JohnH

Are you saying that Sec 6041 requires that the deduction not be taken if the information return is not filed? Then what purpose is served by the two questions on the Sched C, Form 1065, Form 1120, and Form 1120S?.

I think the auditor put one over on you. There is no legal basis for denying the deduction in the absence of a 1099. So unless there were other potential problems you wanted to avoid by conceding this issue, you may have given up too soon. I also don't agree with denying the deduction to a client when they haven't issued a 1099, provided they have proper documentation for the expense. ( "Proper documentation" would be canceled checks, valid receipts, etc. but would not necessarily include 1099 forms, contrary to the assertions of many tax pros who should know better) It is the job of the IRS to audit, not the person the client trusts to prepare their return accurately. This isn't even a grey area - the existence of the two 1099 questions on the tax form make that perfectly clear.

Just a reminder that this is an independent forum, not subject to the whims and policies of any software vendor. This independence comes as a result of Eric's generosity with his time and thanks to the excellent job our moderators do to keep things civil. The main responsibility the rest of us have to do our part in maintaining the civility and to occasionally hit that "Donation" button at the top to provide ongoing funding. So I'd like to suggest that right now, at the beginning of tax preparation season, is a good time to step up and do our part. I just sent my most recent donation, and I encourage others to do the same (if you haven't had the opportunity to have done so recently). This is the most valuable Forum in the entire accounting community as far as I'm concerned, and I hope others have the same attitude.

I too am committed to Drake, for exactly the same reasons as Joel & Pam. Tax software needs to be fast, reliable, and smooth. Wasting a lot of time & money worrying with special hardware, compex configurations, and all the techie stuff may apppeal to some people. But for me personally, I just want the software to do its job efficiently so I can concentrate on the real task of client tax service & advice. One should not need a NASA-grade computer sysem to perform the basic math functions needed for a tax program. And it should never be necesary to wait for the program to perform the simple tasks involved in tax preparation.

Yes, after giving it some thought, I came back to delete it and found your post. I agree.

why dont you just ask for their email address when you get their phone number and other contact info? You can also ask if they use email or texting as a primary means of communication. I find that many of the younger clients dont use email very much - they almost exclusively text.

I encourage them to drop off or mail their info to me. I strongly urge them to email info to me rather than call. I do everything possible to keep my clients out of my office so I can get some productive work done. But there are a few who simply must sit down and hand me their info. In that case we make appointments. But if they want an appoinntment at a time that isn't convenient for me, I just tell them it isn't convenient. i don't really care when they go to the dentist.

You lost your crystal ball? That's unforgivable. Possibly a Circular 230 violation.

People in the south don't think about how much our tires are worn because the steel rims on the horse-drawn wagons we all drive never wear out. Wen we need extra traction in the muddy streets, we just throw a few bales of hay and some jugs of moonshine in the back of the wagon and wrap some barbed wire around our bare feet. We don't know anything about freezing temperatures because we all lie around snoozing in the hot sun all day.

I have four monitors, which are connected to three computers. I'm going to add a fourth monitor soon, but haven't decided whether to run it from the computer which presently has two monitors or whether to add it to one of the single-monitor setups. I wouldn't be able to function efficiently with less than 3 active monitors, and this is without having a monitor for clients to view.

I file extensions on everything coming in after mid-March. Then I loop back and get some of them finished anyhow. The extension did no harm, and the client is better trained for the next year

Joel: I view extensions as my friend. They make the deadline date just another routine day in my office. I recommend that approach highly.

Yep, I'm going out of the country for a couple of weeks and didn't want to have to deal with extensions when I get back. I'll only have a few left to prepare when I return, thanks to Drake's efficiency. It will be difficult enough dealing with personal returns those first few weeks - no sense having the corp extensions hanging over my head and occupying a part of my brain. There's little enough room up there as it is. I will add that filing extensions is not something I do in a reactive mode. Extensions are a part of my operating plan, so I generally get them done fairly early anyhow (personal and corporate). If we file the extension and the client happens to get everything to me on time, there's no harm done if we decide to go ahead and file by the due date. What I detest is filing extensions in a last-minute panic - that's where most of the errors occur and it isn't good for the blood pressure.

Last year I decided not to do the conversion when I began using Drake. I just entered everything fresh for all personal and business clients. So today was my first experience doing corporate extensions using an established data base. What a breeze! I would just enter the Fed ID number, answer a question, open the client, and away I went. Fed extensions required 3 entries. NC extensions required 4 or 5. Using the "Selector Box" made navigation extremely simple. Then a click on "view" and I printed Fed & State after a couple of more keystrokes. While It's printing, I'm opening the next client. This program is fast, as we have pointed out many times before. I also saw a way to automate the process with a couple of macros - might just do that next year. So in the space of about 2 hours, I have about 24 extensions completed. There are a few stragglers, but the task is basically done. Don't know of a time in the past when it was ever so easy or fast.

I'd send the contractor a 1099-Misc and enter "REFUSED" in the Federal ID number/Soc Sec field. Also include a W-9. If they haven't filled out the W-9 by the end of Feb, may as well send the IRS their copy with the Fed ID/SocSec field blank. The client doesn't have much to lose in this situation - at least they've demonstrated they tried to comply. I think the penalty can be up to $100, but I've never heard of it being imposed, especially for a small number of 1099-Misc forms. Here's some guidance: http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/International-Taxpayers/Filing-Forms-W-2-and-1042-S-Without-Payee-TIN's

If it's clear they are a price shopper, you could always have a little fun with them. YOU: "I can see that this conversation is going in the direction that I must charge for answers to questions. The answer to the first question is free, but there's a charge for answers to every question afterward". CALLER: "How much do you charge per question?" YOU: "$100 each. What's your second question?"

If I must use a symbol to indicate sarcasm, hasn't the sarcasm failed?

I think "it depends" is a great answer. If they keep insisting on a number, give them one so high they might need Depends.

If they otherwise qualify, I think they have until Apr 15, 2014 to get it done. I suppose the IRA would need to be funded far enough in advance (a few days) in order to get all the conversion paperwork done.

Here;'s another resource regarding gambling diaries. I first found this site after reading a post on this forum, I think. I've gotten their diaries for my clients for several years now. http://www.ladyluckdiary.com

Is it even possible for an "OT" post to get hijacked?

Based on what I've seen regarding tips, I don't think I should eat at a restaurant where a client works. When they tell me they earned no tips, I'd have to tell them I can't prepare their return.

An English speaker knows they are properly trilling their "rr"s when their tongue is numb for a few seconds after pronoucing the word.

I thinks this illustrates why translation involves much more than simply googling a word in a foreign language and finding what it "means". Meaning for many words and phrases is only derived by knowing the context. For example, if we say in English that a persons is a "hard case", someone googling the words outside the context might conclude they are a steel box. In this case, it's pretty clear Pacun isn't saying she is a claw or a fish. So I'm inclined to think "garra" is a Spanish or Portugese word, typically used as a figure of speech, and is a complimentary term describing someone who is bold, courageous, or strong. Sooner ,or later someone knowledgable about the word is going to clear this up. The nuances of translation are generally more interesting that the simple word meanings.

I think there is an informal usage of "garra" which is close to "bite" and implies "sharpness" or "edginess" or even "courage". It would line up with the English concept from which we get "biting commentary", etc. Maybe Pacun will enlighten us with an explanation of the colloquialism and in which part of the Spanish-speaking or Portugese-speaking world it is generally used. I had never heard it before. BTW, don't try to pronounce it unless you're ready to trill that "rr" forcefully.