Looking for a few extra bucks moonlighting? Click here for others who have taken this path.
Extra moonlighting income has the potential to drastically impact the tax return. Let’s discuss this impact before it’s too late to plan for it! contact me today at (319) 239-9903 or info@bmp-cpa.com.
We know identity theft is a frustrating process for victims. We take this issue very seriously and continue to expand on our robust screening process in order to stop fraudulent returns.
Identity theft occurs when someone uses your personal information such as your name, Social Security number (SSN) or other identifying information, without your permission, to commit fraud or other crimes.
Usually, an identity thief uses a legitimate taxpayer’s identity to fraudulently file a tax return and claim a refund. Generally, the identity thief will use a stolen SSN to file a forged tax return and attempt to get a fraudulent refund early in the filing season.
You may be unaware that this has happened until you file your return later in the filing season and discover that two returns have been filed using the same SSN.
Be alert to possible identity theft if you receive an IRS notice or letter that states that:
For the full IRS Taxpayer Guide to Identity Theft click here.
Here’s a quick rundown of what the Federal income tax brackets are expected to look like in 2012:
| Tax Bracket | Married Filing Jointly | Single |
|---|---|---|
| 10% Bracket | $0 – $17,400 | $0 – $8,700 |
| 15% Bracket | $17,400 – $70,700 | $8,700 – $35,350 |
| 25% Bracket | $70,700 – $142,700 | $35,350 – $85,650 |
| 28% Bracket | $142,700 – $217,450 | $85,650 – $178,650 |
| 33% Bracket | $217,450 – $388,350 | $178,650 – $388,350 |
| 35% Bracket | Over $388,350 | Over $388,350 |
And here are a few related points:
Looking ahead, last year’s fighting resulted in a two year extension of the Bush-era tax cuts, which means that they’re currently set to expire at the end of 2012. As for what 2013 has in store for us, your guess is as good as mine.
The Internal Revenue Service and the Justice Deparmtent today announced the results of a massive national sweep cracking down on suspected identity theft perpetrators as part of a stepped- up effort against refund fraud and identity theft.
Working with the Justice Department’s Tax Division and local US Attorney’s offices, the nationwide effort targeted 105 people in 23 states.
To read more, click here.
MILWAUKEE- You could be waiting quite a while to get your federal tax refund.A new system, called Modernized e-File, was supposed to make everything faster but isn’t working right. Friday, the IRS asked preparers not to use it at all. And that means it could take extra time for your refund to find its way to you.Tax season is tough enough, and now, there’s another hurdle. The IRS e-filing system isn’t working as well as they hoped, and it’s causing delays in your refund. In some cases, by weeks.”They have experienced about 40 percent of the returns, they had a delay,” said Brenda Spencer of Liberty Tax Service.The IRS system has been trying Modernized e-File for years, but this year was the full blown launch. It still accepts your return, but can’t process it as fast as promised. Another problem: checking your return status.”It’s literally called ‘where’s my refund’, it supposedly has no information about where your return is at or when your refund is expected,” said CPA Norman Wahn.TODAY’S TMJ4 reports that just because you can’t see your tax return on the IRS website, doesn’t mean it isn’t there and it doesn’t mean your money isn’t coming.”As long as it shows up on our site, on our system, everything’s OK,” said Brenda Spencer of Liberty Tax Service.In the meantime, their message isn’t to be worried, it’s to be aware — as Brenda Spencer says, “You can’t count your money until you get it.”
Mention the ‘Warren Buffet’ rule and you will immediately get an opinion from everyone.
For educational purposes, let me introduce you to two tax rates.
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Personal income increased $61.3 billion, or 0.5 percent, and disposable personal income (DPI) increased $47.1 billion, or 0.4 percent, in December, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis.
Personal consumption expenditures (PCE) decreased $2.0 billion, or less than 0.1 percent. In November, personal income increased $7.4 billion, or 0.1 percent, DPI decreased $4.1 billion, or less than 0.1 percent, and PCE increased $11.4 billion, or 0.1 percent, based on revised estimates.
Real disposable income increased 0.3 percent in December, in contrast to a decrease of less than 0.1 percent in November. Real PCE decreased 0.1 percent, in contrast to an increase of 0.1 percent.
Private wage and salary disbursements increased $29.1 billion in December, in contrast to a decrease of $1.4 billion in November. Goods-producing industries’ payrolls increased $10.8 billion, in contrast to a decrease of $6.5 billion; manufacturing payrolls increased $7.4 billion, in contrast to a decrease of $6.2 billion. Services-producing industries’ payrolls increased $18.3 billion, compared with an increase of $5.1 billion. Government wage and salary disbursements increased $0.4 billion in December; government wages and salaries were unchanged in November.
No matter what the weather report says, each new year brings a flurry of information returns. These forms report the income you received during the prior year, and the size of the paper blizzard is partly due to the definition of “gross income” in the federal tax code.
That definition encompasses all income earned anywhere in the world, including cash and non-cash receipts from sources such as bartering, discharge of debts, and illegal activities.
In addition, you probably noticed there’s no reference to amount. So, although you might not get an information form for amounts under specified limits — the familiar $600 figure for Form 1099-MISC, for example — that income is reportable on your tax return.
Despite the broad nature of the term, not everything you receive is considered gross income. For instance, rebates, refunds, and purchase price adjustments are specifically excluded. Gifts, inheritances, and proceeds from life insurance policies are other familiar exclusions.
However, in contrast to gross income, exclusions tend to be narrowly defined. An illustration: While proceeds from life insurance policies are generally not taxable to you as a beneficiary, interest earned on the proceeds typically is.
States may have different rules on what’s includable and excludable when calculating income.
Give us a call or email us at info@bmp-cpa.com if you have questions about the tax effect of your receipts during 2011. We’ll help you dig out the answers.
Six months ago Brooke was busy ripping apart the bmp, CPA processes and procedures striving to make a change that would add great value to clients. The idea of online booking popped into her head and she immediately checked into the details. Who does online booking of tax appointments in the area? What was the feedback from those that do offer it? Why is it not as popular as expected?
bmp, CPA is one of the few local CPA firms that offers online booking! It was implemented here in November of 2011 and it has been well received. As of January 15th 40% of the available time slots for first tax appointments are booked. Clients are booking at all times of day as online booking is easy to use whenever and from wherever.
Due to the added value online booking is providing clients, time slots are booking quicker than the past so it is HIGHLY RECOMMENDED to book today! www.bmp-cpa.com/schedule
Andrew, Keith, and Brooke look forward to serving your tax needs this season!
WASHINGTON (AP) – A government watchdog says the Internal Revenue Service can’t fully handle identity theft cases and fraudulent tax refund claims or adequately answer taxpayers’ questions because its budget is too small to deal with its growing workload.
A report by national taxpayer advocate Nina E. Olson says that last year the IRS identity theft caseload grew by 20 percent to more than 226,000. She says the number of tax returns the agency decided needed additional screening for possible fraud exceeded 1 million, a 72 percent increase over 2010.
Olson says Congress should give the IRS enough money to perform properly. This year’s agency budget is $11.8 billion. That’s $300 million less than last year.
The taxpayer advocate is an independent watchdog within the IRS that reports annually on the agency’s performance.
