by Fresh Start Tax | Mar 15, 2014 | Tax Help
Tips about Taxes and the Health Care Law
The health care law has provisions that may affect your personal income taxes.
How the law may affect you may depend on your employment status, whether you participate in a tax favored health plan and your age.
Tips about how the law may affect you:
1. Employment Status
If you are employed your employer may report the value of the health insurance provided to you on your W-2 in Box 12 with Code DD.
However, it is not taxable.
If you are self-employed, you can deduct the cost of health insurance premiums, within limits, on your income tax return.
2. Tax Favored Health Plans
If you have a health flexible spending arrangement (FSA) at work, money you put into it normally reduces your taxable income.
If you have a health savings account (HSA) at work, money your employer puts into it for you, within limits, is not taxable.
Money you put into an HSA usually counts as a deduction and can lower your taxes.
Money you take from an HSA to use for qualified medical expenses is not taxable income; however, withdrawals for other purposes are taxable and can even be subject to an additional tax.
If you have a health reimbursement arrangement (HRA) at work, money you receive from it is generally not taxable.
3. Age
If you are age 65 or older, the threshold for itemized medical deductions remains at 7.5 percent of your Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) until 2017; for others the threshold increased to 10 percent of AGI in 2013. Your AGI is shown on your Form 1040 tax form.
Tips about Taxes and the Health Care Law
by Fresh Start Tax | Mar 13, 2014 | Tax Help
Did you change your name last year?
Did your dependent have a name change?
If the answer to either question is yes, be sure to notify the Social Security Administration before you file your tax return with the IRS.
This is important because the name on your tax return must match SSA records.
If they don’t, you’re likely to get a letter from the IRS about the mismatch. And if you expect a refund, this may delay when you’ll get it.
Be sure to contact Social Security Administration if:
You got married or divorced and you changed your name.
A dependent you claim had a name change.
An example, this would apply if you adopted a child and that child’s last name changed.
File Form SS-5, Application for a Social Security Card, with the SSA to let them know about a name change.
Tip: You can get the form on SSA.gov by calling 800-772-1213 or at an SSA office.
You can file Form SS-5 at an SSA office or by mail.
Your new card will have the same SSN as before but will show your new name.
If you have an adopted child who does not have a SSN, use a temporary Adoption Taxpayer Identification Number on your tax form.
You can apply for an ATIN by filing Form W-7A, Application for Taxpayer Identification Number for Pending U.S. Adoptions, with the IRS.
Get the form on IRS.gov or by calling 800-TAX-FORM (800-829-3676).
by Fresh Start Tax | Mar 11, 2014 | Tax Help
By the end of February, more than 48 million tax refunds had been issued the IRS today announced , an increase of 5.6 percent compared to the same time last year.
As of March 1, the average refund this year is $3,034, up 3 percent compared to the average refund amount for the same time last year.
Almost 88 percent of refunds to date have been directly deposited into the accounts of taxpayers, saving them time and a trip to the bank.
The number of returns filed electronically is up slightly from the same time last year however, the number of taxpayers filing from home computers is up 7.5 percent.
At the end of the fourth week of the filing season, the IRS had received almost 40 percent of the returns it expects to receive during 2014..
by Fresh Start Tax | Mar 10, 2014 | Tax Help
IRS Taxpayer Advocate Service – What you need to Know
If IRS cannot help you, call affordable Former IRS agents and Managers, 954-492-0088
1. The Taxpayer Advocate Service (TAS) is an independent organization within the IRS and is your voice at the IRS.
2. We help taxpayers whose problems are causing financial difficulty. This includes businesses as well as individuals.
3. You may be eligible for our help if you’ve tried to resolve your tax problem through normal IRS channels and have gotten nowhere, or you believe an IRS procedure just isn’t working as it should.
4. As a taxpayer, you have rights that the IRS must respect.
We’ll help you understand those rights and ensure that they’re protected in any contacts with the IRS.
5. If you qualify for our help, you’ll be assigned to one advocate who will be with you at every turn.
And our service is always free.
6. We have at least one local taxpayer advocate office in every state, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico.
You can call your advocate, whose number is in your local directory, in Publication 1546, Taxpayer Advocate Service .
Your Voice at the IRS, and on our website at www.irs.gov/advocate. You can also call us toll-free at 1-877-777-4778.
7. Our tax toolkit at www.TaxpayerAdvocate.irs.gov has basic tax information, details about tax credits (for individuals and businesses), and lots more.
8. TAS also handles large-scale or systemic problems that affect many taxpayers.
9. If you know of one of these broader issues, please report it to us at www.irs.gov/sams.
10. TAS is here to help you because when you’re dealing with a tax problem, the worst thing you can do is nothing at all!
IRS Taxpayer Advocate Service – IRS Help & Representation – Ft.Lauderdale, Miami, West Palm Beach
by Fresh Start Tax | Mar 10, 2014 | Tax Help
Retirement Savings with a Tax Credit – What You Need to Know
If you contribute to a retirement plan, like a 401(k) or an IRA, you may be eligible for the Saver’s Credit.
The Saver’s Credit can help you save for retirement and reduce the tax you owe.
Here are facts from the IRS that you should know about this Tax Savers Credit credit:
1. The Saver’s Credit is the short name for the Retirement Savings Contribution Credit.
It can be worth up to $2,000 for married couples filing a joint return. The credit is worth up to $1,000 for single taxpayers.
2. Eligibility depends on your filing status and the amount of your yearly income.
You may be eligible for the credit on your 2013 tax return if you’re:
• Married filing separately or a single taxpayer with income up to $29,500
• Head of household with income up to $44,250
• Married filing jointly with income up to $59,000
3. Other special rules that apply to the credit include:
• You must be at least 18 years of age.
• You can’t have been a full-time student in 2013.
• You can’t be claimed as a dependent on another person’s tax return.
4. You must have contributed to a 401(k) plan or similar workplace plan by the end of the year to claim this credit. However, you can contribute to an IRA by the due date of your tax return and still have it count for 2013. The due date for most people is April 15, 2014.
5. File Form 8880, Credit for Qualified Retirement Savings Contributions, to claim the credit.
Retirement Savings with a Tax Credit, – What You Need to Know
