Tax Prep by Deb

Be careful with DocuSign. I am currently in the middle of a real estate sale whereby my agent has sent me documents to sign, (Not thru DocuSign) and just yesterday I go an email from her stating she wanted to share a document with me, to open the document they wanted me to give my email account credentials, very similar to my last year problem with drop box. I will never again sign in using my email credentials. If it is legitimate you should not have to sign in with anything or if you have an account at least with that account credentials.

They need to go to a not for profit debt counselor. Or they can call their card companies direct and negotiate with them.

Sorry for the long title. Does anyone know if the new tax bill kept the deduction for self employed health insurance?

Mom and dad should get short gap exclusion but the kids won't, however the pnalty for the kids is less than if it was the parents (at least that' the way I remember it, haven't looked at it recently, my brain is a bit foggy.).

Tom, I tried logging on today and first of all it said my password was wrong, which it was not as I just reset it and know for a certainty it was right. So I had to reset my password again. The entire system is sooooooo slow in loading any page that I tried so much so to the point I gave up. I will be moving in a few weeks and was hoping to see how to update all my info before the move comes, but couldn't because of the slow nature. I think they are still working out kinks.

Is this part of the software or is it an add on? Considering Drake for next year and this would be a pkus.

Two lines on postcard: 1. How much did you Make? 2. Send it in!

Done!

I haven't tried bit locker yet, but I can tell you first hand Symantec Disc encryption would not allow the update in. Security patches were OK but I had two brand new machines that wouldn't upgrade to the newest version of Windows 10 and when I finally figured out that the only thing these two machines had in common was the encryption software, I researched it online and sure enough Windows must have access to the entire hard drive and something in Symantec keeps this from happening. They did have a script for the anniversary addition but when mine was trying to update to the creator edition I couldn't find anything. You can not believe the amount of money this journey has cost me in the last year!

Exactly. There is no way to stop it you can only temporarily postpone them.

Not so. I have Windows 10 Pro and all I can do is pause the update, and that is not indefinitely. If you can block updates please tell me how! Every time a major one comes I end up with something else broke. Also a note to any who may be running Symantec Disc Encryption software, Windows 10 will not be able to do any major update with the hard drive encrypted. I have had my hard drive encrypted using Symantec and I kid you not, on the last update to the creator edition it locked my computer down so tight it cost me $450.00 to get it usable again. Finally updated to the Creator version last week and now I have a printing issue as a result. Some programs, not all will not print unless I go and find a dll file and end it in the task master. It has been a royal pain and now another one is coming tomorrow? I haven't recovered from the last.

I received mine today. I do believe it is legit as it is not asking us to click on any link just reminding us that we need an active email but doesn't have to be a company email.

I had a client who got that letter last year. She did not have any 529 plan. By the time I got the letter she had one day to respond, so I had her call to get an extension so she could pull her records and the IRS Agent pulled up her account to and could see no reason for the letter and told her everything was fine. Never heard anything else since. So it's worth a try to call and ask?

If an employee has a loan or mortgage conditioned on having direct deposit it is between him and the bank not the employer. It is not a requirement that I am aware of that an employee can dictate to his employer his method of payment. If it sounds like I'm harsh I apologize but I have seen way to many examples where the employee starts small in his demand, oops I mean request, than demands, oops again, I mean request other things until finally the employee is calling all the shots. Direct deposit is not free to the employer. In the case of my client we use Quickbooks to process payroll and Intuitive request an additional $1.75 to process direct deposit. Now times that by 10 who get paid weekly and payroll processing has gotten far more expensive than printing a check. If I could deduct that from the employees check maybe so. But I call almost guarantee you that the employee would be livid even at the thought of having to pay for that convenience! At least in my clients situation!

Only ones seem to be those who owed. I have not heard from anyone with a refund.

Everyone of my clients who owed the penalty and paid it by the due date have received a bill. You have to call and have them move the payment over. A royal mess!

I'm with Jack on this one. Square is great! I have never had a problem and they are very generous with their hardware. I have several swipers including the one that is used for the chip cards. Money is usually in my account the next day. Never ever had an issue. Paypal on the otherhand, well I don't want to go into it right now, but if they were the only ones out there I would never use them. We did not part on good terms! I won in the end, but they lost in the long run!

Problem I ran into with one of my clients who was going to offer it, was that the payroll had to be processed earlier for the employees to get their paycheck direct deposited. For example we did payroll every Friday, but for him to get his money I would have to do it Thursday. Technically I would have to do two payroll's just to accommodate the one employee that wanted direct deposit. It would be fine if everyone wanted it, but out of 7 he was the only one. We chose not to offer for that very reason.

You can reset the password with your customer id# and installation code. I believe all you have to do is click either forgot password or reset not sure the exact wording because I'm not in front of my computer. It happened to mine as well because you haven't logged in when the password change was required so it simply locked you out. Hope this helps!

Thanks to everyone who responded. I did try to apply for a new EIN and as we all thought, it was rejected so the old one is still active. Yeah! I am so glad this client is starting his business back up as he is among my top 2 favorite clients. He listens to and always asks advice before he does anything major that will effect him tax wise. He is one of the few I work for that actually takes into account that although he may be paying someone 15.00 per hour that is not the true cost to him because of payroll taxes, work comp, ect... I am truly looking forward to working for him again!

I'm here too! Working on an S Corp and a few other odds and ends.

Yes Cathy I did see the info you spoke of, but he really doesn't fit those situations, one has to do with bankruptcy. So it was my understanding too, that the number stays with him and still should be ok to use. I know years ago I had a situation were we marked on the 941 the final wages were paid and later we used the same number so it doesn't look like anything has changed since then.

I have a question and hopefully some one here will know the answer. Early 2000 I had a client and I helped him get his employer identification number with IRS as a sole proprietor. About 5 years later he incorporated and a new number was issued for the corporation. The corporation was dissolved about three years later and he as done nothing but tend to his rentals since. He is now getting ready to start back up again but as a sole proprietor so will he need to get a new number or can he use the first one that we got early in 2000?

I totally agree. In California we have been regulated since I started in the early 1990's. The continued educational requirements were adjusted a few years ago so that it would meet IRS requirements, so as a result if I am qualified in California I am able to be listed as a Registered Tax Preparer for IRS's directory. I think this is perfectly logical, however there are very few states that regulate tax preparers. Until recently only California and Oregon. Today there are just another handful that have any requirements that I am aware of.

Does anyone have a good source for some classes (online or otherwise) that will teach at least the basics of Corporation and Partnership tax return prep? I have a few of my clients who are moving from sole to corps and I hate to loose them, but I feel dumb when it comes to trying to figure them out. I am a quick learner but would really love to take some kind of class. Any thoughts?