O2 CPA Consulting Group, LLC

Your tax return is the perfect time to review your investments, make sure you’re on track to reach your financial goals, and determine the best strategy moving forward.

Read more tips on how to maximize the benefits of this time of year: https://www.o2cpaconsulting.com/2023/04/13/two-birds-one-tax-season/

Check out our annual End-of-Year Tax Letter with tax planning tips and information for individuals and business owners alike.

2020 Year End Tax Letter | O2 CPA Consulting Group This year has been unlike any other in recent memory. Front and center, the COVID-19 pandemic has touched virtually every aspect of daily living and business activity in 2020. In addition to other fin

New information about the Paycheck Protection Program, what it means, and what you can do about it.

Update on PPP Expense Deductions | O2 CPA Consulting Group New information about the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), what it means, and what you can do about it. - Click here for more.

More updates from the SBA regarding the Paycheck Protection Program. Visit our website for current information. https://www.o2cpaconsulting.com/blog/

For important tax updates & small business relief information regarding COVID-19, please visit our blog here:
https://www.o2cpaconsulting.com/blog/

You can request an extension of time to file your tax return, but some people get extra time without asking for it. Taxpayers with an address of record in a disaster area get more time to file and to pay taxes and do other time-sensitive tasks. Military service members and eligible support personnel have at least 180 days after leaving the combat zone to file and to pay taxes. U.S. citizens and resident aliens who live and work outside the U.S. and Puerto Rico have until 6/17/19 to file and to pay their 2018 taxes. For details from the IRS:

Some people get more time to file without asking; Anyone else can request an automatic extension | Internal Revenue Service IR-2019-73, April 12, 2019 — Anyone can request an automatic tax-filing extension, but some people get extra time without asking, according to the IRS.

If you’re still not ready to have your tax return prepared, you can file an extension. By doing so, you’ll receive 6 more months and avoid late-filing penalties. Simply file IRS Form 4868, “Application for Automatic Extension of Time To File U.S. Individual Income Tax Return.” Extensions provide more time to FILE, but not more time to PAY any tax owed. To avoid late payment penalties, send payment for your estimated 2018 tax liability with Form 4868. The filing deadline is 4/15 for most individuals (4/16 in DC and 4/17 in MA and ME).

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act generally suspended the exclusion of qualified moving expense reimbursements from wages. And it eliminated the moving expense deduction for tax years 2018 through 2025. But the exclusion is still available for U.S. Armed Forces members on active duty who move because of a permanent change of station. The IRS notes that some employers have mistakenly been reporting reimbursements for moves on W-2 forms. Code P on the 2018 Form W-2 should only be used to report qualified military moving expenses. To learn more: https://bit.ly/2JRn5oN.

Tax penalty relief for underpayment of federal tax expands again. Generally, taxpayers who don’t pay at least 90% of their total tax liability through withholding (or estimated payments) are subject to underpayment penalties. Due to changes brought by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, the IRS waived those penalties for taxpayers who paid in at least 85%, and stated more relief was possibly coming. The IRS has now announced that relief will expand to those who paid in at least 80% of the required amount. For details: https://bit.ly/2UVGLcp

Health coverage reporting is still required. To be complete and accurate, 2018 federal tax returns must indicate whether they have health coverage. Taxpayers that had full-year qualifying health coverage may check the box on the front of the return. Those that qualify for an exemption file Form 8965 (“Health Coverage Exemptions”). Nonexempt taxpayers that didn’t have full-year coverage must report a shared responsibility payment. That payment will be reduced to zero for 2019 and beyond, due to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.

Are you still looking for ways to reduce the taxes you owe for 2018? If you qualify, it’s not too late to contribute to an Individual Retirement Arrangement (IRA) and claim it on your 2018 tax return. You must make the contribution by 4/15/19 (in some areas, 4/17/19). Qualified contributions to one or more traditional IRAs are deductible up to the contribution limit or 100% of the taxpayer’s compensation, whichever is less. For 2018, the contribution limit is $5,500, or $6,500 for taxpayers age 50 and up by the end of the year.