Maillie LLP

Job opening alert! 📢  We’re hiring talented Audit/Assurance associates across multiple specializations. If you have 3+ years of experience and are looking to take your career to new heights with an accounting firm that prioritizes employee growth and a tight-knit culture, you can apply on our website or find out more about our current opportunities.

Restricted gifts to nonprofits require greater care than unrestricted ones. If a donor attaches strings to a gift, your staffers should follow procedures designed to ensure the restrictions are honored. For example, staffers must properly label these gifts and record expenditures associated with them in a spreadsheet or track them as individual funds in the general ledger. You may need to decline some restricted gifts because they’ll be more trouble than they’re worth. To avoid such situations, take every opportunity to encourage donors to make unrestricted gifts. Contact us to learn more.https://bit.ly/4fVnxgU

These days, many employees work remotely. While there are lots of advantages, it may also lead to some tax surprises, especially if a job crosses state lines. If you live in one state and work remotely for an employer in another state, you may need to file income tax returns in both states. This could result in increased (or even double) taxation. Do you get any tax breaks for working remotely? Under current law, employees generally can’t deduct unreimbursed job-related expenses through 2025. Remote workers also aren’t currently eligible for the home office deduction either. That deduction is generally limited to self-employed business owners. Contact us with questions about your situation.https://bit.ly/4dyMAVa

For many business owners, choosing a successor is a difficult task. What’s worse, many owners’ initial picks for successor can turn out to be dubious choices. If you find yourself in this situation, don’t panic. First, discuss the matter with objective parties such as your professional advisors and trusted family members or colleagues. If you then decide to stick with your successor, talk about your concerns with the individual and look for ways to address what’s troubling you. If you determine that you must pick someone new, tell your initial successor as soon as possible and explain why. Then, review and improve your succession planning process to avoid making the same mistake twice. https://bit.ly/3yWbIpN

Audits and financial reporting are enhanced by strong, independent audit committees. These committees oversee external audits and evaluate the company’s risk management, legal and regulatory compliance, and control environment. It’s important to carefully choose who serves on your committee. Committee members should have the time, commitment and experience to do the job well. Financial literacy and industry knowledge are essential. Ideally, they should be independent with respect to financial and business interests with the company. Contact us for more information about the audit committee’s role in the financial reporting process and best practices for selecting members.https://bit.ly/3yB9Dje

Many businesses have a choice between using the cash or accrual method of accounting for tax purposes. The cash method often provides significant tax benefits for businesses that qualify, but some may be better off using the accrual method. Cash-basis businesses recognize income when it’s received and deduct expenses when they’re paid, so they have greater control over the timing of income and deductions. In contrast, accrual-basis businesses recognize income when it’s earned and deduct expenses when they’re incurred, regardless of the timing of cash receipts or payments. That means they have less flexibility to time income or expenses. We can help you evaluate the most beneficial approach. https://bit.ly/3AvH4UX

Let’s say you own real estate that has been held for more than one year and is sold for a taxable gain. Perhaps the gain comes from indirect ownership of real estate via a pass-through entity such as an LLC, partnership or S corporation. You may expect to pay the standard 15% or 20% federal income tax rate that usually applies to long-term capital gains from assets held for more than a year. However, some real estate gains can be taxed at higher rates due to depreciation deductions. Some of the profit could be taxed at up to 25%, and you may also owe the 3.8% net investment income tax on some or all of the gain. The calculations are complex. We’ll handle them when we prepare your tax return.https://bit.ly/3YSOUCc

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Congress temporarily enabled individual charitable donors who didn’t itemize federal income tax deductions to deduct up to $300 in contributions in both 2020 and 2021. This appeared to motivate increased donations in 2021, but charitable giving has since dropped. Two bills in Congress would provide a universal charitable deduction that could enable nonitemizing taxpayers to deduct thousands of dollars in donations. Unfortunately, the bills haven’t gone anywhere since they were introduced. But many nonprofits and sector associations are working to change that. https://bit.ly/4fPlH0W

The upcoming elections may significantly alter the tax landscape of U.S. businesses. The reason has to do with provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) that are set to expire on Dec. 31, 2025. One significant change is the scheduled expiration of the qualified business income (QBI) deduction. This write-off is for up to 20% of QBI from noncorporate entities. What will happen to your taxes depends on different possible outcomes: For example, all expiring TCJA provisions could expire. Or some provisions could expire and others could be extended or made permanent. New laws could also be enacted to provide different tax breaks and/or rates. We’ll keep you informed so stay tuned. https://bit.ly/3YSOMCI

Navigating tax law complexities can be difficult, especially when faced with an unexpected tax bill due to the errors of a spouse or ex-spouse. When a married couple files a joint tax return, each spouse is liable for the full tax amount on the couple’s combined income. So the IRS can come after either spouse to collect the entire tax, penalties and interest. In some cases, spouses are eligible for “innocent spouse relief.” Generally, these spouses were unaware of a tax understatement that was attributable to the other spouse. If you’re interested in trying to obtain relief, paperwork must be filed and deadlines must be met. The process is challenging. We can assist you with the details. https://bit.ly/3Ax92j5