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Credit Reports: What You Should Know

Credit Reports: What You Should Know

by | Jan 21, 2021 |

Creditors keep their evaluation standards secret, making it difficult to know just how to improve your credit rating. Nonetheless, it is still important to understand the factors that determine creditworthiness. Periodically reviewing your credit report can also help you protect your credit rating from fraud - and you from identity theft. Credit Evaluation Factors Many factors are used in determining credit decisions. Here are some of them: Payment history/late payments Bankruptcy Charge-offs (Forgiven debt) Closed accounts and inactive accounts Recent loans Cosigning an account Credit limits Credit reports Debt/income ratios Mortgages Obtaining Your Credit Reports Credit reports are records of consumers' bill-paying habits but do not include FICO credit scores. Also referred to as...

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Identity Protection PIN Available To All Taxpayers

Identity Protection PIN Available To All Taxpayers

by | Jan 18, 2021 |

What You Need to Know Starting in January 2021, the IRS Identity Protection PIN Opt-In Program will be expanded to all taxpayers who can properly verify their identity. Previously, IP PINs were only available to identity theft victims. What is an Identity Protection PIN? An identity protection personal identification number (IP PIN) is a six-digit number assigned to eligible taxpayers to help prevent their Social Security number from being used to file fraudulent federal income tax returns. This number helps the IRS verify a taxpayer's identity and accept their tax return. Taxpayers with either a Social Security Number or Individual Tax Identification Number who can verify their identity are eligible for the program and the number is valid for one year. Each January, the taxpayer must...

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Important Tax Changes for Individuals and Businesses

Important Tax Changes for Individuals and Businesses

by | Jan 7, 2021 |

What You Need to Know About Changes to Your Taxes in 2021 Every year, it's a sure bet that there will be changes to current tax law and this year is no different. From standard deductions to health savings accounts and tax rate schedules, here's a checklist of tax changes to help you plan the year ahead. Individuals In 2021, a number of tax provisions are affected by inflation adjustments, including Health Savings Accounts, retirement contribution limits, and the foreign earned income exclusion. The tax rate structure, which ranges from 10 to 37 percent, remains similar to 2020; however, the tax-bracket thresholds increase for each filing status. Standard deductions also rise, and as a reminder, personal exemptions have been eliminated through tax year 2025. Standard Deduction In 2021,...

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Applying for Tax-Exempt Status as a Nonprofit

Applying for Tax-Exempt Status as a Nonprofit

by | Dec 31, 2020 |

What You Should Know When Starting a Nonprofit Organization If you're thinking of starting a nonprofit organization, there are a few things you should know before you get started. First, is understanding how nonprofits work under state and federal law. For example, two things you should understand is that state law governs nonprofit status. Nonprofit status is determined by an organization's articles of incorporation or trust documents while federal law governs tax-exempt status (i.e., exemption from federal income tax). Whether you're starting a charity, a social organization, or an association here are the steps you need to take before you can apply for tax-exempt status. 1. Determine the type of organization. Before a charitable organization can apply for tax-exempt status, it must...

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Small Business: Deductions for Charitable Giving

Small Business: Deductions for Charitable Giving

by | Dec 29, 2020 |

How Your Business Benefits By Giving Back Tax breaks for charitable giving aren't limited to individuals, your small business can benefit as well. If you own a small to medium-size business and are committed to giving back to the community through charitable giving, here's what you should know. 1. Verify that the Organization is a Qualified Charity Once you've identified a charity, you'll need to make sure it is a qualified charitable organization under the IRS. Qualified organizations must meet specific requirements as well as IRS criteria and are often referred to as 501(c)(3) organizations. Note that not all tax-exempt organizations are 501(c)(3) status, however. There are two ways to verify whether a charity is qualified: Use the IRS online search tool; or Ask the charity to send you...

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Tax Tips for December 2020

Tax Tips for December 2020

by | Dec 21, 2020 | ,

Click on the links below to jump to each section in this article: Retirement Contributions Limits Announced for 2021 Solar Technology Tax Credits Still Available for 2020 Relief for Drought-Stricken Farmers and Ranchers Beware of Gift Card Tax Scams Charitable Donation Deduction Could Lower Your Tax Bill   Retirement Contributions Limits Announced for 2021 Cost of living adjustments affecting dollar limitations for pension plans and other retirement-related items for 2021 are as follows: 401(k), 403(b), 457 plans, and Thrift Savings Plan. Contribution limits for employees who participate in 401(k), 403(b), most 457 plans, and the federal government's Thrift Savings Plan remains unchanged at $19,500. The catch-up contribution limit for employees aged 50 and over remains unchanged at...

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Working Remotely Could Affect Your Taxes

Working Remotely Could Affect Your Taxes

by | Dec 18, 2020 | ,

What You Need to Know When COVID-19 struck last March, employers quickly switched to a work-from-home model for their employees, many of whom began working in a state other than the one in which their office was located. While some workers have returned to their offices, many have not. If you're working remotely from a location in a different state (or country) from that of your office, then you may be wondering if you will have to pay income tax in multiple jurisdictions or whether you will need to file income tax returns in both states. Generally, states can tax income whether you live there or work there. Whether a taxpayer must include taxable income while living or working in a particular jurisdiction depends on several factors, including nexus, domicile, and residency. Many states...

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Business Tax Provisions: The Year in Review

Business Tax Provisions: The Year in Review

by | Dec 14, 2020 |

Here's what business owners need to know about tax changes for 2020. Standard Mileage Rates The standard mileage rate in 2020 is 57.5 cents per business mile driven. Health Care Tax Credit for Small Businesses Small business employers who pay at least half the premiums for single health insurance coverage for their employees may be eligible for the Small Business Health Care Tax Credit as long as they employ fewer than the equivalent of 25 full-time workers and average annual wages do not exceed $50,000 (adjusted annually for inflation). This amount is $55,200 for 2020 returns. In 2020 (as in 2014-2018), the tax credit is worth up to 50 percent of your contribution toward employees' premium costs (up to 35 percent for tax-exempt employers). Section 179 Expensing and Depreciation Under...

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Tax Tips for December 2020

Tax Tips for November 2020

by | Nov 23, 2020 | ,

Click on the links below to jump to each section in this article: Seasonal Workers and the Healthcare Law Tips for Taxpayers: Backup Withholding Tax-Related Items To Keep in Mind When Disaster Strikes Individual Retirement Arrangements: Terms To Know   Seasonal Workers and the Healthcare Law Businesses often need to hire workers on a seasonal or part-time basis. For example, some businesses may need seasonal help for holidays, harvest seasons, commercial fishing, or sporting events. Whether you are getting paid or paying someone else, questions often arise over whether these seasonal workers affect employers with regard to the Affordable Care Act (ACA). For the purposes of the Affordable Care Act the size of an employer is determined by the number of employees. As such,...

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