New Rule Will Haunt Poker Players

Happy Halloween to everyone out there in blogger land. Here is a new law that is sure to haunt poker players at tax time. Starting next year, casinos and other sponsors of poker tournaments will be required to report most winnings to winners and the IRS.

The new requirement, which goes into effect on March 4, 2008, was contained in guidance released Sept. 4 by the IRS. The guidance is designed to clear up confusion about the tax reporting rules that apply to poker tournaments. In recent years, some casinos and players have been confused over whether poker tournament sponsors who hold the money for participants in a poker tournament are required to report the winnings to the IRS and withhold tax on the winnings.
For more information on this change be sure to visit this IRS web link.

Keeing Your Business N Synergy

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Small Business Networks a Growing

It seems like every day there is a new smal business network introduced by a large compnay these days. Well today, I found out of another one that is being introduced by AT&T. “The Watercooler” is the newest entrant into the resource portals for SMB’s and it appears on the surface to offer similar resources as the others. SMB resource portals allow small business owners immediate access to information they need to effectively run their businesses. They are also good ways to network with other small business owners online. Below are just a few online resources that are great ways to increase your reach:

ATT OnwardSmallBiz
Intuit's Jumpup
Microsoft Startup Center
Microsoft Small Business Center

Many of these resources also offer FREE products and various other resources that your SMB will benefit from. Be sure to join these networks and get your Business N Synergy.

Missed Your S-Corp Election

Let me start off by thanking the many attendees for our fall seminar series yesterday. We hope that the “Getting Sharp as a Tack on Taxes” seminar provided everyone with timely information that will help you save money on your taxes this coming season. A particulr question came up regarding S-Corps and here is a little information regarding Filing a S-Corp election:

Revenue Procedure 2007-62 allows small businesses that missed filing Form 2553, Election by a Small Business Corporation, before filing their first Form 1120S, U.S. Income Tax Return for an S Corporation, to file both forms simultaneously. The change is effective for taxable years that end on or after Dec. 31, 2007.

Be sure to speak to your tax advisor regarding additional steps to ensure that your S-Corp election is prepared correctly.

Keeping Your Business N Synergy

No Bad Checks to the IRS

The rules are changing for taxpayers who might consider writing a bad check to the IRS. The former rule was a 2 percent penalty of the amount of the check that was payable to the government. The new rule is a flat rate penalty for checks received after May 25th 2007. The new rate is $25 for amounts less than $1250.

Keeping your Business N Synergy

www.thebricogroup.com

Small Business Confidence Drops in 3Q

Bad new from the small business home front. According to the briefing from SMB Finance magazine (Co sponsored by the International Profit Associates), the Small Business Confidence Index slipped three points during the third quarter of this year. The major areas of the country that saw the largest declines were the Midwest, Northeast, and South regions. Details regarding the regions are:

The greatest loss of confidence was among businesses in the southern states where the confidence index dropped to 44 from the 50 recorded during the second quarter.

Small businesses in the western states, where the SBCI reached 47.66, were the only ones who reported improved business prospects from the previous quarter.

Businesses in the Northeast with an SBCI of 42.33 and the Midwest with an SBCI of 39.66 both were both below the national average of 43.


Keeping Your Business N Synergy


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Deadlines, Deadlines, Deadlines

The fall season is a busy time: making quarterly filings and payments; verifying employee, wage, and benefit information; processing tax returns. These are just some of the many deadlines coming for a small business owner. Be sure that you have everything you need to get all of your payroll information filed correctly and on time. Here are the upcoming deadlines for payroll tax filings:

Social Security, Medicare, and withheld income tax. File form 941 for the third quarter of 2007. Deposit any undeposited tax. (If your tax liability is less than $2,500, you can pay it in full with a timely filed return.) If you deposited the tax for the quarter in full and on time, you have until November 12 to file the return.

Federal Unemployment Tax. Deposit the tax owed through September if more than $500.

There also may be state payroll taxes due for the quarter. Be sure to check with your state.

If this seems like a lot to do, there are ways to make filing easier. By using technology and e-filing most of these tasks can be track and completed with little hassle. Check with your tax advisor for more information on how you can make payroll filings easier.

Keeping Your Business N Synergy

www.thebricogroup.com

Tuition is the Perfect Medicine

Today’s tax saving topic deals with personal tax deductions for taxpayers with children in college or prep school who pay tuition. For taxpayers with children in college or prep schools tuition can be a large family expense. Now there is a write-off available for a portion of the tuition that is attributable to health care as a medical expense. You must have a breakdown of the tuition costs that’s attributable to health care to take this deduction. For more information see IRS Revenue Ruling 54-457.

Keeping Your Business N Synergy

www.thebricogroup.com

Tax Provisions….Get your 4th Quarter N Order

The last quarter is upon us!! It is now time for the last push for the year 2007. This is also a great time to take a look at your tax situation so that you will be ready for tax season next year. Now is the time to get a strategy together for tax time, not the yearend. There are a few new tax provisions for 2007, and one many small business owners may want to look at is the Domestic Production Activities Deduction (Code Sec. 199).

This deduction many small businesses qualify for and it allows a deduction from taxable income an amount that is equal to a portion of the small businesses’ gross receipts. The deduction has now been raised to 6 percent (%) up from 3 percent (%) in 2006.

Be sure to speak with your tax advisor for additional rules and qualifications for the deduction. Get your last quarter N order.

Keeping your Business N Synergy

www.thebricogroup.com