Lee B

If any of your currently installed programs made changes to the Windows Registry during the original installation, you may have to uninstall those programs and then reinstall after the OS upgrade.

Yes, I have filed the 1094 C & the 1095 C every year. My client being a restaurant has turnover and a number of employees don't work enough hours to qualify. Therefore I report who is a full time employee and who isn't on a month by month basis. The number of full time employees in excess of 30 each month determines the penalty.

I only see a draft version dated November 25th ?

The same client that I posted about 13 months ago just received a proposed penalty for 2017. Again it was triggered by an employee receiving a Premium Tax Credit from the Marketplace for 4 months. This time the penalty was calculated correctly. Since they have not received a proposed penalty for 2016, my tentative assumption is that none of their employees received a PTC during 2016.

!. When did he file his SS-4 and obtain an EIN ? 2. What is the date on the IRS EIN letter and is the IRS expecting a tax return for 2017 ?

Copied from IRS eNews: 7. Technical guidance – Transition relief related to health coverage reporting Notice 2019-63 extends the due dates for certain 2019 information reporting requirements (.pdf) for insurers, self-insuring employers, and certain other providers of minimum essential coverage under section 6055 and for applicable large employers under section 6056. Specifically, this notice extends the due date from January 31, 2020 to March 2, 2020 for furnishing to individuals the 2019: Form 1095-B, Health Coverage Form 1095-C, Employer-Provided Health Insurance Offer and Coverage This notice provides that the Service will not impose a penalty against reporting entities for failing to furnish a Form 1095-B to responsible individuals if certain conditions are met. It also extends transitional good-faith relief from section 6721 and 6722 penalties to the 2019 information reporting requirements under sections 6055 and 605.

The Omnibus Spending Bill passed the Senate and has been forwarded to the president. Copied from the the Journal of Accountancy: The federal government spending bill passed by Congress on Thursday repeals three health care taxes that were originally enacted as part of 2010 health care reform legislation, makes many changes to retirement plan rules, extends several expired tax provisions, provides disaster tax relief, and repeals the provision that taxed exempt organizations when they provided parking to their employees. The Further Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2020, H.R. 1865, passed the House of Representatives on Tuesday by a vote of 297–120 and the Senate on Thursday by a vote of 71–23. It now goes to President Donald Trump for his signature. Health care taxes The three repealed health care taxes are the Sec. 4980I excise tax on certain high-cost employer health plans, popularly called the Cadillac tax; the Sec. 4191 medical device excise tax; and the annual fee on health insurance providers contained in Section 9010 of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, P.L. 111-148. All three taxes had previously been postponed or suspended, most recently by P.L. 115-120 (a fiscal year 2018 federal appropriations continuing resolution). The Sec. 4980I Cadillac tax had been delayed until 2022. The 2.3% medical device excise tax was suspended through Dec. 31, 2019. And the health insurance fee was suspended for 2019. The three taxes, which were enacted to fund the health care reform known as Obamacare, have now been repealed. Retirement plan changes The bill also incorporates the text of the Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement (SECURE) Act of 2019, which passed the House of Representatives in May but was never voted on by the Senate. The bill is designed to encourage retirement savings in various ways and to simplify administrative requirements in order to make it easier for employers to offer retirement plans. The bill introduces many other changes. Among them, the bill: Increases the age after which required minimum distributions from certain retirement accounts must begin to 72 (from 70½); Modifies requirements for multiple-employer plans to make it easier for small businesses to offer such plans to their employees by allowing otherwise completely unrelated employers to join in the same plan; Reduces Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation premiums for certain multiple-employer defined benefit plans of cooperatives and charities; Allows penalty-free distributions from qualified retirement plans and IRAs for births and adoptions; Makes it easier for long-term, part-time employees to participate in elective deferrals; Allows consolidated filings of Forms 5500, Annual Return/Report of Employee Benefit Plan, for similar plans; Allows certain home health care workers to contribute to a defined contribution plan or IRA; and Requires beneficiaries of IRAs and qualified plans to withdraw all money from inherited accounts within 10 years. The bill repeals the maximum age for IRA contributions (currently 70½). It also amends Sec. 408 to reduce the amount of deductible charitable IRA contributions allowed to taxpayers over 70½ by the aggregate IRA contribution deductions allowed to them after they turn 70½. The bill allows certain expenses associated with registered apprenticeship programs to count as qualified higher education expenses for purposes of Sec. 529. The Sec. 6651 failure-to-file penalty is increased to $435. The new kiddie tax in Sec. 1(j)(4), which was introduced by the law known as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), P.L. 115-97, is repealed. Extenders The bill also extends many expired tax provisions. Among those extended through 2020 are: Sec. 108(a)(1)(E), which excludes from gross income the discharge of qualified principal residence indebtedness income; The Sec. 163(h)(3) treatment of mortgage insurance premiums as qualified residence interest, which permits a taxpayer whose income is below certain thresholds to deduct the cost of premiums on mortgage insurance purchased in connection with acquisition indebtedness on the taxpayer’s principal residence; The 7.5% (instead of 10%) adjusted-gross-income floor for medical expense deductions in Sec. 213(f); and Sec. 222, which provides an above-the-line deduction for qualified tuition and related expenses. Also extended were various incentives for employment and economic growth and for energy production and efficiency. A number of credits that were scheduled to expire at the end of 2019 were extended through 2020. These include the Sec. 45D new markets tax credit, the Sec. 45S employer credit for paid family and medical leave, the Sec. 51 work opportunity credit, and the Sec. 35 credit for health insurance costs of eligible individuals. Disaster tax relief The bill also provides tax relief for victims of various disasters occurring in 2018, 2019, and up to 30 days after enactment of the bill. Eligible taxpayers can make tax-favored withdrawals from retirement plans. The bill also enacts an employee retention credit for eligible employers equal to 40% of qualified wages, which are wages paid to an employee during the time the employer’s business is not operating due to a natural disaster (up to 150 days after the disaster). The bill also implements special rules for disaster-related personal casualty losses and for determining earned income for purposes of the Sec. 32 earned income tax credit. The bill also introduces automatic 60-day filing extensions for certain taxpayers affected by federally declared disasters. Parking as UBTI Finally, the bill repeals Sec. 512(a)(7), which was enacted by the TCJA and which required tax-exempt employers that provide qualified transportation fringe benefits or parking to employees to pay unrelated business income tax on the amount by which a deduction is not allowable under Sec. 274.

I agree, recently I have been finding an increasing number of important emails in my Spam folder. Now I have to check my spam folder almost every day

No, I was just referring to the directly related ACA tax on Cadillac Health Plans and the tax on Medical Equipment Manufacturers

Supposedly the Tuition & Fees deduction and the Mortgage Insurance Premium deduction was also included retroactive to January 1st, 2018.

At the last minute before the House passed the Omnibus Spending Bill, several sparkling ornaments appeared over the Potomac: Special Interest Tax Extenders retroactively reappeared Remaining ACA related taxes repealed Retirement Plans and IRAs set free Happy New Year to Ethanol Producers, NASCAR, Thoroughbred Racing, Cadillac Heath Plans, Medical Equipment Makers, Retirees with IRAs and a lump of coal for Renewable Energy Credits & etc. All I want for Christmas is . . . . . . . . . . . .

Just curious, weren't you saying earlier this year that your firm was still buying new computers with Windows 8.1 as the OS ?

Doesn't the IRS require a combined 941 in this situation ?

There are some significant legal practice liability issues involved in the situation you are describing. Unless this was an area where I had expertise, I would decline to get involved.

!. Standard limits are $3,500 per person 2. Over 55 additional contribution of $ 1,000 per person 3. Business contributions are included in the limitations

It might be a "Trojan" from the Ukraine ? However my WAG is that the outdated reference books that ATX used to send to it's users has been replaced with outdated reference materials in "ebook" form.

I was disappointed, I've been waiting for 2 years now for the "Postcard" return ?

Copied from Accounting Today: The Internal Revenue Service issued a notice Monday delaying a requirement for reporting partners’ share of partnership capital. Notice 2019-66 provides that the requirement to report partners’ shares of partnership capital on the tax basis method will not be effective for 2019 (for partnership taxable years beginning in calendar 2019) but will be effective starting in 2020 (for partnership taxable years that start on or after Jan. 1, 2020). For this year, partnerships and other persons must report partner capital accounts consistent with the reporting requirements in the 2018 forms and instructions, including the requirement to report negative tax basis capital accounts on a partner-by-partner basis. The notice also clarifies the 2019 requirement for partnerships and other persons to report a partner’s share of net unrecognized Section 704(c) gain or loss by defining this term for purposes of the reporting requirement. In addition, the notice exempts publicly traded partnerships from the requirement to report their partners’ shares of net unrecognized Section 704(c) gain or loss until further notice

Wow, minimum wage in my area of Oregon will $ 12.00 per Hour July 1st. The person that you would pay $12 to $ 15 per hour, I would have to pay $ 20 to $25 per hour and I would have difficulty finding someone !

Copied from the CPA Journal: The prices listed below are based on information found on the providers’ and/or reviewers’ websites in October 2019. They have not been independently reviewed or verified, and are provided only as a point of comparison for readers of the Annual Tax Software Survey. Tax Preparation Software Prices ATX Individual (ATX 1040 Package): $669; includes two concurrent user licenses, all federal 1040 forms, up to three individual 1040 states, 72 e-file returns, free software conversions, and knowledge base and blog access ATX pay per return: $529 ($229/user annual subscription, $300 nonrefundable deposit); includes individual returns, business returns, and payroll returns Entities: MAX Package: $1,579; includes three concurrent user licenses; all federal individual forms; all state individual forms; all business federal, state, and specialty forms; free unlimited e-file returns; payroll compliance reporting; sales and use tax forms; free software conversions; and the CCH U.S. Master Tax Guide Total Tax Office Package: $1,579; includes five concurrent user licenses; all federal individual forms; all state individual forms; all business federal, state, and specialty forms; free unlimited e-file returns; payroll compliance reporting; sales and use tax forms; PaperlessPLUS; free software conversions; the CCH U.S. Master Tax Guide; Practical Tax Expert Pro; CCH A-Line-D; practice aids and productivity tools; and online newsletters ATX Advantage Package: $3,949; includes six concurrent user licenses; all federal individual forms; all state individual forms; all business federal, state, and specialty forms; enhanced asset management capabilities; advanced tax calculations and compliance capabilities; free unlimited e-file returns; payroll compliance reporting; sales and use tax forms; PaperlessPLUS; product offers and discounts; free software conversions; CCH U.S. Master Tax Guide; Practical Tax Expert Pro; CCH A-Line-D; practice aids and productivity tools; and online newsletters CCH AXCESS TAX Individual: no pricing information available; contact Wolters Kluwer Entities: no pricing information available; contact Wolters Kluwer CCH PROSYSTEM FX Individual: no pricing information available; contact Wolters Kluwer Entities: no pricing information available; contact Wolters Kluwer DRAKE SOFTWARE Individual: Per-return: $330 for 15 returns, $22 for additional returns Unlimited returns: $1,595; early renewal discount available Entities: Per-return: $330 for 15 returns, $22 for additional returns Unlimited returns: $1,595; early renewal discount available GOSYSTEM TAX RS Individual: No pricing information available; contact Thomson Reuters Entities: No pricing information available; contact Thomson Reuters INTUIT PROSERIES ProSeries Basic Basic 20: $429 per year, 1 state Basic 50: $749 per year, 2 states Basic Unlimited: $1,109, 4 states ProSeries Professional Pay-per-return license: $329 per-year access to all federal and state forms, $41 per return 1040 Complete: $1,899, unlimited 1040 returns for all states INTUIT PROCONNECT TAX ONLINE Individual: Pricing per return; different pricing based on number of returns; most popular are $479.70 for 10 1040s and $2,035 for 30 individual 1040s and 10 business 1041s Business: Pricing per return; different pricing based on number of returns LACERTE TAX Individual: Lacerte Unlimited and Lacerte 200: pricing based on customized solution. Pay-per-return license: $389, plus $76 per return (federal plus one state) TAXACT Individual: 1040 Bundle: $675 for unlimited 1040 federal and state returns, unlimited e-file $745 for enterprise bundle, which allows for multiple users Entity: Complete bundle: $1,200 for unlimited individual and entity state and federal returns Complete enterprise bundle: $1,550 (allows for multiple users) TAXSLAYER PRO Classic version: $1,095 Web (cloud-based) version: $1,395 TAXWISE Pay-per-return: $586 (individual and entity returns; no indication of cost per return) ProFiling: $1,163 (individual returns only) Power: $2,656 (individual and entity returns) ULTRA TAX CS Contact Thomson Reuters for pricing for unlimited licenses and per return product

Just received a phone call from one spouse who arrived home from being out of town to find the other spouse in the process of moving out of their home and selling personal belongings. The couple has been married over 30 years and have been my clients for over 20 years. I have been involved during that time doing monthly writeup, payroll recordkeeping, business and personal tax return preparation. Given the personalities involved, I can envision dueling attorneys. I also anticipate being asked to give depositions by both attorneys. There is no way, I would try to represent both. In fact, I have serious misgivings about whether I should represent either one, given the probability of this turning very ugly. I would appreciate any advice from those of you who have been involved in a divorce involving joint ownership of a business, which very well will be an ugly situation. Thanks in advance,

Based on several articles that I have read, a wireless "mesh" network might be a good approach for you. They supposedly cost in the $ 300 to $ 500 range.

I always have 2 printers, both hard wired, not wireless. I do have WI Fi in my office but only for my smart phone due to weak cell signal strength.

IRS e-File Shutdown for Business Returns - December 26 The IRS has announced the Business e-file system will be taken offline to perform annual system maintenance in preparation for the 2019 filing season. You will be able to transmit returns to Drake up until 11:59 a.m. ET on Thursday, December 26, 2019. We strongly suggest you attempt your final transmissions at least one hour before the cutoff time.

My fee increases last year were fairly stiff, so this year I will either leave fees unchanged or only small increases.