Hello ☀️ June.
We are so happy to see your sunny face, bringing us the start of summer. Some brightness and warmth and a general better times ahead feeling is definitely what we need after a tax season, although back on an April schedule, still is feeling lingering COVID-19 effects.
via GIPHY
June 1: While we're ready to head to the beach, this month is important for coastal areas for another, less welcome reason. Today is the start of the Atlantic/Gulf of Mexico hurricane season. At least for the first time in eight years, we didn't have a tropical system form early on the eastern and southern sides of the United States. However, Hurricane Agatha did kick off the Pacific hurricane season. Regardless of where you live, it's time to get prepared for these potentially stormy summer months.
Uncle Sam's official forecasters at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Climate Prediction Center expect 2022 to bring as many as 21 named storms, with six to 10 possibly becoming hurricanes. Three to six of those could reach major status, which is category 3, 4 or 5 with winds of 111 mph or higher. Regardless of the count, it only takes one to wreak havoc. The countdown clock below can help you keep track of how many more days you have to worry about tracking any size or type of tropical storms.
You also might want to check out the ol' blog's special Storm Warnings.
These multi-page collections of posts offer tax advice on preparing for, recovering from and helping those who sustain damages from the many ways that that weather goes wild. That includes claiming uninsured losses from a major natural disaster as an itemized tax deduction.
June 5: Speaking of disasters, some other fits by Mother Nature earlier this year, delayed Tax Day for some taxpayers. Certain filers in Puerto Rico dealt with disastrous flooding in February, so the Internal Revenue Service gave them until June 15 to file their 2021 tax returns. If that's you, now's the time to get to work on those Form 1040s or file for an extension.
June 10: Eateries are still recovering from the challenges of operating during a national health crisis. Restaurants closed, then opened, then closed again. Others relied on and have stuck with take-out and deliveries. Whether you're dining in or still getting food brought to your house because of the latest Omicron coronavirus wave, remember to tip your server or delivery person.
If a tip isn't included in your food delivery charge, click the image above to calculate how much to tip the person who brought it to you.
As for servers who now are back on the job, remember that your
tips are taxable income. If you worked at least some of May at a job where you got gratuities, you need to account for them today if they came to at least $20 last month. Use
Form 4070 to report your tips today to your employer.
June 14: Happy Flag Day! It's not a day-off-work federal holiday, but
Flag Day has been an official day to celebrate the Star-Spangled Banner since
1949. If you need to buy a U.S. flag to fly today, you also might get a tax break. Several states
exempt the national symbol from sales tax. Check with your
state's tax department to see if you can save on your patriotic display.
June 15: In addition to being the federal 2021 return filing due date for some Puerto Rican taxpayers, today also is the due date for annual Form 1040 filings by
U.S. citizens or resident aliens living and working abroad, as well as military personnel stationed outside the United States.
This mid-June day also is the deadline for the second
estimated tax payment for the 2022 tax year.
June 19: Happy Father's Day!
Dad might not say so, but he appreciates being recognized, so take time today to let him know you care. And if your father is getting on up in years, take the time when you visit to make sure he doesn't need some
added help from you. If you provide Pop a little, or even a lot of assistance, there's a chance you could get some help from
a couple of tax credits.
June 19-20: June 19 also is our newest federal holiday,
Juneteenth. This date marks when Texans finally received word that all slaves were free, and is the oldest nationally celebrated commemoration of the ending of slavery in the United States.
Since Juneteenth this year falls on Sunday, the federal holiday is on Monday, June 20.
June 21: It's official at 5:14 a.m. Eastern Time.
Summer is here, on this longest day of the year.
Many charitable groups help people cope with the heat. Your
gift to such IRS-qualified nonprofits could be tax deductible on next year's taxes. For now, you'll have to itemize to claim it. But there's a chance that Congress might reinstate the tax deduction for charitable gifts of up to $300 for single filers, double that for married jointly filing couples, that can be
claimed directly on Form 1040.
June 30: If you missed spring cleaning, summer's still a good time to determine what you can do without. If that includes clothing or household items, you also can donate those and, if you
itemize, claim what the items are worth on Schedule A. Just make sure you set the correct
fair market value, or the IRS might disallow your tax break.
Small Business Tax Calendar: Important
filing, deposit and record keeping dates throughout the year that your company needs to know. You can get more tax calendar information at the IRS'
online calendar page and view the full year's important business and individual tax dates in
IRS Pub. 509.