September, 2014
Returns on Extension are due soon
Returns for entities like LLCs and Corporations, on extension, are due 9/15. Personal returns on extension are due 10/15.
I have 46 returns on extension—more than last year at this time. I will work on the remaining returns on a first come, first served basis. I will be on the East Coast September 20–29 and not working on personal (or late entity) tax returns. After October 15th, I will go back to the East Coast for several weeks.
What happens if you don’t file on time?
For an individual, the federal penalty for “failure to file” is 5% of the unpaid balance for each month, or part of month that the return is late, up to a maximum of 25%. (There is no penalty if the return shows no tax due.) If you have a “failure to pay” penalty for the same month(s), the filing penalty is reduced by the failure to pay penalty. California charges up to 25% with a minimum penalty of the lesser of $135 or 100% of the tax due.
For an LLC or S Corporation, the federal penalty for “failure to file” is $195 for each month, or part of a month, up to twelve months, multiplied by the number of members/shareholders during the year (!). If tax is due, the penalty is 5% of the amount due up to a maximum of 25%. California also charges 5% of the tax due for failure to file up to 25%.
If you were on extension but don’t file by the extended deadline, the extension is ‘vacated’ and you go back to the original due date of 3/15 or 4/15. So, if you file one day late, on 9/16 or 10/16, you’re already at the maximum late penalty.
If you owe money too, there is interest and penalties on the amount due.
If you think you won’t be able to get me your materials, let me know soon, and I’ll refer you to someone who would be willing to file your return late for 2013.
Classes – Basic Payroll and Schedule C
Here’s a link to the seminars page on my website: www.taxbuddha.com/seminars.html
Basic Payroll
In conjunction with the IRS and EDD, I’m going to be doing some Basic
Payroll seminars coming up in the near future. We don’t cover wages for apartment managers.
Basic Payroll Seminar runs 9 am 3 pm with an hour for lunch
The next seminar will be:
San Francisco at the SBA office 455 Market Street, 6th floor
(I take BART to Embarcadero or Montgomery Street)
Thursday, September 11, 9:00 am – 3:00 pm
Register by going to http://www.edd.ca.gov/Payroll_Tax_Seminars/ and find your favorite location.
These seminars have proven to be very popular for business owners and bookkeepers, plus they’re free.
How to Prepare your Own Schedule C
Get ready for next year and filing your own Schedule C for last year. Review what the IRS wants to know from you and how to report it for your business. This is a class for business owners who need a basic understanding of their 1040 Schedule C tax forms. We’ll also talk about what to do with the numbers once you have them. We can’t guarantee you won’t get audited, but this class will make it less likely.
I will be at the US SBA office in San Francisco at 455 Market Street, 6th Floor.
Tuesday, November 18, 6:00 pm – 8:30 pm
The Eightfold Path to Pay Less Tax and Avoid an Audit
Eight basic things business owners want to know printed in a booklet in “executive summary” form. This is ten years of working with the IRS Tax Code distilled down so it doesn’t take YOU ten years.
Just another way we’re trying to simplify your life. And the purchase is tax deductible!
You can order from Amazon.com. Here’s the link to Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Eightfold-Path-Less-Avoid-Audit/dp/0615233422/ref=sr_1_22?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1226611038&sr=1-22
The booklet also contains sections on how returns are selected for audit,
when to seek professional help, and how long to keep your tax records.
Little Box of Inc: Incorporations Made Easy published on Kindle
The book with tips about how the S Corporation works is now published to Amazon’s Kindle, updated with additional information about S Corporations, and can be found by searching for Andrew S Rogers as author, and click on “Kindle.” Here’s the blurb:
Considering incorporating as an S Corporation? This booklet will help you understand how the S Corporation works, what you need to do to become incorporated and what you need to do once you have a corporation to stay out of trouble. The structure and the requirements are reviewed, as well as helpful tips to use your corporation to reduce your tax liability and retain your status as an S Corporation. I’ve worked with S Corporations for many years, and as a tax preparer, I can choose the kind of entity I have for my business: I choose the S Corporation myself, and I’ve convinced many of my fellow tax preparers to incorporate as well. I’ve divided the information into clear, easy-to-understand topics, and cross-referenced sections when it might be helpful.
After you’ve read this material, you can view on-line videos via YouTube.com for free to access more advanced information about S Corporations. You may also be interested in my “Choice of Entity” class – see below.
Want to be the first person in your tax bracket to sport the fabulous Tax
Buddha Messenger Bag? I’ve now got a “shop” on Café Press
at www.cafepress.com/TaxBuddha in
case you’d like to order your own
Tax Buddha logo items. The messenger bag came out particularly well, not
quite “saffron,” but easy to find in an airport.
Our northern California occasional in Alameda:
1516 Oak Street, Suite 109
Alameda CA 94501
Phone numbers are:
Phone (510) 332-0401
Fax (925) 478-2726
“You too can be enlightened about tax” — Tax Buddha