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Issue highlights another reason to file and make remittance payments electronically

The Internal Revenue Service admitted it destroyed roughly 30 million unprocessed informational returns from the 2020 tax year.

Often taxpayers will provide their tax preparer with most of their pertinent information needed to file tax returns. However, they sometimes forget to pass along notices from a tax authority, which could impact returns.

For instance, when the Ohio Department of Taxation identifies a perceived calculation error in an individual tax return, they issue a variance notice to the taxpayer. This notice compares the figures on the return as filed to the department's recalculated figures and allows for the taxpayer to disagree with some or all of the adjustments by providing additional documentation.

The Internal Revenue Service recently announced anyone, who already took a required minimum distribution (RMD) in 2020 from certain retirement accounts, now has the opportunity to roll those funds back into a retirement account following the CARES Act RMD waiver for 2020.

This 60-day rollover period for any RMDs already taken this year has been extended to Aug. 31, 2020, in order to give taxpayers time to take advantage of this opportunity.

The deadline is approaching for private employers to “true-up” with the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation (BWC).

A press release posted on the Ohio BWC website reminds employers they have until Aug. 15 to complete an important action necessary for the BWC to accurately calculate premiums.

According to the press release, prior to each policy year (July 1- June 30), employers' payroll amount, the basis for their premium, is estimated based on historical data. When the policy year-ends, employers are required to true-up, which means they must report the actual payroll for the policy year that ended on June 30 and reconcile any difference in premium paid.

WASHINGTON –The Internal Revenue Service recently released (2/28/18 irs.gov) an updated Withholding Calculator on IRS.gov and a new version of Form W-4 to help taxpayers check their 2018 tax withholding following passage of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act in December. 

The IRS urges taxpayers to use these tools to make sure they have the right amount of tax taken out of their paychecks.

“Following the major changes in the tax law, the IRS encourages employees to check their paychecks to help ensure they’re having the right amount of tax withheld for their personal situation,” said Acting IRS Commissioner David Kautter.

The IRS recently announced additional requirements for taxpayers and tax professionals to verify their identities when they call as part of security efforts.

Taxpayers and professionals should have the following documents ready when they call:

• Social Security numbers and birth dates for those who were named on the tax return in question
• An Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN) letter if the taxpayer has one in lieu of a Social Security number (SSN)
• Filing status – Single, Head of Household, Married Filing Joint or Married Filing Separate
• The prior-year tax return. Telephone assistors may need to verify taxpayer identity with information from the return before answering certain questions
• A copy of the tax return in question
• Any IRS letters or notices received by the taxpayer

Some taxpayers receive emails that appear to be from the Taxpayer Advocacy Panel (TAP) about a tax refund. These emails are a phishing scam, trying to trick victims into providing personal and financial information.

 Do not respond or click any link. If you receive this scam, forward it to phishing@irs.gov and note that it seems to be a scam phishing for your information.

TAP is a volunteer board that advises the IRS on systemic issues affecting taxpayers. It never requests, and does not have access to, any taxpayer’s personal and financial information.

If you use one of the many online platforms available to rent a spare bedroom, provide car rides, or to connect and provide a number of other goods or services, you’re involved in what is sometimes called the sharing or gig economy.

An emerging area of activity in the past few years, the sharing economy has changed how people commute, travel, rent vacation accommodations and perform many other activities.

Also referred to as the on-demand, gig or access economy, the sharing economy allows individuals and groups to utilize technology advancements to arrange transactions to generate revenue from assets they possess - (such as cars and homes) - or services they provide - (such as household chores or technology services).

WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service released Notice 1036, which updates the income-tax withholding tables for 2018 reflecting changes made by the tax reform legislation enacted last month. This is the first in a series of steps that IRS will take to help improve the accuracy of withholding following major changes made by the new tax law.

"As advertised, most taxpayers will see a reduction of their federal withholding as a result of the recently-passed Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA).  Keep in mind, though, that the full effect of the TCJA on individuals’ tax and financial situations will only begin to be known a year from now, when taxpayers begin to file their 2018 income tax returns," said Zinner Tax Partner Howard Kass, CPA, CGMA, AEP.