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Social Security tax problems
Beware the Tax Torpedo – Large retirement account balances can cause Social Security tax problems A big surprise can occur when you see your Social Security Retirement Benefits being subject to income tax. This “tax torpedo” is often triggered by Retirement Account distributions. Are you prepared for this?
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Keeping the Tax Underpayment Penalty at Bay
Keeping the Tax Underpayment Penalty at Bay If you underpay your Federal Tax obligation throughout the year you could be in for a tax penalty when you file next year’s tax return. Outlined here are steps to take to avoid this underpayment penalty. With the 2013 tax year behind you, now is the time to plan appropriately to make sufficient estimated tax payments. An underpayment of estimated tax may apply if you still owe $1,000 or more in additional tax after accounting for withholdings and estimated payments made throughout the year. Remember, to avoid underpayment penalties you are required to
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Seven Payroll Tips for Small Business Owners
Having a staff on payroll can seem very commonplace as well as essential to running a small business, but many owners get in trouble with Uncle Sam because they don’t understand the complexity of payroll tax law. On the flipside, by not fully understanding the rules, it’s also common for business owners to overlook ways to manipulate employee pay to save money. With that said, here are a few tips for business owners to keep their payroll on track and in compliance with the IRS: 1. Make sure that you properly classify your workers. Just because a worker
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Five Big Tax Mistakes – Don’t let them happen to you
Every year thousands of taxpayers go through a ”gotcha” with the IRS. A large, unexpected tax bill. Here are five common causes of tax surprises from lost refunds to retirement plan mistakes. Every year taxpayers are hit with tax surprises that could be avoided if they just knew the rules. Here are five big ones that are easy to avoid with some simple planning. Mistake #1. Withholding too little. This results in a tax surprise when filing your income tax. Don’t be too hard on yourself if this happens to you. Social Security withholdings have changed each year and new
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Gone Phishing?
Unlike fishing, phishing has no limits and can hurt anyone it touches. As one of the top 12 IRS tax scams, you do not want to take this bait. Here is what you need to know. Each year the IRS publishes the top dozen tax scams it encounters over the prior year. One of them that makes an all too common appearance on their list is the phishing scam. Here is what you need to know. Phishing requires bait Phishing is the act of creating a fake e-mail or website that looks like the real thing. This “bait” is then
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2014 Health Savings Account Limits Announced
If you are participating in an HSA, recently announce limits for 2014 will help you get a jump on planning for next year. The savings limits for the ever-popular Health Savings Accounts (HSA) are now set for 2014. The new limits are outlined here with current year amounts noted for comparison purposes. What is an HSA? An HSA is a tax advantaged savings account where part of your wages can be contributed on a pre-tax basis. There is no tax on the funds contributed or the interest or investment earnings as long as the funds are used to pay for
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Check Your Pay. Social Security Changes are Here! – Know your new take-home pay
The temporary tax cut in Social Security expires at the end of the year. What will your employer do? You had better check. When you receive your initial paycheck for 2013 you had better take a close look to see what the payroll department has done with your pay. If you do not, you may be in for a big tax bite at the end of the year. Background For years the Social Security tax was set at 12.4% of your earnings. 6.2% of the obligation was paid by your employer. The other 6.2% was paid by you, the employee.
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