first time abatement

Reboot Your Home Router – FBI Issues Public Service Announcement

June 20, 2018 by Frank

Reboot Your Home Router

FBI Issues Public Service Announcement

You May Be a Target

The FBI issued a Public Service Announcement (PSA) on May 25 recommending that any owner of small office and home office routers power cycle (reboot) their devices. Foreign cyber criminals have compromised hundreds of thousands of home and office routers and other networked devices worldwide. The criminals used VPN Filter malware to target small office and home office routers. The malware is able to perform multiple functions, including possible information collection, device exploitation, and blocking network traffic.

The malware targets routers produced by several manufacturers and network-attached storage devices. The malware is able to render small office and home office routers inoperable. The malware can potentially collect information passing through the router.

The FBI recommends rebooting the routers to temporarily disrupt the malware and aid the potential identification of infected devices. Owners are advised to consider disabling remote management settings on devices and secure with strong passwords and encryption when enabled. Network devices should also be upgraded to the latest available versions of firmware.

If you would like to discuss your business or personal tax planning, tax preparation and other financial concerns with an experienced tax professional, we invite you to call 610-594-2601 today to make an appointment at our Exton PA CPA office to discuss your situation. You can also schedule a consultation at Click Here.

Copyright © 2018 Keystone Financial Solutions, P.C. All rights reserved. BE SURE TO READ THE DISCLAIMER PAGE: Content in this blog is for educational purposes only and should not be considered as the rendering of tax, legal or investment advice. The publisher of this blog makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information herein, will not be liable for any errors or omissions, and shall not assume liability for any losses, injuries, or damages from the display or use of this information.

About F. Bryan Haarlander, EA, CTRS:

Bryan Haarlander is an IRS licensed Enrolled Agent and who owns and operates a specialized tax services firm serving clients in the western suburbs of Philadelphia, PA, which includes the cities of Chester Springs, Coatesville, Collegeville, Devon, Downingtown, Exton, Frazer, King of Prussia, Paoli, Philadelphia, Phoenixville, Pottstown, Radnor, Reading, Wayne, West Chester in Berks, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery and Philadelphia Counties, as well as clients in Delaware, New Jersey, New York and throughout the continental USA.

A Certified Tax Resolution Specialist, Bryan is well-known for his IRS tax resolution expertise and his book How to Resolve Your IRS Tax Debt Problems.

IRS Examining Education Credits

June 13, 2018 by Frank

IRS Examining Education Credits

Education Credits Catch IRS Attention

The IRS is carefully monitoring taxpayers who claim education credits on their personal income tax returns due to increased filing of fraudulent returns. Accordingly, IRS audits of taxpayers claiming education credits are increasing. Can you substantiate your claimed education credits?

As we have been sharing with our clients, the Form 1098-T used by educational institutions is practically worthless. In fact, these forms (through the 2017 tax year) may have contributed to IRS audits. Most educational institutions left Box 1 blank and completed Box 2. Box 1 reflects the payments received by the educational institution from the taxpayer; whereas Box 2 reflects the amounts billed by the educational institution. The IRS could care less about the amounts billed. It bases the credit computation on the amounts paid. If Box 1 is left blank, then the IRS does not know how much was paid by the taxpayer for qualified tuition payments.

In addition to the problems associated with the Form 1098-T, the IRS [Read more…] about IRS Examining Education Credits

You May Be Running Out of Time If You Own Offshore Accounts

June 11, 2018 by Frank

You May Be Running Out of Time

If You Own Offshore Accounts

September 28, 2018 Effective Date

The U.S. Government, concerned about offshore tax evasion, implemented the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) which included enhanced enforcement, onerous penalty provisions, criminal prosecutions, and implemented third-party reporting.

By way of background, we suggest you read our June 4, 2013, June 21, 2012 and August 9, 2016 blogs that discussed the Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) that requires certain U.S. persons who have a financial interest in or signature authority over a foreign financial account to report the account annually to the Department of Treasury by electronically filing Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) Form 114, Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (commonly called FBAR), through FinCEN’s BSA E-Filing System. In addition to FBAR reporting requirements, in certain circumstances FATCA requires filing Form 8938, Statement of Specified Foreign Financial Assets, with the federal Form 1040 income tax return.

WHO MUST FILE A FBAR? [Read more…] about You May Be Running Out of Time If You Own Offshore Accounts

ITEMIZED TAX DEDUCTIONS – 2017 Tax Cuts & Jobs Act What You Need to Know

June 7, 2018 by Frank

ITEMIZED TAX DEDUCTIONS

2017 Tax Cuts & Jobs Act

What You Need to Know

The 2017 Tax Cuts & Jobs Act (TCJA) significantly impacted homeowners who typically itemized their mortgage interest, real estate taxes, out-of-pocket medical expenses, unreimbursed employee expenses and charitable donations on Schedule A of Form 1040.

To better understand these tax law changes, first look at page 2 of your 2017 Form 1040, line 40. If you find [Read more…] about ITEMIZED TAX DEDUCTIONS – 2017 Tax Cuts & Jobs Act What You Need to Know

IRS Form W-4 – How Many Allowances to Claim?

May 30, 2018 by Frank

IRS Form W-4

How Many Allowances to Claim?

2017 Tax Cuts & Jobs Act

Impacts Federal Tax Withholdings

Beginning in 2018, many taxpayers are concerned that they may be having their federal income taxes over-withheld as a result of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) which reduced income tax rates and increased the standard deduction.

The trick with estimated taxes is to pay a sufficient amount of estimated tax to avoid a penalty, but not to overpay. That’s because while the IRS will refund the overpayment when you file your return, it won’t pay you interest on it. If you receive a substantial refund from the IRS, that is comparable to giving the IRS an interest-free loan. That obviously is not good financial planning.

Planning Alert:

Due to the significant changes made by the TCJA, the IRS has updated its Tax Withholding Calculator to better enable taxpayers to compute the proper amount of taxes to withhold from their paychecks. If you are a wage earner (W-2 employee), you should consider using the IRS’s Tax Withholding Calculator to determine if your federal income tax withholdings are sufficient to avoid substantially over-withholding your taxes, and also to avoid under withholding issues which may be subject to underpayment penalties.

With respect to under withholding, keep in mind that the IRS wants to collect the taxes due it as early as possible during the year. Taxpayers who underpay income taxes during the tax year and pay the balance due on April 15 (or later) may find themselves subject to a penalty in the form of interest on the amount underpaid.

To avoid underpaying taxes during the year, [Read more…] about IRS Form W-4 – How Many Allowances to Claim?