Resources

The IRS and Treasury Department sent two rounds of economic impact payments to individuals in 2020 as part of broader coronavirus relief packages. The payments, sometimes called stimulus payments, were sent through direct deposit, paper check, or prepaid debit cards. Technically, the payments are tax credits advanced to individuals based on their 2018 or 2019 adjusted gross income (AGI). For the filing season now underway,...

Lawmakers responded to the unprecedented increase in unemployment in 2020 with large increases in the payment of unemployment insurance (UI) benefits. The UI benefits helped support American incomes through the year and are considered taxable income. To avoid an unexpected tax bill when filing their taxes, taxpayers would have needed to correctly withhold taxes from their UI benefits. For federal income taxes, a taxpayer can opt...

This year taxpayers will have an extra month to file taxes. Instead of the usual April 15 Tax Day, the Internal Revenue Service says taxpayers now have until 11:59 p.m. on May 17, 2021, to get those tax returns postmarked or emailed to avoid interest and penalties. Why Tax Day Changed IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig said in a news release, "This continues to be a tough time...

Quarterly taxes (or estimated taxes) are how self-employed individuals have to pay their taxes to the IRS throughout the year if your income exceeds a certain amount. So depending on how much self-employed income you earn, you could have not one, but four “Tax Days” during the year. These four tax payments, made every three months, are meant to cover Social Security, Medicare and your income...

During the 2019 tax season, nearly 34 million taxpayers waited until the week before or the week of April 15 to file their tax returns. That’s about the same number of tax returns filed in the entire month of March. No wonder we’re all stressed during tax season!   But with over 70% of taxpayers receiving an income tax refund each year of nearly $2,800 on...

Oh, so you thought you were done with the coronavirus test now that it’s 2021? Unfortunately, the coronavirus (and the government’s response to it) has created a ripple effect that will be felt when you sit down to file your taxes for last year. Here are some things to keep in mind: Stimulus Checks As part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act’s $2...

If you’re like us, you probably never want to think about 2020 again. But there is one lingering ghost from last year that you need to get rid of before you can truly move on for good—and that’s your 2020 taxes. Thanks to the coronavirus (among other things),  a lot has changed for the 2021 tax season. That’s why you need to start thinking about your...

There is no tax filing status that confuses taxpayers more than the one called head of household. In order to file as head of household, you must meet several requirements: Be unmarried Pay more than half of the costs of supporting your household Live with other qualifying family members for whom you provide support for more than half of the year. Some examples of qualifying family...

Student loans can open the door to educational opportunities you otherwise might not be able to afford on your own. But once you have that hard-earned diploma in your hand (or  displayed proudly on your wall), those same student loans often become a source of stress. At tax time, there are a few ways to include your student loans while filing your taxes. And if you’re...

C-Corps pay taxes at the corporate level first. After that, individual shareholders pay taxes on dividends paid by the corporation. This opens up certain shareholders to double-taxation. The prospect of double taxation daunting, but it is an avoidable problem. Let’s examine how it works: First, a C-Corp doesn’t pay taxes on every dollar it earns. Rather, C-Corps deduct their operating expenses from their revenues, reducing the...