compensation (1099-NEC) in the program. The form is used by business like Uber UBER and Doordash that hire

The creative process of individuals, and the medium through which a Creator works, is constantly expanding, including digital assets such as Non-fungible Tokens. NFTs that are created, bought, sold or exchanged are considered property by the IRS, and so these are taxed like art buying, selling or exchanging art. For the Creator of an NFT               For

Sadly, yet again, the Roth IRA contribution limits will not be increasing in 2022. On a brighter note, the income levels that allow for a Roth IRA contribution have increased. This could enable some workers to contribute larger amounts. Investing in a Roth IRA is a great way to increase your tax-free income in retirement.

Will Morris, former chair of the tax committee at Business at OECD, reflects on his nearly decadelong tenure and experiences leading the business community through OECD global corporate tax reform projects. This transcript has been edited for length and clarity. David D. Stewart: Welcome to the podcast. I’m David Stewart, editor in chief of Tax Notes Today

For months, we have heard about workers quitting jobs and leaving the labor market in a supposed “Great Resignation,” which allegedly is hurting the economy.  But that story is proving to be wrong.  Although quit rates are high (especially for lower-wage workers), many are staying in the labor market and getting better jobs, in what White House economists

Someone should write a country song about trying to call the IRS. I called the IRS today. I called three times before I could even wait on hold. The first two times, I got a message that the phone lines were too busy and I needed to call back. The third time was a charm,

Any tax audit can be frightening, but criminal tax cases are the worst. And since it’s time for Americans to start thinking about the 2021 tax returns and filing by April 18, the IRS has some reminders for us all. The IRS Criminal Investigation Division took to Twitter to count down the top 10 cases

The tax cuts that have provoked some of the most intense disagreement in the debate over the Build Back Better Act stand in stark opposition. The advantage of repealing or at least raising the state and local tax deduction limit would largely accrue to higher-income taxpayers, while the expanded child tax credit (CTC) has been

IRS Forms 1099 generally come in the mail around the end of January or early February and report how much you were paid in the prior calendar year. Don’t ignore them, as each one will be matched against your tax return when you file. Forms 1099 can be wrong, so check them carefully. IRS Forms

Let me suggest two excellent money moves. You’ll enjoy tax deferral — inside buildup in which the asset-income you earn on your balances accumulate tax-free. You also get to time your IRA withdrawals to years when your marginal tax bracket is low. Like many, if not most, Americans, you probably are holding much of your

Today’s Social Security column addresses questions about how high benefit rates can possibly be, whether there’s a Social Security benefit increase for caring for a disabled spouse and the accuracy of Social Security’s benefit estimates. Larry Kotlikoff is a Professor of Economics at Boston University and the founder and president of Economic Security Planning, Inc.

You might need to take a little extra time in 2022 to plan your required minimum distributions (RMDs) from IRAs, 401(k)s, and other qualified retirement plans. A few of the rules have changed. Changes affect both original owners of accounts and beneficiaries who inherited them. The starting age for RMDs of account owners was changed

Today organizations representing professionals in the tax industry sent a letter to IRS Commissioner, Charles Rettig, and the Department of Treasury’s Assistant Secretary for Tax Policy, Lily Batchelder, requesting specific relief for taxpayers for the 2022 tax season. The letter reminds the Commissioner and the Assistant Secretary that the IRS “still has an unprecedented number

E-filing of individual tax returns for the 2022 filing season opens on January 24. The tax deadline is Monday, April 18, 2022. Until recently the opening of individual e-filing began on the Tuesday after the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday. In 2021 individual e-filing didn’t open until February 12. In 2020 it opened on January