Gail in Virginia

Virginia starts with federal AGI, and makes any adjustments for items that they don't conform to. I am not aware of any wage adjustments that VA is currently not conforming with, so I don't think that I would be overly concerned with the W2 not matching federal and state amounts. ON the other hand, I would want to know what the amount is that caused the discrepancy. Usually health insurance reduces taxable income as well as ss/medicare. I see this pattern more ofter with simple plans, or 401(fkk), etc. Usually that is indicated on the W2 in box 12 but not always. Out local school system does not put the retirement contributions employees make in box 12, but they do deduct them from taxable wages.

I don't use ATX so I don't get that message. ProSeries seems to attach the 760C as a form, and not require it to be a PDF.

Sometimes with mutual funds the loads (either front or back) are such that you don't make any money if you cash out quickly, which it sounds like he did. But a good reminder to look out for that!

I think I am glad that Cathy asked so Elrod would post this picture! Nice finish to the day!

Some of my customers literally do no have a computer, and therefore have no email address. Some don't have cell phones either. I don't think that I have any that don't at least have a home telephone, but it is possible to survive without a screen. Obviously, if they don't have email i can't put it on there and I don't see how they can require people to have an email address.

I think that we all agree this is most likely an employee/employer situation, but that was not the question in the OP. At least, not as I read it. I think the question is whether or not these reps can take the QBI deduction since they are being giving a 1099 and treated as self employed. And while I would hesitate to prepare the return for the "employer" in this instance because I don't think he/she is obeying the law regarding employment taxes, etc., I would prepare a return for the people getting the 1099's and I would most likely take the QBI unless there is some other factor that would preclude it (income too high, SSTB, something else) because those employees do not really get to choose their status.

Do the "sales reps" work for other companies as well doing similar work? Then I would agree that they are in business. If they have an exclusive contract with the company in state A, they sound an awful lot like employees and should be getting a W2. What kind of expenses do they have in performing this work? IF they are accepting the 1099 MISC and filing a schedule C, I don't see why they would not qualify for QBI but I am not sure what the result would be if they were audited and IRS decided to reclassify them as employees.

I sent you a pm with what I use. Your E&O insurance carrier might have one that they prefer that you use. Or if you are a member of a state professional society, or a national one, they might have sample documents that you can use. I am not a lawyer, and I did not hire a lawyer to draft the form that I use, but instead adapted one that was in use by a medical client of mine.

Is this a 2019 return? I thought that Domestic Production Deduction was completely gone this year. But maybe i missed it in the list of extenders. Box 6 does to line 23 on form 8903. I believe that box 3 and box 7 in this case offset each other and don't need to be reported. But I am not certain of that. All this is based on the assumption you are preparing a farm return.

Maybe they should let the preparer's age also factor in to determine if the SR form is available.

I haven't had that happen either. This late, I hope it doesn't!

When I click the link, the form that comes up is not fillable but in the top right corner is a button to open in another viewer. If I click that, and open in Acrobat DC (the free version) the form becomes fillable. I am using Firefox for my browser. I don't know if that helps.

Usually the clients I fire are the ones that make me nervous. I am not going to lose my license because some idiot is trying to save a few dollars on his taxes. But most of the time I can spot those on the first visit and they never become clients.

I can understand people not wanting to trash a perfectly usable computer and operating system. For most of us, Windows XP worked fine and we did not see a reason to change other than Microsoft operates from a profit motive and can't make money if they don't sell products. And we feel the same way about Windows 7. But the reality is that we have to keep up with the security features required and if the only way to do that is to shell out a few hundred dollars for new computers, then that is what we have to do. Nobody can make us like, but we can be forced into it. I hate all the computers that wind up in landfills but by the time that I am personally certain the information on my hard drives and CPUs s not retrievable by an unscrupulous yet brilliant technician, the computer is not longer a computer - it is a hunk of expensive metals. And as far as I can tell, it will continue that way for the foreseeable future.

I have one client that requires a new W4 EVERY January- it seems to be the only way we get current addresses for his employees.

I did not venture an opinion because I don't really have one. We don't have very many younger clients, but then we don't have very many clients with simple,straight-forward returns either. And it seems like every year I lose a few clients, and I gain a few clients so that we stay in about the same place. I also send a few away every year, but that is another topic. That said, I am also getting older and starting to think about getting out of the business myself. I don't mind being responsible for putting the information on the return that the client provides me, and asking reasonable questions, but I am tired of being an unpaid auditor for the IRS. Too mush stick and not enough carrot these days, IMHO. The only thing that I am really sure of is that change will continue. When I first started, it was with paper and pencil. Then computers came in,, followed by the competition from folks who offered refund anticipation loans.

I think buckshot is no longer made of lead, but instead tungsten or plastic is more common. Not sure, but I think this is to prevent kids who eat paint from growing up to eat buckshot. Or maybe the deer were getting dumber from being shot full of lead.

Merry Christmas, and best wishes for the upcoming tax season. God Bless Us, everyone!

I would recommend that they read the plan document thoroughly and discuss this with the plan administrator who should know the ins and outs of the document and the law regarding 401(k) plans. Oh wait, against your advice they ARE the plan administrator. Gee, wonder what we should do now?

A WAG is a Wild A$$ Guess. A SWAG is a Scientific Wild A$$ Guess.

For $12 an hour, I work really slowly......

Same as the answer to every tax question. It depends. Here in rural VA, the fast food places start people at around $8 to $8.50 per hour. So if I hire an inexperienced teenager to make copies and answer the phone, file, etc. I am looking at that as my base pay. If I hire someone that I am training to do bookkeeping and tax preparation, I would probably start around $10 per hour. If it is someone who knows how to do taxes, and will require a minimum amount of supervision and training in my procedures, I would probably start at $12 to $15 per hour, depending on experience and education. And also depending on whether they were working part time because they are picky about the hours or because I am. If it is someone good, and I want to keep them, I would pay more than if they are just adequate and can be replaced easily.

But if your farm is a hobby and not a for-profit enterprise, then it would be personal property purchases, not business equipment.

In the state of Virginia, most farm expenses are not subject to sales tax so here the answer would be no. But if your state taxes farm equipment, cattle feed, etc. then I don't see why not.