Roger Russell

While the tax code definition of useful life for business assets is intended to correspond to their actual life, this isn’t always the case.

April is National Financial Literacy Month, and in recognition of the importance of the topic New York-based CPA John Vento is partnering with members of Congress from the Financial and Economic Literacy Caucus to speak at high schools and universities in the New York metropolitan area.

A decade ago, few of us had heard of identity theft. Now, most of us know someone who has been a victim. And of course, a large portion of ID theft affects tax preparers and taxpayers directly, since tax refunds are a huge target of identity thieves.

A like-kind exchange, also known as a Section 1031 exchange after the section of the Tax Code that governs it, is essentially a tax-deferral tool that postpones tax on the exchange of a property for another property of a “like kind.”

U.S. business executives are concerned about global competitiveness in light of the disparity between tax rates charged to their overseas competitors and the rates they are charged as U.S. corporations.

There weren’t a lot of surprises in the President’s Budget, set at $3.9 trillion for fiscal year 2015, which was released on March 4.

If the tax reform proposal unveiled earlier this week by Ways and Means Committee chairman Dave Camp is really “dead on arrival,” as some have suggested, why has virtually every organization with a stake in the tax process made an effort to comment on it? After all, it’s just a discussion draft.

Although audits are a fact of taxpayer life, they're not particularly pleasant, and they can take up a lot of otherwise free time. So what should preparers say to their clients about audits?

Businesses often take a risk in the development of new products and processes.

While President Obama mentioned taxes a number of times in his State of the Union speech last night, the details were scant.

While many taxpayers look forward to filing season as the time they can get “free money” in the form of their tax refund, those with more complex returns are focused as well on avoiding situations that might lead to an audit.

One of the indicators of a reviving economy—purchases and sales of small businesses—is picking up steam. According to the just released BizBuySell Insight Report, the number of business exits by small business owners was up 49 percent in 2013 compared to 2012.

There are already numerous studies attempting to peg the effect of tax rates on economic activity. There will undoubtedly be more, as politicians, economists and tax experts seek the magic formula to maximize both economic activity and government revenue.

An additional tax of 10 percent is charged on premature withdrawals from a qualified retirement plan, SIMPLE plan or IRA. The additional tax is 10 percent of amounts withdrawn that are includible in gross income. The rules and exceptions are intricate enough that they don’t need to be complicated by things like fraudulent withdrawals by a soon-to-be former spouse. But that’s what happened to Andrew Roberts, whose wife withdrew funds from his IRAs without his knowledge.

“It’s never too late for tax planning,” a wise CPA once told me. “You’ve got till the ball drops to take action, and if you do it later than that, then you’ve got an early start for next year.”

As we come down to the wire for the beginning of busy season, it’s important to review some of the things we may already know, or think we know, about reporting and filing requirements.

The increasing globalization of the economy is resulting in more small and medium-size businesses seeking to expand internationally. While companies are extending their products and services across borders, many don’t consider the compliance and planning issues that come with doing so.

Last week I moderated an Accounting Today Webinar, sponsored by SurePayroll, on the 2014 Tax Season Toolkit.

If you’re an accountant who loses money, and your spouse is a real estate agent who makes money, can you combine your business with your spouse’s in order to calculate self-employment tax?

It’s the time of year to again start thinking about expiring tax provisions. Usually the first thing that comes to mind is the alternative minimum tax, but this particular issue was “fixed” in January of this year by the fiscal cliff bill. That still leaves a number of expiring provisions, according to Robert Kerr, senior director of government relations at the National Association of Enrolled Agents.