Member of Russell Bedford International, a global network of independent professional service firms.
Member of Russell Bedford International, a global network of independent professional service firms.
If you haven’t received your tax refund yet you are not alone. We have heard several reports from clients who are still waiting on refunds from returns filed early in the year. Unless there is an error, the IRS will typically issue most refunds in less than 21 calendar days. However, 2021 is far from a typical year for a number of reasons.
COVID-19 – The IRS computer system can only be accessed from IRS facilities. So, unlike most other employers that had to deal with the COVID-19 outbreak, IRS employees could not work from home. Consequently, during 2020 and 2021 many IRS employees were furloughed. And the IRS got significantly behind in processing returns, especially paper-filed returns that must be input manually. As a result, the IRS was still processing 2019 returns at the beginning of the 2020 return filing season.
Economic Impact Payments – Congress ordered the IRS to handle the task of issuing three economic impact payments, two in 2020 and one in 2021, further tapping IRS resources.
Recovery Rebates – To make matters worse, those first two economic impact payments had to be reconciled on the 2020 tax return. If a taxpayer didn’t receive the amount they were entitled to, they were allowed an equivalent recovery rebate credit on their tax return.
If there is a discrepancy between the amount of the payments reported on the tax return and what the IRS has on file for the economic impact payment amounts, the IRS is manually verifying the tax return for credit eligibility. This is causing additional refund delays.
Unemployment Debacle – In March 2021, after the 2020 tax filing season had gotten underway and millions of taxpayers had already filed their returns, Congress decided to make a portion of the unemployment compensation taxpayers received in 2020 tax-free. To avoid millions of amended returns from being filed, the IRS has undertaken the task of automatically adjusting those returns and issuing refunds.
Using 2019 Income to Compute 2020 EITC and Additional Child Tax Credit – The EITC and the additional child tax credit are based on a taxpayer’s earned income (income from working). However, because a preponderance of those who normally benefited from EITC and the additional child tax credit were unemployed during 2020, Congress allowed the 2019 earned income to be used in computing those credits for 2020, which also is causing processing delays.
You can use the IRS’s online tool “Where’s My Refund” to determine the status of your refund. To use that tool, you will need:
Generally, the IRS will pay interest on the refund due to you starting from the later of the following:
The IRS stops paying interest on overpayments on the date they issue the refund, or it is used to offset an outstanding liability.
Currently, the interest rate the IRS pays individuals on overpayments is 3%; the rate is adjusted quarterly but has been at 3% since July 1, 2020.
Exception: No overpayment interest is paid if the IRS issues the refund within 45 days of the return due date, or actual filing date if later.
As you can see, refunds are not being issued as quickly as they were pre-COVID and there isn’t anything a tax preparer or taxpayer can do about the IRS not paying out refunds once a return is electronically filed and accepted by the IRS.
Cray Kaiser is here to help if you have further questions about your tax refund. Please contact us today or call (630)953-4900.
To expense or to capitalize? If you buy, build or repair business assets, you might ask that question when deciding whether your costs are currently deductible on your federal income tax return or whether they’re considered capital improvements. Since deductions for capital improvements are typically spread over the life of an asset, the answer can be important even when accelerated depreciation methods are available.
New tax rules can make the expense-or-capitalize decision easier. These “repair regulations” provide guidelines and safe harbors to help you determine when certain purchases and expenditures are considered repairs, maintenance, improvements, materials or supplies that can be deducted in the year of purchase. Here’s an overview of safe harbor rules that may affect the way you classify expenses.
De minimis purchases. In general, you can deduct the cost of tangible property purchased during a taxable year if the amount you pay for the property is less than $500 per invoice, or per item. This is an all-or-nothing rule, meaning if an asset costs more than $500, you cannot take a partial deduction.
To take the deduction, you’ll need a written accounting policy in place by the beginning of your tax year, and you’re required to file an annual statement with your federal tax return.
Note: This safe harbor does not apply to intangible assets such as computer software.
Repairs and maintenance. You can expense costs for routine maintenance of buildings and other property. For buildings, “routine” means maintenance you expect to perform more than once in a ten-year period. The costs for material additions or defects or for adapting your property to a new or different use are not considered routine maintenance, and they should be capitalized.
For other assets, “routine” is defined as maintenance you expect to undertake more than once during the asset’s depreciable class life.
Improvements. Generally, improvements you make to your business building are capitalized and depreciated over the life of the building. Under the new rules, if your business’s gross receipts are $10 million or less and the unadjusted basis of your building is $1 million or less, you may choose to write off the cost of improvements.
You can make the election annually on a building-by-building basis for property you own or lease by filing a statement with your tax return. To qualify, the total amount you pay during the year for repairs, maintenance, and improvements cannot be greater than $10,000 or 2% of the unadjusted basis of the building, whichever is less.
Note: The total includes amounts you deduct under the “repairs and maintenance” and “de minimis” safe harbors.
Materials and supplies. Incidental materials and supplies – supplies for which you do not maintain an inventory – costing less than $200 can be expensed in the year of purchase.
Note: This safe harbor does not affect prior rules for deducting materials and supplies, such as restaurant smallwares.
The repair regulations will affect your federal income tax return. In some cases, you can apply the new rules to prior years. Please contact Cray Kaiser today for additional information.
Wedding bells bring rejoicing – and financial changes. If you’re marrying for the second time, the changes might seem overwhelming. On the surface, tax and financial planning for a second marriage is similar to that of a first marriage, but there’s more to taxes and marriage the second time around.
For example, no matter what month you hold the ceremony, the IRS will consider you married for the full year. That means employer-provided fringe benefits and taxes withheld from your paychecks could require adjustment. Depending on how much each of you earns and your past financial history, you’ll have to decide what filing status will be most beneficial, and how best to take advantage of tax breaks that may become available.
With a second marriage, you have even more decisions to make, including how you’ll merge your assets. Will you purchase a new home? If both of you already own separate homes, you may each qualify for a $250,000 federal income tax exemption on the profit from the sale, as long as you have lived in the home for at least two of the last five years. If only one of you meets the requirements for the exemption, consider selling the qualifying home and living in the other for a while.
You or your spouse might also have substantial debt or financial obligations. Discuss your financial histories, including alimony or child support still owed and past bankruptcies. Decide who will provide for the college expenses of the children in your now-combined household. Depending on your age, you may want to investigate the effect of the marriage on your social security benefits.
Consider estate issues too, such as updating retirement plans with new beneficiary designations and retitling bank and brokerage accounts. Be sure to discuss how heirs from previous marriages will be provided for, and remember to update your wills.
A second wedding is a joyful event for you, your new spouse, and your extended families. To give your marriage an added advantage, call us before you say, “I do.” We’ll offer our congratulations – followed by useful financial and tax planning advice.
Don’t wait too long after the wedding to spend a little time on tax matters. Here’s a checklist of things to consider:
If you have questions about taxes and marriage, please contact Cray Kaiser today.
There’s nothing good about being selected for an IRS audit. At best it’s a time consuming nuisance, and at worst you’ll be poorer in the end. But you can reduce your likelihood of being audited, or if you are selected, of being billed.
There are three types of IRS audits. The simplest and most common is a correspondence audit, where the IRS mails you a request for further information about one or more items on your return. In most cases the issues can be resolved by responding with the appropriate documentation.
If you’re selected for an office audit, the IRS will schedule an appointment for you to meet with an auditor at their local facility. They’ll tell you in advance which specific areas of your return(s) will be addressed and what types of documentation you should bring in.
A field audit is more comprehensive. An IRS agent will travel to your home, business, or representative’s office, review the returns at issue, request documentation for questioned items, and ultimately issue a report either recommending a tax change or accepting the returns as filed.
Correspondence audits are often triggered by information matching. The IRS receives W-2s, 1099s, and similar reports from businesses and financial institutions and matches the numbers to the tax returns filed by the individuals involved. If the returns don’t agree with reported figures, the individual will be asked for an explanation and/or simply mailed a bill.
The IRS also uses a computer scoring system to select audits. Based on past experience, the system assigns a score to each tax return indicating the likelihood that the tax was understated or certain income was not reported. Common red flags include the following:
In 2015, above-average audit activity may be expected for upper income individuals, sole business proprietors, partnerships, and S corporations. Cash-intensive enterprises (bars, restaurants, taxis, hair salons, etc.) are particularly apt to receive a higher rate of scrutiny, as are industry categories that tend to have high rates of deductions not independently reported to the IRS (such as construction and real estate rental businesses).
If you do happen to be selected for an audit, call us. We’re prepared to assist you with whatever is needed.
*This newsletter is issued quarterly to provide you with an informative summary of current business, financial, and tax planning news and opportunities. Do not apply this general information to your specific situation without additional details and/or professional assistance.
