Chats: Taxes & the Sharing Economy, Australia Royal Commission investigation on family, domestic violence calls

Australia Royal Commission investigation on family, domestic violence calls

for overhaul of courts systems, increasing of accountability of perpetrators - Guardian Read more on theguardian.com --- You May Be Paying More in Taxes Than You Actually Owe Nancy Mann Jackson Nancy Mann Jackson 146 SHARES      Ever felt like you’re paying too much in taxes? You might be. “If you’re not educated about tax credits and deductions—and you don’t take the ones you’re entitled to—you’re throwing money away and unnecessarily overpaying income taxes,” confirms Stephen Slater, a Certified Public Accountant and managing director at UHY Advisors in New York. Even if you don’t qualify for well-known tax savers like the hefty home mortgage-interest deduction, there are plenty of others you might be able to claim. We’ve rounded up nine credits and deductions that can help you hold onto more of your money this year. Tax Credits A credit reduces your tax liability by an exact dollar value, and is the same for all taxpayers. For example, if you owe $2,000 in taxes and you’re eligible for a $1,000 credit, you’ll only owe $1,000. Some credits are valid even if they result in a negative tax bill, in which case you’ll receive a refund. 1. Retirement Savings Contributions Credit Whether you contribute to an employer-sponsored retirement plan, like a 401(k), or have an IRA, you can earn a credit of 10, 20 or 50 percent of your savings, up to $2,000 ($4,000 if married filing jointly), depending on your adjusted gross income (AGI). For 2015, qualifying incomes are capped at capped at $61,000 for married couples filing jointly and $30,500 for singles and married people filing separately. (The threshold is slightly higher for 2016.) 2. Earned Income Credit Those who are relatively new to the workforce may be eligible for the earned income tax credit. “This was intended to help low-income families, but young adults who are just starting out may earn lower incomes that qualify,” Slater explains. “For instance, if you graduated in the middle of the year then only worked a partial year, your income won’t be as high.” For 2015, people without dependent children who earned $14,820 or less ($20,330 if you’re married filing jointly) can get a credit up to $503. 3. Education Tax Credits If you’re going back to school—whether it’s to earn a degree or acquire new job skills—you may be eligible for a big education credit. The American Opportunity Tax Credit, available for students in their first four years of higher education, offers $2,500 for qualified expenses. And the Lifetime Learning Credit, which can be used for undergrad, grad and professional degrees, as well as other training, credits 20 percent of the first $10,000 spent on education for a maximum of $2,000 per year. (There are income limits, though.) 4. Child Care Tax Credit If you pay for child care for your dependents under the age of 13 so you can work, you can score another credit, says Robert Charron, partner-in-charge of the tax department at Friedman LLP, a New York-based accounting and consulting firm. The amount depends on how much you’re paying, your number of dependents and income. The range is between 20 percent and 35 percent of up to $3,000 worth of care expenses for one dependent and up to $6,000 for two or more dependents. (Note that for married couples to qualify, both spouses must work unless one is incapacitated or a full-time student.) Tax Deductions Unlike credits, deductions are subtracted from your taxable income, not directly from the amount you owe. But since they lower the income on which you’re taxed, they’ll also lower your tax bill. Every taxpayer can take the standard tax deduction, which is $6,300 for an individual taxpayer in 2015. (If you’re married filing jointly, it’s $12,600.) But if you qualify for a number of deductions, you may save more than that by “itemizing”—or listing out each deduction—on Schedule A of Form 1040. Aside from the standard deduction, Charron says deductions you can take without itemizing include student-loan interest, tuition and fees, IRA contributions, moving expenses and alimony. 1. IRA Deduction If you contribute to a traditional IRA, you may be able to deduct some or all of your savings, depending on your adjusted gross income and whether you have access to an employer-sponsored retirement plan. If you do have access to an employer-sponsored retirement account, like a 401(k), you can deduct the full amount you contribute if you’re single and earn $61,000 or less, or you’re married filing jointly and earn $98,000 or less. Single people earning between $61,000 and $71,000, as well as married people filing jointly who earn between $98,000 and $118,000, are eligible for a partial deduction. However, if you do not have access to an employer-sponsored plan, you can deduct your full contribution, regardless of income. But if your spouse has a work-sponsored retirement account, you can only deduct the full amount of your contributions if your combined AGI is $183,000 or less. If your income falls between $183,000 and $193,000, you can take a partial deduction. 2. Employee Business Expense Deduction Did you know you don’t have to be self-employed to deduct certain business costs, thanks to the Employee Business Expense Deduction? If you use your own cell phone, iPad or home office for work, those all represent deductible expenses, Charron says. And if you use your car for business purposes, the IRS allows you to take a deduction of 57.5 cents per mile. “These types of expenses are deductible if the taxpayer itemizes deductions, and if they exceed 2 percent of your adjusted gross income,” Charron says. “Meticulous records are important, so you get every deduction you’re entitled to. Even more important, if you were audited, the IRS requires you to prove the 5Ws: who, what, where, why, when—and also how much.” 3. Charitable Contribution Deduction If you write a check to a church, synagogue or charity, you may realize that amount is tax deductible. But don’t forget that you can also generally deduct the fair-market value of in-kind donations, like old clothes, furniture and household items given to qualified nonprofits. Again, remember to keep good records. If possible, ask for a receipt, including the name of the organization, date and donation amount. 4. Casualty, Disaster or Theft Loss Deduction If you’ve suffered damage to your home, household items or vehicle—say, you had a break-in or you were rear-ended by an uninsured driver—you might find some relief through this deduction. “However, the loss must be reduced by any insurance proceeds,” Charron says. To determine what you can deduct, add up how much you lost due to casualties this year and subtract $100. (If there were multiple events, subtract $100 from each.) Then reduce the entire amount by 10 percent of your adjusted gross income, and that’s what you can deduct. 5. Job Search Expense Deduction “Millennials tend to have many jobs during their careers,” Charron says. “Expenses of looking for a new job in the same line of work are deductible, as long as they are not unemployed for a substantial length of time, in which case the IRS may disallow the deduction.” (And unfortunately, you can’t deduct if you’re looking for your first job, either.) But you’re in luck if you’ve spent money on, say, travel expenses to interviews and fees to employment agencies. Like the deduction for employee-business expenses, these are considered “miscellaneous deductions,” so you’re required to itemize and the total amount must exceed 2 percent of your adjusted gross income. March 8, 2016 Taxes -- Tax Tips for “The Sharing Economy” Business Income March 29, 2016 / TurboTaxBlogTeam A laughing pretty chinese woman with a hat on driving somewhere with her friends in the backseat As technology continues to advance at a quick pace, how we interact with one another and perform our daily tasks is constantly changing. Many entrepreneurs and companies have been able to capitalize on these opportunities, and create a movement around sharing instead of owning. You may have heard of people referring to this as the gig economy, the on-demand economy, collaborative consumption and of course, the sharing economy. Whether you realize it or not, you probably already participate in the sharing economy. Ridesharing services like Uber or Lyft, house renting apps like Airbnb, errand services like TaskRabbit and crowdfunding platforms like Kickstarter all fall under the sharing economy’s umbrella. And if you made income this way in 2015, you’re not alone. According to a study conducted by Intuit, about 3.2 million Americans are already part of the “sharing economy”, and the number is expected to grow to 7.6 million by 2020. Being an entreprenuer within this economy means you may have one or more micro-enterprises or small businesses going on. With April 18th quickly approaching, here are some useful tax tips and tricks for all of the ride-sharers, home-renters, task-doers and more. Report income from Forms 1099-Misc and 1099-K By now you should have received a Form 1099-K, Form 1099-Misc, or both. If you earned income as a freelancer working in the sharing economy, your income will typically be claimed on Form 1099-Misc. Form 1099-K reports income processed through third-party networks, such as PayPal. A payment processor must report income to the IRS using Form 1099-K if your gross payments: •Exceed $20,000, and •Exceed 200 transactions within the tax year So, there would be no Form 1099-K reporting requirement if you made $5,000 on the side selling your handmade items on Etsy. However, you are still responsible for reporting that amount to the IRS by including it as self-employed income. At tax-time, QuickBooks Self-Employed gives you the ability to export your Schedule C information from QuickBooks Self-Employed to TurboTax Online Home & Business to make your annual tax filing easier. Take tax deductions you didn’t know were possible Working in the On-Demand Economy as a freelancer allows you to take tax deductions you would not be eligible for as a W-2 employee. To help make sure your side gig is profitable, take advantage of business expense deductions, like start-up costs, computers, vehicle expenses, and computers. Self-employment tax obligations are not optional You may not think of yourself as self-employed as you engage in your on-demand economy gig, but the IRS does. If you still need to file your taxes don’t worry. Whether you are working as a contractor or you are enjoying making money in the fast growing gig economy, managing your taxes just got easier with QuickBooks Self-Employed and TurboTax Online Home & Business. --- Uncle Sam is waiting for his cut from American taxpayers, including those who participate in the sharing economy - doing side gigs like renting out apartments, driving for Uber or running random errands for strangers on TaskRabbit.com. Join us on March 30 at 2 p.m. ET/11 a.m. PT to discuss how the sharing economy will impact your tax return. Plus, you’ll get tips to avoid unexpected tax bills (or worse). Follow #ReutersTax to join the conversation or watch it right here. ---- Sarah Young Retweeted Lauren Young ✔ ‎@LaurenYoung Q2: How do I know what income is reported to the IRS? #ReutersTax 3m Kerry Freeman EA ‎@kerryfreemanea KerryFreemanEa Fron Phoenix AZ #ReutersTax http://reuters.com #ReuterTax 25s Sarah Young Retweeted Lauren Young ✔ ‎@LaurenYoung Don't forget to use #ReutersTax hashtag to answer your qs cc @JBarrettNYC :-) 3m Lauren Young ✔ ‎@LaurenYoung cc #ReutersTax https://twitter.com/Amyw1119_CPA/status/715238554591498240 … 31s Reuters Money Retweeted Amy Wang, CPA ‎@Amyw1119_CPA A1: We all are! If you use @Airbnb @Uber @lyft or other cell app services, you’re taking part #aicpatax #ReutersTax https://twitter.com/LaurenYoung/status/715237675091951616 … 1m Alyssa Witt ‎@azagrobski A2: Also any 1099 income could be reported from crowd funding sites #ReutersTax 34s Sarah Young Retweeted Lauren Young ✔ ‎@LaurenYoung How the 'Sharing economy' can complicate U.S. tax filings http://reut.rs/23IQwKu #ReutersTax View image on Twitter View image on Twitter 4m Reuters Money Retweeted Lauren Young ✔ ‎@LaurenYoung What to do (and not to do!) when you cannot pay your taxes http://reut.rs/1MSzAXc via @CaitlinKellyNYC #ReutersTax View image on Twitter View image on Twitter 1m Reuters Money Retweeted Chris Taylor ‎@christaylor_nyc A2: If you're getting 1099s, the IRS knows about it #ReutersTax http://gph.is/15x8bIe?tc=1 GIPHY ‎@giphy 1m Sarah Young Retweeted Lauren Young ✔ ‎@LaurenYoung 3.2 million Americans are already part of the sharing economy, with the number expected to grow to 7.6 million by 2020. #ReutersTax 6m Reuters Money Retweeted Trish Evenstad, EA ‎@TrishEvenstad A2:1099 forms are reported to the IRS. You are responsible for reporting all income regardless of if it is reported to the IRS. #ReutersTax 1m Experian Retweeted Lauren Young ✔ ‎@LaurenYoung Q1: Who is part of the “sharing economy”? #ReutersTax 7m Sarah Young ‎@sthurberyoung @LaurenYoung A1L: Not sure if I fit but our family shares as much as we can with each other & community. #ReutersTax 49s Ubiquity Savings ‎@ubiquitysavings A2: All your income should be reported to the #IRS. No one wants that audit! #ReutersTax https://twitter.com/LaurenYoung/status/715238692802039809 … 54s Reuters Money Retweeted Wise Bread ‎@wisebread A2: Better safe than sorry! Don't get audited, report all income regardless of whether or not a client reports it.. #ReutersChat #reuterstax 1m Reuters Money Retweeted Jennifer Barrett ‎@JBarrettNYC Q2. Businesses must file1099s for payments of $600+/yr. But you’re required to report ALL income. #ReutersTax https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/i1099msc.pdf … 1m TurboTax Retweeted Lauren Young ✔ ‎@LaurenYoung HAPPENING NOW: #ReutersTax chat. Ask us your tax qs. 1m Reuters Money Retweeted Navicore Solutions ‎@navicorePR A2 Report you 1099 forms #ReutersTax 1m Reuters Money Retweeted Everlance ‎@everlance Sharing economy refers to p2p sharing of access to good and services, 3 main participants are suppliers, consumers, platforms. #ReutersTax 1m Reuters Money Retweeted Jennifer Barrett ‎@JBarrettNYC Q2. Common myth = If you don't get Form 1099 or if check =<$600, it's not taxable. Not true, says IRS. #ReutersTax https://www.irs.gov/uac/Reporting-Miscellaneous-Income … 2m =========================== Lauren Young ✔ ‎@LaurenYoung Tips for sharing economy workers to get their paperwork in order http://reut.rs/1XAJ66S @WaveApplication @SherpaShare #ReutersTax Photo published for 'Sharing economy' can complicate U.S. tax filings 'Sharing economy' can complicate U.S. tax filings Uncle Sam is waiting for his cut from American taxpayers, including those who participate in the so-called sharing economy - doing side gigs like renting out their apartments, driving for Uber or... reuters.com 5h Benita Matofska Retweeted Lauren Young ✔ ‎@LaurenYoung 3.2 million Americans are already part of the sharing economy, with the number expected to grow to 7.6 million by 2020. #ReutersTax 5h Benita Matofska Retweeted Lauren Young ✔ ‎@LaurenYoung How sharing economy workers can find tax help: http://reut.rs/1XAJ66S #ReutersTax Photo published for 'Sharing economy' can complicate U.S. tax filings 'Sharing economy' can complicate U.S. tax filings Uncle Sam is waiting for his cut from American taxpayers, including those who participate in the so-called sharing economy - doing side gigs like renting out their apartments, driving for Uber or... reuters.com 4h Global Economist Retweeted NAEA ‎@Tax_Experts A big shout-out to @TropicalTax @kerryfreemanea @TrishEvenstad for participating in the #ReutersTax chat this afternoon! 3h Lauren Young Retweeted NAEA ‎@Tax_Experts A big shout-out to @TropicalTax @kerryfreemanea @TrishEvenstad for participating in the #ReutersTax chat this afternoon! 3h Reuters Money Retweeted NAEA ‎@Tax_Experts A big shout-out to @TropicalTax @kerryfreemanea @TrishEvenstad for participating in the #ReutersTax chat this afternoon! 3h Cameron Huddleston Retweeted Lauren Young ✔ ‎@LaurenYoung #ReutersTax shout out to @TTaxLisa @DebbiKing @azagrobski @IRAGuru4EdSlott @CHLebedinsky & more for awesome tax tips! The hour flew by... 4h NAEA Retweeted Trish Evenstad, EA ‎@TrishEvenstad Find an enrolled agent http://www.eatax.org #ReutersTax #EnrolledAgent https://twitter.com/TaxAcctFirmsUSA/status/715251311785156610 … 4h NAEA ‎@Tax_Experts A big shout-out to @TropicalTax @kerryfreemanea @TrishEvenstad for participating in the #ReutersTax chat this afternoon! 3h Jose F. Retweeted TurboTax ✔ ‎@turbotax A6: Tax deductions for #bloggers can = BIG tax #savings! Here are a few: http://tax.sh/2321JEr #ReutersTax Photo published for Unknown Tax Deductions for Bloggers Unknown Tax Deductions for Bloggers Running your own blog can be both rewarding and challenging. You have the satisfaction of being your own boss, working on your own schedule, providing for the family, and and meeting your career go… blog.turbotax.intuit.com 5h Lauren Gard Retweeted Lauren Young ✔ ‎@LaurenYoung Got a tax question? We've gathered a team of experts who are online for the next 45 minutes to give you answers. Be sure to use #ReutersTax. 5h john maina Retweeted Reuters Money ✔ ‎@ReutersMoney TODAY 2 pm ET/11 am PT #ReutersTax sharing economy chat w/ @christaylor_nyc & more. Details http://reut.rs/1XAHxGd View image on Twitter View image on Twitter 7h Kerranna Retweeted Lauren Young ✔ ‎@LaurenYoung 3.2 million Americans are already part of the sharing economy, with the number expected to grow to 7.6 million by 2020. #ReutersTax 5h Bob Moulton Retweeted Tax Acct Firms USA ‎@TaxAcctFirmsUSA #ReutersTax @LaurenYoung And don't be afraid to seek professional #tax help; it may save you time & money. View image on Twitter View image on Twitter 4h Ubiquity Savings Retweeted Jeffrey Levine, CPA ‎@IRAGuru4EdSlott ICYMI: For the last hour a great twitter chat on #taxes going on. Use #ReutersTax to see what you missed 4h SJCS Retweeted NeighborWorks ✔ ‎@neighborworks RT @ReutersMoney: Haven't done your taxes yet? You can still get expert help http://reut.rs/25uuIDf #ReutersTax View image on Twitter View image on Twitter 5h SJCS Retweeted NeighborWorks ✔ ‎@neighborworks A5: Don't forget to fund your IRA or myRA. Learn more about myRA #retirement savings: http://ow.ly/1063hq #ReutersTax 5h SJCS Retweeted NeighborWorks ✔ ‎@neighborworks RT @LaurenYoung: The IRS never phones: four ways to avoid tax scams http://reut.rs/1UdIJB8 #ReutersTax View image on Twitter View image on Twitter 4h SJCS Retweeted NeighborWorks ✔ ‎@neighborworks Workers in the sharing & gig economy have to plan for the downtimes: http://ow.ly/1060Yo #ReutersTax Photo published for The Uber business model loses some of its sheen The Uber business model loses some of its sheen The Uber business model, it seems, is losing some of its sheen and isn't one size fits all. Inside the shifting American workforce. cnbc.com 5h Acorns Retweeted Grow ‎@Grow_mag You may be able to deduct work-related expenses as itemized deductions