What are some items on your tax return that could ‘red flag’ it by the IRS for audit? The Minnesota Society of CPAs has made a list of things that could cause the Service to take a closer look at your tax return: http://www.accountingtoday.com/gallery/photos/most-suspicious-irs-audit-triggers-74055-1.html?utm_campaign=daily-mar%2020%202015&utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&ET=webcpa%3Ae4039805%3A2498807a%3A&st=email Now, just remember that having these items will not automatically get you an examination letter. These are just risk factors; the more of them there are, the larger the POSSIBILITY the IRS may assign a live person to inspect your return in more detail, then determine if it is worth it to them to audit the return. If you have a legitimate deduction and can document it, by all means you should take the deduction (but you may not want to risk an audit for a few hundred dollars in tax savings.) Something to discuss with your tax preparer. For financial, accounting and tax musings, You can count on us to count for you! Email: bstonercpa@sbcglobal.net Phone: 818-317-6035 Website: www.briantstonercpa.com Android and the IPhone: Has been Featured On https://twitter.com/bstonercpa
CPA Tax Musings: What Kind of Health Insurance Qualifies as Minimum Essential Coverage?
When you are shopping for health insurance, make sure that your insurance qualifies under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) as minimum essential coverage. This tip from the IRS gives more details about what qualifies: http://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/USIRS/bulletins/f91102?reqfrom=share For more details on what constitutes minimum essential coverage, check with http://www.irs.gov/Affordable-Care-Act/Individuals-and-Families/ACA-Individual-Shared-Responsibility-Provision-Minimum-Essential-Coverage on the IRS website. Usually most health coverage sold through insurance companies qualifies as MEC, but make sure before you buy something. You wouldn’t want to pay for coverage and then have to pay the shared responsibility payment on top of that. For financial, accounting and tax musings, You can count on us to count for you! Email: bstonercpa@sbcglobal.net Phone: 818-317-6035 Website: www.briantstonercpa.com Android and the IPhone: Has been Featured On https://twitter.com/bstonercpa
Burbank CPA Tax Musings: IRS Notice makes IHSS Payments Non Taxable
The IRS has now declared in Notice 2014-7 that In-Home Supportive Service (IHSS) payments are now not subject to income tax under Section 131. See this explanation by the IRS on their website: http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/Certain-Medicaid-Waiver-Payments-May-Be-Excludable-From-Income Check with your state to see if the IHSS payments are non taxable there, too (In California they are tax free). The ruling was in January 2014, but the IRS says it will affect any open tax years, so those previous years can be amended to get refunds on this change. For financial, accounting and tax musings, You can count on us to count for you! Email: bstonercpa@sbcglobal.net Phone: 818-317-6035 Website: www.briantstonercpa.com Android and the IPhone: Has been Featured On https://twitter.com/bstonercpa