Tag Archives: checklist

Year-End Tax Checklist

As the year draws to a close, there are several tax-saving ideas you should consider. Use this checklist to make sure you don’t miss an opportunity before the year is out.

Retirement distributions and contributions. Make final contributions to your qualified retirement plan, and take any required minimum distributions from your retirement accounts. The penalty for not taking minimum distributions can be high.

Investment management. Rebalance your investment portfolio, and take any final investment gains and losses. Capital losses can be used to net against your capital gains. You can also take up to $3,000 of capital losses in excess of capital gains each year and use it to lower your taxable ordinary income.

Last-minute charitable giving. Make a late-year charitable donation. Even better, make the donation with appreciated stock you’ve owned more than a year. You often can make a larger donation and get a larger deduction without paying capital gains taxes.

Noncash donation opportunity. Gather up non-cash items for donation, document the items, and give those in good condition to your favorite charity. Make sure you get a receipt from the charity, and take a photo of the items donated.

Gifts to dependents and others. You may provide gifts to an individual of up to $14,000 per year in total. Remember that all gifts given (birthdays, holidays, etc.) count toward the annual total.

Organize records now. Start collecting and organizing your end-of-year tax records. Estimate your tax liability and make any required estimated tax payments.

4 Tax Tips for Small Business Owners – Part Two

Since you can’t get away from taxes, the best thing to do is be prepared for them. If you own a small business, taxes become a bit more complicated, but there are several ways to make sure tax time is less stressful. Here are tips 3 and 4 for small business owners.

3. Leverage Tax Preparation Tools and Expertise

Most of the personal income tax preparation software applications include business tax options as well and are typically geared for small business or self-employment. The IRS has also gone to great lengths to provide material on its website that is easy to find and understandable by non-tax professionals.

However, tax laws are complex, and it can take time to become proficient. Hiring a tax professional may be in your best interests since this person could identify tax breaks and deductions you may miss.

Whether you use software or hire a pro, keeping a checklist while you are thinking about taxes throughout the year can help you get ready for tax time. There are online and print resources that show you what records and information you need, any tax guidelines geared toward businesses, and the all-important filing and payment dates.

Some things to keep track of include:

  • Filing payroll tax forms
  • Sending 1099 forms to your contractors
  • Assembling income and expense records
  • Renewal for liability insurance

You can find tax organizers and worksheets online, or your tax professional may have one for you to use.

4. Avoid These Common Mistakes

There are a couple of mistakes small business owners tend to make that can cause trouble down the road.

  • One is thinking your tax professional will assume responsibility for all your tax needs. You cannot assume everything has been done appropriately because, again, you know what they say about “assume.” No matter who prepares the taxes, you are still responsible for all the information on the return and the taxes owed.
  • Another mistake is allowing fear of the IRS to keep you from taking legitimate deductions. If you work with a reputable tax professional or online tax preparation service, you should be given appropriate guidance on your eligibility for each available write-off.

There you have it. Keep taxes in mind all year, keep up with changes and news, leverage reputable tax tools and professionals, and avoid common mistakes and your tax time stress should be reduced significantly. As a bonus, you will save yourself some money, and maybe receive a refund.