Inflation Adjustments May Generate Tax Savings in 2012
The IRS recently announced that inflation is increasing many dollar amounts in the Tax Code for 2012. For taxpayers, the inflation adjustments may help reduce their overall tax liability in 2012. more

The Tricky Distinction Between Employees and Independent Contractors
In light of the IRS's new Voluntary Worker Classification Settlement Program (VCSP), which it announced this fall, the distinction between independent contractors and employees has become a "hot issue" for many businesses. The IRS has devoted considerable effort to rectifying worker misclassification in the past, and continues the trend with this new program. It is available to employers that have misclassified employees as independent contractors and wish to voluntarily rectify the situation before the IRS or Department of Labor initiates an examination. more

Year-end Charitable Giving Can Benefit Your 2011 Tax Bottom-line
Charitable contributions traditionally peak at the end of the year-end. While tax savings may not be your prime motivator for making a gift to charity, your donation could help your tax bottom-line for 2011. As with many tax incentives, the rules for tax-deductible charitable contributions are complex, especially the rules for substantiating your donation. Also important to keep in mind are some enhanced charitable giving incentives scheduled to expire at the end of 2011. more

How do I - Avoid Pitfalls Within a Flexible Spending Account?
Under a flexible spending arrangement (FSA), an amount is credited to an account that is used to reimburse an employee, generally, for health care or dependent care expenses. The employer must maintain the FSA. Amounts may be contributed to the account under an employee salary reduction agreement or through employer contributions. more

FAQs - When Can I Deduct Job-hunting Expenses
Job-hunting expenses are generally deductible if you are not searching for a job in a new field. This can be useful in a tough job market. It does not matter whether your job hunt is successful, or whether you are employed or unemployed when you are looking. more

November 2011 Compliance Calendar
As an individual or business, it is your responsibility to be aware of and to meet your tax filing/reporting deadlines. This calendar summarizes important tax reporting and filing data for individuals, businesses and other taxpayers for the month of November 2011. more

Tax Legislation Moves Forward - Slowly
Tax legislation took a small step forward in October with passage of three trade agreements and a related trade bill.  Although relatively minor, the tax provisions are the first to pass Congress with support from Democrats and Republicans. Against this backdrop of cooperation, however tense negotiations continue over more expansive tax proposals, such as individual and corporate tax reform. more

IRS Abandons Plans to Discontinue
Reversing course, the IRS has announced it will not discontinue use of the "high-low" method for substantiating travel expenses after all.  In July 2011, the IRS had announced it intended to discontinue the high-low method. It now reports, however, that it changed its mind after enough businesses complained about the inconvenience that abandoning this method would entail. Smaller businesses without the sophisticated software needed to track travel expenses were especially concerned that the IRS would abandon the high-low method. more

IRS Continues to Ramp Up for Enhanced Foreign Asset Reporting Mandate
The IRS has released draft Instructions to Form 8938, Statement of Specified Foreign Financial Assets, which describes who must report ownership of foreign assets above a certain threshold under the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), passed late last year by Congress. For individuals who use a calendar year to file their income tax returns, the first year to which the Form 8938 filing requirement may apply is calendar year 2011. more

IRS Watchdog - “IRS Needs to Expand Audits to Prior and Subsequent Years”
How can the IRS increase the effectiveness of its audits and collect more revenue? One method, according to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA), would be to expand audits to include prior year and subsequent year tax returns for the same taxpayer. more

Supreme Court Will Decide Tax Basis Overstatement Issue
The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to resolve the split among the federal courts of appeal over IRS rules that impose a six-year limitations period on assessments due to overstated tax basis. The usual statute of limitations on IRS claims against your tax return is three years. However, if you omit reporting a significant amount of income (more than 25 percent), the IRS has six years to find out and assess additional tax. more

PA - Governor Orders Implementation of Licensee Tax Responsibility Program
Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett has directed the state Department of Revenue (DOR) to develop and operate a licensee tax responsibility program to identify any applicants for the issuance or renewal of a state license who have not timely reported or paid taxes due and owing to the state. more

To ensure compliance with requirements imposed by the IRS, please note, any advice contained in this publication was not intended, or written, to be used, and cannot be used, for the purpose of (i) avoiding penalties under the Internal Revenue Code or (ii) promoting, marketing or recommending to another party any transaction or matter addressed herein. This publication is distributed with the understanding that the publisher and distributor are not providing legal, accounting or other professional advice and assume no liability whatsoever in conjunction with the information contained within this publication.