According to reports, the IRS is “in crisis” going into the 2021 tax season. How bad is it?

• IRS reports to still needing to process about 8.6 million individual returns (both electric & paper filed) and more than 3 million business returns from 2019; There is about 20 million 2020 tax returns still not processed.
• Almost 5 million pieces of mail have been unopened
• There has been an increase the volume of phone calls by more than double, but customer service is only able to answer about 11% of them.

If you are starting to get concerned about your refund, you have a couple of options.

Internal Revenue Services 

• “Where’s My Refund” to track the status of your refund. You will need your social security number, filing status and the refund amount. All this confidential information is only used for the IRS to locate your return and is kept secure. 

* If you are checking before 1/24/2022, the site is down for IRS updates. You can call the IRS direct by calling:

• Individuals – 800-829-1040 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. local time. 
• Businesses – 800-829-4933 

State

If you are looking for the status of your state refund, select your state here. Most state are running on time with processing returns, usually 3-4 weeks.

• “Where’s My CO State Refund”  You need your social security number and refund amount. 

The IRS has detailed tax rate information based on your filing status and bracket for the upcoming filing season.

Please remember you must add each levels together until you get to your taxable income.  For example – if you are married filing jointly and taxable income is $100,000. Rate would be $9,328 plus $4,169 ($100,000-81,050=18,950*22%) total tax rate $13,497.

There are several reasons for changing your withholding status.  Here are somethings to think about.

• Change in family size such as marital status or dependents 
• Increases in your income level by adding a job or starting a side business.
• Increasing pay period deduction may lower your tax liability at the end of the year.

If you are unsure how to process, please contact us and we can go over different scenarios with you.

If you are sure you would like to change your withholding, please click on this W4  link.  Fill in, print, sign and turn into your HR/Payroll dept.

There are several new items to be aware but not necessarily concerned about.

• Cash App reporting to the IRS – Effect January 1, 2022, all third-party payment processor like Venmo, Paypal, or Zelle, are required to report any received payment totally over $600.00 in the year.  At the end of 2022, if your have received more than $600, you will receive a 1099-K from the Cash App of the amount your received on the platform.  There is something that you can help mitigate these charges.
  • If the payment you are receiving is for a reimbursement amount such as dinner out or movie tickets, make sure the sender is making notation of that at the time of the transfer and in the app.
  • If you are doing a job, business, or self-employed gig, make sure you are saving all expenses related to the payment received.  If the this fits in the business parameters, we can help set up a business either as a Schedule C on your personal return or fill in and file the paperwork for a S-Corp business.
• If your yearly income changes significantly, you may need to do a projected tax liability to see if you need to increase your withholdings, make estimate payment, or talk with someone about financial strategies.
• Increase in minimum wages in most states.  In Colorado, the 2022 minimum wage for Statutory employees is $12.56 per hour
• Increase in mileage rate for 2022 is 58.5 cents per driven for business use, 18 cents per mile driven for medical, and 14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable organizations.

We don’t have a flat rate fee for our services because not all tax returns are the same.  This means we only charge you for the things we do for you and your return.  Most of our returns average about $250. 

There are a lot of things to think of when starting a business.

• Financing & Accounting 
• Paperwork & Filings
• Insurance
• Employees & Payroll
• Strategies & Planning

It would be a good idea to meet with us so we can at least talk these items out with you.  We have years of experience with all types of business including Sole Proprietors, Partnerships and S-Corps.

You can verify if your name is available by searching the Secretary of State database.

Moving your business from a Sole Proprietors or LLC to an S-Corp depends on several factors.  First is how you want your filing to be represented on your personal tax return.  While under an SP or LLC, your business is filed under a Schedule C on your personal return.  If your business is filed as a S-Corp with the IRS, you will file a separate corporate return which will then transfer to your personal return on a K-1.  We can help determine if this a good move for you and your business based on Income/Expense of previous years.  Click Here to contact us.

To determine the best time to start payroll or add employees, depends on your acceptable work hours. This means that if you like working 60+ hours a week and can stay on top of all your current income flow, you can hold off.  However, if you want to investigate a better work/life balance, talking with us about the pros/cons can help make your business evolve.

We don’t have a flat rate fee for our services because not all tax returns are the same.  This means we only charge you for the things we do for you and your return.  Most of our corporate returns average about $450. We may be able to discount our corporate rate if there are other services being provided.

Beginning on January 1, 2022, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or panel trucks) will be:

• 58.5 cents per mile driven for business use, up 2.5 cents from the rate for 2021,
• 18 cents per mile driven for medical, or moving purposes for qualified active-duty members of the Armed Forces, up 2 cents from the rate for 2021 and
• 14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable organizations; the rate is set by statute and remains unchanged from 2021.

The standard mileage rate for business use is based on an annual study of the fixed and variable costs of operating an automobile. The rate for medical and moving purposes is based on the variable costs.

Beginning on January 1, 2023, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or panel trucks) will be:

• 65.5 cents per mile driven for business use, up 3 cents from the midyear increase setting the rate for the second half of 2022.
• 22 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes for qualified active-duty members of the Armed Forces, consistent with the increased midyear rate set for the second half of 2022.
• 14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable organizations; the rate is set by statute and remains unchanged from 2022.

These rates apply to electric and hybrid-electric automobiles, as well as gasoline and diesel-powered vehicles.

The standard mileage rate for business use is based on an annual study of the fixed and variable costs of operating an automobile. The rate for medical and moving purposes is based on the variable costs.

Please visit the IRS page for additional mileage reimbursement rates.