Catherine

It was a perfect-weather day. Everyone had a wonderful time. I danced myself into one blister, two hot-spots, and two very sore feet, and it was great. Gwen & Jay's dance was fabulous, and Gwen's dance with my husband went really well, too. As to the hair color - it gets better. All FOUR of the bride's attendants had blue in their hair. Fiona (my older daughter) dyed her hair to match her dress. With the extra dye, she put a "racing stripe" of blue in her friend Jess' hair (friends with both Gwen & Fiona since they were little), 'cuz Jess thought that was a cool idea. Lindsey always has a blue stripe in her hair. So Samantha, when she showed up for the rehearsal, felt left out - and Fiona took her off to buy buy hair extensions! They all matched their dresses. And three of the four had blue shoes (Sam's were clear). Thanks for all the good wishes; I will pass them along! I had to share with my family here. No pix of Doug & I yet; the one I posted I took. I'm sure to get one at some point and will post it then - probably as a response to this discussion thread.

Here is a photo from Gwen's wedding yesterday.

I thought we always had to report W2s by Jan 31st! Those verification codes were a royal PITA and I still missed a quarter of them. Good riddance!

This won't answer your specific question, and presupposes the client will both listen to you and act in time. You can have people take out the excess for the two years from the later year's contribution, and then re-characterize (letter to the custodian should do it) the excess from the earlier year to be a regular, non-excess contribution for the later year. Example: $50 overcontib for 2017 and $75 overcontrib for 2018. Take $125 out of 2018, letter to custodian saying $50 of contrib for 2017 was really for 2018. Poof! It's done.

Oh they might! We've seen questions from the IRS about claiming losses when we don't have the basis worksheet (only when someone else is doing the 1120-S). They want to know there is basis before they allow.

How about TEA!

Judy's right, as usual. Why do I even bother to respond?

Use $1,000 of costs towards credit, which is 50% of the costs. That leaves $1,000 of costs to use for deduction. You can also see if just using the deduction works better. Sometimes it's funny that way, and does give the client a better outcome. There may even be a sweet spot where $1,500 deduction and $500 towards credit ($250 credit) is best.

Judy's info is, as always, correct. Reduce the deduction by whatever was used to get the credit. In that regard, it's like education credits. You can take a deduction or a credit, but not both with the same funds. You can take both if you use different funds. In this case, by reducing the deduction amount by that $1,000 used towards the credit.

If he meets the qualifications (small enough employer), then there is an up to 50% credit on the fee for the first three years. Info here: Retirement plan startup cost credit - IRS

Thank you SO much!

Anyone here knowledgeable about sales tax nexus rules in New York state? Client with an online business is expanding and has concerns. I am clueless in this area. Please either respond here or send me a private message. Thanks!

Call them and ask?

Also helped by *amazing* tech support that gets you the answer to any question you have, fast.

The input in Drake is based more on the forms that we get from clients, than on the tax form format. So you'll get a W2 screen that looks like the W2s we get. Ditto for 1099-MISCs and 1098s, interest and dividends, can even consolidated forms. There is a Drake Tax Basics free webinar next week (after t he entities deadline) where they will go into all that - why don't you take a peek then? Drake Tax Basics (Webcast) - September 17, 2019 - 1:00 PM - 5:00 PM Eastern. This 4-hour online webcast introduces the basics of Drake Tax. Learn to install and set up Drake Tax, navigate data entry, prepare and e-file tax returns, use tools such as the Tax Planner, Client Status Manager, Update Manager, and more. Chat with Drake reps and earn up to 4 hours of CPE for attending. Click here to register. (the "here" is this link: https://training.drakesoftware.com/classroom-training/trainingclasses/?type=1&format=2 )

Hawaii is a common state to establish domicile for expats. Florida is another one. Or any state with no income tax, really.

Don't know about now, but back when I used them they would do that if you provided them with available times. I did not use that service, though, 'cuz at the time my available hours were too irregular.

We used to use Ruby Receptionists, back before we hired an assistant. They were great! They answer however YOU say, and work closely with you to make it all seamless. They even have ways to figure if this is a high-priority call (rules you set with them, and they asked some good questions) and can then transfer TO you if need be. Ruby (all the ladies are "Ruby") calls you and gives the basics, and up to you to decide if this is a real emergency to take. The pricing at that time was very reasonable, and we signed up for three months at a time, every year for a couple of years. Ruby Receptionists

But then most states will give at least some credit for tax paid - on the same income - to another state. Who gets precedence is a whole 'nother can of worms!

Depends on the state. Best way is to establish domicile in a no-income-tax state.

What I have generally found is that excluding foreign income from US income (Form 2555) is generally, but not always, better than foreign tax credits (Form 1116) and back when there was no limitation on other income taxes, Sch A deduction of the foreign tax paid. Tax treaties need to be read, and the older ones are generally more straightforward (before the lawyers turned them into gobbledygook written in legalese). The forms are all relatively straightforward, but the US return does need to be calculated at least in the first two ways, in case you've run in to the oddball case (and they are never obvious) where 1116 works better than 2555.

Sneakers from the boys' department. They are wider, sturdier, and cheaper! And my fall jacket is a kids' large (the XL was too big), as it fit far better than the women's small. But the young girls' department clothes don't work; not enough room for the hips! Hey, if I can get some better quality clothes and shoes for less money in the kids' department, that's a nice win for me. And my legs are long enough to reach the ground, so that part is all set, too.

Very true. However, I got a different company's card to replace BoA - and having too many cards also affects your score! I do not carry balances, and I don't actually charge all that much, so my "percent of credit used" is pretty low. Well, maybe Christmas is an exception. Some of the purchases for Gwen's wedding next month, too, for that matter. After the wedding I'll post some pictures! And if any like gory pictures, I can post during-and-after pictures of the ripping apart and re-building of my dress - required since it was perfect but did not come in a petite. It was 7" too long, plus the shoulders were too long as well. Gorgeous dress, and I have some dramatic photos of it in several pieces out on a sewing table.

To elaborate: the distribution is NEVER COUNTED as taxable income to him, so it's also NOT a charitable deduction for him. To get a charitable deduction (in addition to having to itemize deductions) he would have to claim the distribution as his own income - and he'd have to get the money personally. Cleaner in many ways to send it directly to the charity. No Sch A for him, no $3K in income to claim. But yes, he can give more than his RMD. The only effect it has on future RMDs is the lower end-of-year balance to calculate it from.

I get this one, sometimes.