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Running a small business can be challenging. Owners must always strike a balance between having the tools they need to run the business and controlling expenses.

Using a contractor can be an attractive option that allows you to scale hours up or down as needed. This can be significantly cheaper too, since you do not have to provide them with benefits or vacations. But before you pull the trigger on utilizing an independent contractor, you should know that the IRS takes intentional misclassification of contractors very seriously. The IRS understands the financial incentives to using 1099 contractors and they know the temptation exists to classify a worker as a contractor when you truly view and treat them as an employee.

Well…it’s over.  This year’s individual tax return filing deadline has come and gone.  As the dust settles and we take stock of this year’s tax season, a few trends have appeared.

As the responsible party on employer identification number (EIN) applications, effective May 13, 2019, the IRS will only accept EIN applications from individual taxpayers who have either a Social Security number or individual taxpayer identification number.

On Friday, March 22, 2019, the Treasury and IRS announced they have lowered the withholding underpayment penalty threshold to 80%. This means that taxpayers who were 80% or less under-withheld on their income tax withholding or quarterly tax payments may qualify for relief.

This year’s tax season is going to be different. The new tax laws that took effect for 2018 represent the biggest changes to the tax code in over 30 years. So if you haven’t thought about preparing your taxes for 2018, you’ll want to get a jump on it.

Unless you’ve been hiding under a rock, you’ve probably heard about the battle between the President and Congress over funding for a southern border wall. The government “shutdown” created by the impasse has created a lot of uncertainty about many government-provided services.

What’s IRMAA? 

Well, 2019 is right around the corner, and before you know it important tax-related deadlines will be upon us. Due to changes in the tax code created by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) we highly recommend you allow extra time in gathering required information for the 2018 tax season.

The IRS recently issued guidance on tax withholding for the coming year. The redesign of the W-4 has been tabled until 2020 after the proposed form met with heavy criticism from groups like the American Society of CPAs. The W-4 for 2019 will be essentially the same as the 2018 with the exception of changes to the “withholding allowance” terminology used in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA.)