Income Tax

Earning side income: Is it a hobby or a business?

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  Whether it’s something they’ve been doing for years or something they just started to make extra money, taxpayers must report income earned from hobbies in 2020 on next year’s tax return. What the difference between a hobby and a business? A business operates to make a profit. People engage in a hobby for sport or recreation, not to make a profit. Here are nine things taxpayer must consider when determining if an activity is a hobby or a business: … Continued

Trump announces delay of tax deadline for those affected by virus – Portland Press Herald

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  President Trump announced Wednesday night that he will instruct the Treasury Department to allow individuals and businesses negatively affected by the coronavirus to defer their tax payments beyond the April 15 filing deadline. In an address from the Oval Office, Trump said he would use his emergency authority to allow individual taxpayers and businesses to defer paying their taxes by next month’s deadline if they have suffered adverse effects from the spreading virus. Trump announces delay of tax deadline … Continued

Tax Reform Redux: Most Taxpayers Didn’t Adjust Their Withholding Before 2020 Filing Season | CPA Practice Advisor

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  Taxpayers are ill-informed about changes to the tax law that may impact them personally, according to a survey of enrolled agents, who are federally-licensed tax professionals. The survey, conducted by the National Association of Enrolled Agents (NAEA), presented a series of statements and asked NAEA members to choose the statements with which they agreed most strongly. The statements were grouped into three broad categories: Government operations (what impact does IRS operations have on the filing season), tax code and … Continued

2020 Tax Refund Dates: When You Will Get Your IRS Income Tax Refund | CPA Practice Advisor

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  It’s MARCH, and March Madness is about to start, but if you haven’t received your 2020 income tax refund yet, and you’re trying to find out when you might, we can help. Of course, you have to have already filed (either online by yourself or with a tax pro). But if you haven’t yet, then visit a CPA or other tax professional soon. If you have, and are still waiting on a refund, our chart below offers a date … Continued

What Is Section 179, and How Can It Benefit You? | Millionacres

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  What is Section 179, and how does it benefit businesses? Section 179 is a tax incentive that allows small businesses to write off the entire purchase price of qualifying equipment in the year it was purchased. If a business bought a piece of equipment before Section 179, they would have had to write it off over its normal recovery period. For example, if a business purchased $100,000 in equipment that was depreciable over five years, they would only be … Continued