At breakfast, my five year old felt the bigger kids getting excited when I announced,
“Today is the end of tax season!”
But her thrill faded, and her face grew pensive, as she worked up her courage to ask,
“Daddy, who is Taxi Son?”
Haddi dear, your cuteness wins you this custom graphic shared with the world.
It happens. You get busy. Something unexpected and important demands your attention. Suddenly, you realize you forgot something…
Need more time? Individuals that cannot file by Tuesday April 17th, can get a 6-month extension by completing Form 4868, Application for Automatic Extension of Time To File U.S. Individual Income Tax Return.
Remember: if you OWE taxes, penalties and interest will be added to your tax bill. The four-page form includes instructions on estimating any tax you owe and including a payment.
If you don’t file a tax return and you don’t file for extension by the deadline, then the IRS will charge you a failure-to-file penalty (5% of the taxes you owe each month up to a maximum of 25%).
If you owe taxes, but don’t include a payment with your extension the IRS will charge you a penalty-for-late-payment (0.5% of taxes for each month of delay plus 8% interest on your outstanding balance, with this rate adjusted once a quarter).
Filing an extension can be wiser than having someone rush through your tax return.
We Made It!Tax Season for CPAs is like Harvest season for farmers. You have to put in the hours to get the work done. This year our staff did great, and they’ve earned a couple of days off.
So our tax team is taking a break, and our office will be closed April 19th and 20th. We’ll be back to serve you Monday morning April 23rd at 9:00 am.
While the tax team gets to play, the IT guys will be overhauling our computers, upgrading servers, improving security and maintaining all those electronic tools that allow us to serve your financial needs. Among other things, that means we won’t be receiving or sending any emails until Monday.
You might even see some painting and roof repair happening!
Thank you, to all of our clients, for trusting us with your finances and helping us to have another successful tax season.
The bad guys are counting on you being busy and distracted. They know you’re speeding though your inbox choosing what to read and what to delete. They only have a second to get your attention… but they don’t want you to think too hard before you click.
This week’s evil email contains many of the tell-tale signs that help you recognize fraud:
President Reagan said, “Trust, but verify.” Jesus said, “Be wise as serpents, but innocent as doves.” Don’t let liars and frauds take advantage of you.
We’ve said it before, we’ll say it again: “The IRS doesn’t contact taxpayers via email.” But that doesn’t stop hackers and identity thieves from trying to scare you into clicking a virus-laden link.
Our office has received a request for our “Corporate Annual Report” from an organization called Corporate Regulatory Committee on Lancaster Drive in Salem. It is stating that we need to file our Annual Report and asks us to fill out the form and submit it with a check in the amount of $238.00 by a certain date.
We have talked with the Oregon Secretary of State about this and they noted they are working with the Department of Justice to get this organization to halt its practices.
As a business owner, we are required to renew our Annual Report with the Corporations Division of Oregon by our anniversary date and pay $100.
If you receive this same letter, don’t be taken by this scam.
There are usually many questions relating to the deductibility of legal fees. Please click the following link that will take you to a good discussion of what is and what isn’t deductible: http://www.openforum.com/articles/4-tax-rules-for-legal-fees?extlink=em-openf-SBdaily
We believe a clear fee structure helps us build long-lasting professional relationships.
Our Fee Schedule explains our hourly rates, and minimum fees.
President Obama signed the Payroll tax cut legislation this morning which keeps the social security rate for employees at 4.2%. This tax cut extends the legislation that was enacted in 2011 through the first two months of 2012. The plan is for Congress to come up with legislation that will keep the payroll tax rate down for the whole year by the February 29th, 2012 date.
Stay tuned for more updates.
click cover to open pdf file
Mailed to our clients on Monday, December 19, 2011…
This edition of our newsletter covers:
Financial advisors, estate planners and insurance agents all use this theme to sell their wares. But I think of a legacy beyond financial terms, not only for my immediate family, but for everyone we contact.
As I look back at 2011 – I see the successful start of my 5-year retirement plan. Even while we expanded our business (we completed almost 10% more tax returns, for instance) I was able to reduce my hours at the office by over 10% (that’s 250 hours not working!).
Looking forward I see 2012 to be filled with unique and critical opportunities. Every day we make decisions that affect the future and we are responsible for those results. Whenever I make a decision or take an action I must be mindful of my responsibility for the results of my actions, or inaction, and the effect it will have on others. This is above and beyond the legal straight-jacket which usually binds us.
2012 is a leap year, with an extra day to enjoy our life and relationships. One more day that we can use to make a difference: for our families, our neighbors and our state. Our individual choices can even impact our country and the wider world.
I wish each of you a very Merry Christmas celebration. May you be blessed with a thoughtful, but bold, decisiveness in a New Year filled with opportunities to make a positive impact on the future for those within your sphere of responsibility. May you leave a legacy that will benefit a large part of the world.
