COVID-19 Update

In our continuous effort to keep Smith & Associates employees and clients safe and healthy, we are closing our office to the public until further notice. We will communicate with clients via email, phone, fax, and the United States Postal Service. We provide the opportunity to submit and retrieve documents through a personalized secure client portal. If you don’t already have access to a portal but would like to, please e-mail or call for further instructions. We will be utilizing Zoom web conferencing services or phone calls as an alternative to in person meetings. Rest assured; we are working to complete tax returns as quickly as possible and anticipate, at this point, that we will be able to accommodate completing these by the April 15th for those of you who have submitted documentation by our March 20th deadline. Auditing and accounting services are also moving forward with little delay; however, we will be working to find solutions to our standard onsite visit for the time being. As everyone is adapting to this, we are also learning to adapt, and we truly appreciate your patience and understanding during this time.

You may find the following link to the AICPA’s COVID-19 Resource Center page interesting and helpful.

https://www.aicpa.org/news/aicpa-coronavirus-resource-center.html

COVID-19

As we continue to monitor the rapidly unfolding COVID-19 developments, we are closely following the direction of federal, state, and local authorities and other health experts and trusted advisors. This is a rapidly changing situation, and we are responding to new developments, with the health and well-being of our employees and clients as our top priority.

In an effort to do our part of trying to slow the spread of the virus we are implementing the following for the 2020 filing season:

Beginning on Wednesday, March 18, 2020, Smith & Associates will postpone all in person client meetings until further notice. We will offer meetings via telephone as we continue to prepare tax returns for the anticipated deadline.

Returns will be mailed to clients when they are completed rather than being picked up or they will be sent via our online platforms if the client requests.

Clients are encouraged to communicate with us through email or phone with any questions. Monica our Administrative Manager will respond to emails within 24-48 hours.           monica@smithassociatescpa.com

Welcome!

We are pleased to announce that Lori Aliberti has joined the Smith & Associates Team as of July 1, 2019 as our Senior Tax Associate!

Lori is an Enrolled Agent that comes to us from Poulin Financial Services, LLC, PA., with a career spanning over 25 years.  Her client engagements include small businesses, non-profit organizations, homeowner associations, estates, trusts and individuals.

Lori has an Associates Degree in Business Administration and Accounting, and holds many additional certifications.

Please visit our About Us section of the Smith & Associates, CPAs website to learn more about Lori and the rest of the team!

IRS provides penalty relief for underpayment of 2018 individual taxes

The IRS has announced that it is waiving the estimated tax penalty for many taxpayers whose 2018 federal income tax withholding and estimated tax payments fell short of their total tax liability for the year. The relief, announced in IR-2019-03, is prompted by changes in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA). This waiver covers taxpayers whose total withholding and estimated tax payments are equal to or greater than 85% of their taxes owed. For waiver purposes only, this new relief lowers the 90 percent threshold to 85 percent. This means that a taxpayer will not owe a penalty if they paid at least 85 percent of their total 2018 tax liability. If the taxpayer paid less than 85 percent then they are not eligible for the waiver and the penalty will be calculated as it normally would be using the 90 percent threshold. Refer to Notice 2019-11 for further details. The waiver computation will be integrated into a future update of UltraTax/1040 including the revised Form 2210 once released by the IRS.

2018 Tax Season Deadlines and Reminders

In order to help compile complete and accurate information to complete your return, here are some tips for an efficient tax return experience.

MUST receive prior to beginning-
• Organizer/Questionnaire: All questions must be answered “yes or no”. Please provide clarifying information where applicable.
• Signed Engagement Letter
• Reconciled QuickBooks bank accounts and password, if applicable
Commonly omitted items-
• K-1’s for publicly traded partnerships
• Cost basis for non-covered securities sold during the year
• Record of quarterly estimated payments made to Federal and State taxing authorities including dates and amounts *Don’t forget Q4 is paid in January 2019*
• Estimated value of donated items. If more than $500 please provide receipts
• Changes to contact information and dependents
SUBMISSION DEADLINE MARCH 1, 2019

The New W4 Form

The New W-4 Form
A: Form W-4, Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate, is an IRS form that employees provide to their employers, to determine the amount of federal income tax to withhold from the employees’ paychecks. The form helps employees adjust withholding based on their personal circumstances, such as whether they have children or a spouse who is also working. The IRS recommends employees check their withholding any time their personal or financial information changes.
The Form W-4 relates to an employee’s federal tax withholding. State withholding is separate.
Has the IRS updated the W-4 form yet?
The IRS revised the Form W-4. The IRS also updated the Withholding Calculator on IRS.gov to help employees who wish to update their withholding in response to the new law or who start a new job or have other changes in their personal circumstances in 2018. In 2019, the IRS anticipates making further changes involving withholding What is a W-4?
.
Who needs to check their withholdings?
Employees should check their withholding at the beginning of each year or when their personal circumstances change. It’s even more important this year for people to do a “paycheck checkup” following the changes in the new tax law. With the new tax law, it’s especially important for certain people to check their withholding.
Among the groups who should check their withholding are:
• Two-income families.
• Retirees with pension income
• People working two or more jobs or who only work for part of the year.
• People with children who claim credits such as the Child Tax Credit.
• People with older dependents, including children age 17 or older.
• People who itemized deductions in 2017.
• People with high incomes and more complex tax returns.
• People with large tax refunds or large tax bills for 2017.
When personal circumstances change that reduce withholding allowances they are entitled to claim, including divorce, starting a second job, or a child no longer being a dependent, an employee has 10 days to submit a new Form W-4 to their employer claiming the proper number of withholding allowances.
Recommendations from your Tax Professional
• Complete a Paycheck Checkup
• Complete a new W-4
• Update Projections for 4th quarter estimates with YTD withholdings
• Call your tax professional with any questions!!

Summer 2015 Newsletter

In this Issue:

  • Staff Update
  • Healthy Living – Human Resources
  • Identity Theft
  • Tax Calendar & Deadlines

American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012

Although Congress averted many of the consequences of a possible tumble over the fiscal cliff with last-minute action, we would like you to be aware of the impact of the bill that was passed – known as the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012 – signed into law January 2nd.