Practical perspectives for contemporary legal challenges.
As it has done in past years, the IRS has extended the Affordable Care Act (“ACA”) deadline for health plan sponsors to furnish individuals IRS Forms 1095-B and 1095-C by 30 days (IRS Notice 2019-63). Under the extension, the deadline for providing individuals Forms 1095-B and 1095-C is March 2, 2020 instead of January 31, …
Continue reading “Early Holiday Gift for Employers – IRS Extends 2019 ACA Reporting Deadline”
With the gift/estate tax exemption of $11,580,000 (in 2020) set to expire or “sunset” on December 31, 2025, many advisors have encouraged high net worth clients to make large taxable gifts and “use up” their gift tax exemption during lifetime and shelter future income and appreciation in the gifted assets from estate tax at death. …
Continue reading “Final Regulations Confirm No Clawback on Gifting”
The IRS has announced the annual limits that will apply to qualified retirement plans in 2020. The key 2020 limits, as compared to the 2019 limits, are: For 401(k) plans, the maximum deferral limit increases by $500 to $19,500 for a participant who is under age 50. A participant who is age 50 or older …
Continue reading “IRS Announces 2020 Annual Adjustments for Qualified Retirement Plan Limits”
The tax code includes a number of provisions that benefit small businesses and small business owners. One of these provisions is contained in Section 1202 which provides for an exclusion of up to 100% of the gain realized on the sale of qualified small business stock (“QSB Stock”). The gain exclusion can provide significant tax …
Continue reading “Section 1202 – Qualified Small Business Stock”
Preparing an estate plan can be a lot of work, both for the planner but especially for the client. And when that process is over, and the plan has been properly put in place through effective trust funding and asset titling, it is common for the client to not think about the plan again for …
Continue reading “When You Should Consider Updating Your Estate Plan”
The 2017 Tax Act: The act significantly changes itemized deduction planning, making it very simple for some and more daunting for others. Most know the overall rules by now. But it doesn’t hurt to be reminded. Two biggest changes: 1. Much higher standard deduction (adjusted for inflation annually). For 2019: $24,400 for married couples filing jointly (plus …
Continue reading “Year-End Income Tax Planning – Itemized Deduction Planning: “Bunching””
Lifetime charitable giving, properly planned, may afford income tax savings. Under current federal income tax law, the income tax charitable deduction is available to taxpayers who itemize deductions rather than take the standard deduction. The standard deduction is $24,400 for a married couple, filing jointly in 2019 and half that amount for a single individual. …
ATTENTION TO DETAIL! You would think that this space need not be taken up with a reminder of the obvious importance of beneficiary designations for life insurance policies and retirement accounts (qualified and non-qualified). But those of us who practice in the trusts and estates area are frequently reminded, through painful experiences with clients, that …
Many charities feared that the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) would have an adverse impact on charitable giving during 2018 and after. The significant increase to the standard deduction available to most individuals means that more taxpayers do not itemize their deductions, including charitable contributions. In effect, “losing” the charitable tax deduction and …
While partnership vehicles (particularly multi-member LLCs) are ordinarily the flow-through entity of choice, many businesses – especially long-standing closely-held businesses and healthcare businesses – opt for S corporations status. S corporations can present tax efficiency challenges, particularly on the exit of a business. Purchasers rarely desire to acquire an historic corporation (which may end up …
Continue reading “F Drops: It is Not a Profane Concept for S Corporations!”