My desk in my home office which I deduct when I file my taxes. Not that I'm paranoid, but sometimes it seems like unseen others somehow know what's going on in my life. The latest example is tax related. Earlier this week, a #TaxTwitter pal asked that social media group about home office tax deductions. Granted, this is not an unusual question since the coronavirus pandemic has meant many of us have been working from home, a lot of us for the very first time. Today, the Internal Revenue Service issued a tax tip on what taxpayers need to know... Read more →
Tax planning
Hello August! These annual hot and, here in Central Texas, sticky days of late summer usually are a transitional time. Families take one last summer vacation. Parents and kiddos (but mostly parents) get ready for the return of school. Not so in 2020. The coronavirus pandemic continues to keep much of our lives on hold, like those final holiday trips and school openings. Taxes, though, are more persistent. Yes, COVID-19 did delay Tax Day until last month. But as far as the rest of the tax realm is concerned, there still are some matters that must be considered. That means... Read more →
As the Senate grapples with its latest COVID-19 economic relief payment proposal, millions of Americans who lost their jobs in the pandemic are trying to figure out how they will pay their bills coming due in August. Those who had a workplace retirement plan, typically a 401(k), likely are deciding whether they should tap that account. It's always been possible to take what's known as a hardship distribution from tax-favored retirement plans. Pre-coronavirus tax law also allowed for loans from workplace retirement savings accounts. But COVID-19 also has added some new considerations to this financial route. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief,... Read more →
Meanwhile, the rest of us regular taxpayers say thanks for the offer and, as Tax Day 2020 looms, continue to look for ways to keep from paying so much on our nowhere-near-a-million earnings. If you're still working on your tax return instead of jetting off in your private plane to a luxury destination, then you might agree with the latest tax-the-rich plea. You also might need some of the tax-saving tips listed later in this post. With July 15, aka coronavirus Tax Day 2020, looming, millions of taxpayers are scouring their records and the tax laws looking for ways to... Read more →
When the extended and complicated 2020 tax filing season officially ends at mid-week, the IRS says it will resume many postponed normal actions. This means taxpayer payments — including to debt collectors — and other tax matters that have been on COVID-19 hold will go back to what we used to call normal. In this coronavirus era, we all just want things to be like the name of the central Illinois town of Normal, where the historic theater also shares that moniker. The IRS says it's heading that direction this week. (Photo courtesy Wikimedia Commons) The 2020 extended main tax... Read more →
Got enough coffee to get you through your taxes this final weekend before the July 15 due date? We're finally here. It's the last weekend before our 2019 tax returns are due on Wednesday, July 15. If you're one of the millions of filers who hasn't done your taxes yet, you've got three options: Panic, Get organized now, or Ask the IRS for more time. Your choice depends upon exactly where you are right now in the filing process. (Of course, panic could be a viable option for each of us at any time during tax season, especially if we... Read more →
Are you one of those folks who's worrying about how you'll pay your tax bill on July 15? If it's an amount that you just can't come up with or cover with a credit card, look into paying off Uncle Sam over time. The Internal Revenue Service offers a couple of ways to spread out your tax bill over several months. As with most tax transactions nowadays, you can apply for a payment plan online. But depending on the way you decide (and qualify) to pay your tax bill also involves some forms. Those documents, Form 9465 and possibly one... Read more →
Do you have a big tax bill, but are down to your last bottom dollar? That's the worry of many taxpayers in this coronavirus-affected filing season. But you do have payment options. (Photo by cottonbro via Pexels) Tax Day 2020 is rapidly approaching and a lot of taxpayers are not ready for it. It's not just their Form 1040 filing that's an issue. They are concerned about paying any tax that's also due on this year's July 15 due date that was postponed by coronavirus precautions. The audit defense company TaxAudit reports that more than a third — 37 percent... Read more →
If you want to pay your taxes in cash, you now have more retail locations from which to choose. But make your choice soon. It takes days to set up a cash tax payment. If you dawdle, you could end making a late cash payment and owing Uncle Sam penalty and interest charges, too. Do you like paying by cash? Then you'll be thrilled by the Internal Revenue Service's latest tax payment move. Ace Cash Express and Casey's General Stores across the country have joined 7-Eleven stores in offering a way for taxpayers to pay their tax bills with cash.... Read more →
Hello July, which according to this year's goofy tax calendar is April. That means instead of heading to the beach, which is closed anyway due to COVID-19, or taking a longer trip to Europe, which isn't letting U.S. residents in, again due to COVID-19, we're spending mid-summer focusing on taxes. The main one, of course, is filing 2019 returns by the new Tax Day 2020: July 15. That date also is key for several other tax tasks to take care of in July. Here are six that you need to deal with in these two weeks before the 2020 tax... Read more →
The tax agency has made it clear that the July 15 filing deadline is firm. But you still can get an extension to file, giving you until Oct. 15 to submit your Form 1040. Just ask for it by July 15. Plus, there other filing extension options (and forms on this Tax Form Tuesday!) for other tax circumstances. If you were hoping the Internal Revenue Service would push Tax Day 2020 beyond July 15, sorry. The agency says the already-delayed filing and tax paying deadline for 2019 returns is firm. When the IRS announced that decision late Monday afternoon (or... Read more →
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio via Pexels The last few months have been interesting for older individuals exploring ways to make the most of their retirement money. This demographic got some more, and mostly good, news again this week. The Internal Revenue Service has decided they now have more time to return required retirement account withdrawals they made earlier this year. Retirement savers' law changes: The tax-related retirement news started in December 2019 with the enactment of the wide-ranging retirement reform measure. The so-called SECURE Act, as the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act is called, moved the age... Read more →
There are an estimated 72 million fathers in the United States, according to the U.S. Census Bureau's latest complete data, which is for 2014. Last year, say the country's official statisticians, around 24 million of these men were in married relationships where they and their spouses were raising children younger than age 18. Another 2 million men in 2019 were single fathers. On Father's Day 2020, these men doing the critical child care job alone earn this week's By the Numbers honors. First dad's day for single pop: That last figure also is notable not just because of recognition by... Read more →
Tropical Storm Cristobal made landfall Sunday evening in Louisiana. Even though it quickly weakened to a tropical depression, it still is dumping copious amounts of rain across the Pelican State. The potential for flooding was part of the reason that the White House on Sunday, June 7, issued a federal disaster declaration for Louisiana. That decision allows the federal government to help pick up some of the state's disaster response costs. It also will give those who sustained Cristobal-related damages a chance to claim those losses on their taxes. Major disasters only need apply: Under the Tax Cuts and Jobs... Read more →
Photo by fauxels from Pexels Working from home is a major lifestyle change wrought by COVID-19 and efforts to stem its spread. That's produced good, bad, ugly and tax results. The good is no commuting. The bad is family members who think since you're home, you still can do everything else, too. The ugly is the attire most of us wear as we work from home, except for the times we put on a clean shirt for Zoom meetings. Then there's the matter of taxes. Workers' locations, new tax nexus? Since shutdown orders went into place in mid-March, businesses have... Read more →
Former Vice President Joe Biden meeting supporters in Iowa last year in the early days of his campaign. Now he's the Democratic presidential nominee. His and opponent Donald Trump's tax plans will be a part of the election discussions. (Photo by Gage Skidmore via Flickr) It's a done deal. Former Vice President Joe Biden will be the Democrat challenging Donald J. Trump this November for the White House. Biden secured enough delegates last week to formally become the Democratic nominee on the first ballot at the party's convention. That official imprimatur will come in August at the Democrats' combined in-person... Read more →
June has arrived. But the coronavirus pandemic and its effects on our lives, including our tax lives, mean that in 2020 we likely won't be able to enjoy our usual summertime living is easy lifestyles. (Photo courtesy City of Clearwater, Florida) Hello weird, scary, frustrating June 2020. We're sort of glad you're here, even though the coronavirus means many of us aren't going to be taking a summer vacation and many more of us will still be messing with 2019 taxes until mid-July. Yep, as everyone knows by now, COVID-19 precautions by the Internal Revenue Service have pushed this year's... Read more →
It's the last weekend of May. You know what that means. Hurricane season is about to officially start. Of course, Mother Nature doesn't follow the calendars of mere humans. She does what she wants when she wants. And so far this late spring, early summer of 2020, she's thrown a couple of tropical tantrums. We've already had two named tropical storms, Arthur and Bertha. Arthur threatened the North Carolina coast before heading out to sea. Bertha is now washing out as a tropical depression, dropping heavy rain over South Carolina. Plan ahead for storms: But the Atlantic hurricane season, which... Read more →
The COVID-19 crisis is global, so it's no surprise that actions by U.S. lawmakers to help taxpayers also have some decidedly global complications. And in some cases, it could work out well for U.S. taxpayers who are living and working in other countries. Worldwide earnings, U.S. taxes: Even though these folks no longer live in the United States, they still pay U.S. taxes. America's tax system for individuals is, for the most part, a worldwide one. That means that if you're an American living and working abroad, the Internal Revenue Service still gets a part of your income as U.S.... Read more →
If there's anything positive in this COVID-19 pandemic (yeah, I'm grasping), it's that folks have stocked up on necessities. That's good for those who live in potential hurricane targets. And it's especially fortuitous since, for sixth consecutive year, the Atlantic tropical storm season has started early. A tropical depression formed on Saturday, May 16, afternoon. By nightfall, it had strengthened enough to become Tropical Storm Arthur, the first named storm of 2020. The hurricane season officially runs from June 1 to Nov. 30 each year, but as we all know, Mother Nature often ignores us humans. The best we can... Read more →