Tax Tips

RUSSO CPA Tax Tips, how filing status affects your tax return 2022

One Reason to File Your 2023 Tax Return Early

The 2023 individual income tax return filing season will open soon. Even if you typically don’t file until much closer to the April 15 deadline (or you file for an extension), consider filing earlier this year. Why? You may be able to protect yourself from tax identity theft.

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Russo CPA Tax tips pre wedding checklist

Did You Get Married in 2023?

Your filing status options for your 2023 income tax return depend on your marital status on December 31. The married-filing-jointly status is typically the most beneficial way for married taxpayers to file, but it’s a good idea to take a “what-if” look at the married filing separately status.

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3 Strategies for Estimated Tax Payments

Many individuals today are self-employed or generate income from interest, rent, dividends, and other sources. If you’re in this situation, you could be risking penalties if you don’t pay enough taxes during the year through estimated tax payments and withholding. (The due date for the final estimated payment for 2023 is January 16, 2024.)

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Russo CPA Tax Tips Businesses can save taxes by acquiring and placing assets in service by year end

Business Savings: Acquiring & Placing Assets in Service by Year-End

Under Section 179 of the Internal Revenue Code, companies can “expense” the full cost of qualifying fixed assets to reduce their taxable income. This means they can deduct the purchase amount currently rather than having to depreciate the asset over many years. Both new and used fixed assets can qualify. The election is available for qualified property placed in service anytime during the tax year.

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Tips to Find Out if Your Gift is Taxable

Make 2023 Annual Exclusion Gifts by December 31

”One of the most effective estate-tax-saving techniques is also one of the simplest: making use of the gift tax annual exclusion. It allows you to give to an unlimited number of family or friends cash or property valued up to a “specified” amount each year without owing gift tax or using up any of your lifetime gift and estate tax exemption. For 2023, the annual exclusion amount is $17,000.“One of the most effective estate-tax-saving techniques is also one of the simplest: making use of the gift tax annual exclusion. It allows you to give to an unlimited number of family or friends cash or property valued up to a “specified” amount each year without owing gift tax or using up any of your lifetime gift and estate tax exemption. For 2023, the annual exclusion amount is $17,000.

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Withdrawing ERC Claims

Halted Employee Retention Credit Claim Withdrawals

Recently, the IRS halted the processing of claims for the Employee Retention Credit (ERC) due to a high volume of fraudulent claims. The moratorium is through at least the end of 2023. ERC claims that were already filed are now subject to longer processing, including heightened scrutiny to weed out fraud.

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What Exactly Is a “Small Business”?

Although your business may seem big to you, you may wonder how the government classifies it. A recent report by the Joint Committee on Taxation, a nonpartisan committee of the U.S. Congress, discusses what a “small business” is for tax purposes. As the report states, there’s no one definition of a small business. Instead, different definitions apply depending on the context, various criteria, and certain thresholds.

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