Phoenix Arizona CPA | Arizona Tax Accountant | Arizona Income Tax

The turning of the new year is a time for a new beginning. Unfortunately, January is also the time when the tax season begins in earnest. 1099-MISC filings are on of the first things that come up.

1099 tax forms are known as information reporting forms. They are used to essentially collect data by the IRS on who is paying what to whom. If you received dividends during the year from a company, you’ll receive a 1099 for those dividends.

While there are different types of 1099s, the 1099-MISC is the form that gives the most people the most trouble. Read the rest of this entry »

When it comes to taxes, we all want to reduce the amount we have to pay in. All tax planning basically falls to looking at all of your options and keeping organized records throughout the year. With a little forethought, you can lower your taxes. There are some basic ways to minimize your taxes: reduce your income, increase your deductions and take advantage of tax credits. Read the rest of this entry »

When trying to qualify for the earned income tax credit you or your spouse must satisfy the age test if filing a joint tax return. You can not be a dependent of another taxpayer, and are not a qualifying child of another taxpayer.

If married and filing a joint tax return you must include your social security number on your IRS tax return and that of your spouse. Married couples who file separate returns are not eligible for the earned income credit. If you are married, but your spouse did not live in your home for the last six months of the year, you may be able to file as head of household and take the credit. If you are married and file a joint return, you meet this rule if at least one spouse works and has earned income. Read the rest of this entry »

One of the fundamental accounting principles is matching revenue with cost in any period. This is relatively simpler while dealing with items in cost of goods sold, such as purchase of raw materials, supplies, and cost incurred in conversion to finished goods for sale etc. But this becomes more complex while dealing with assets that have longer lives. There are two different types of fixed assets that a company invests in, tangibles and intangibles. Tangible fixed assets are assets such as Buildings, Plant and equipment that have nearly definite lives. In most cases the value of the fixed assets also depreciates over time. At the end of its useful life assets may have a salvage value. This is true for plant and machinery but not for buildings. Although the value of the buildings might increase from year to year, GAAP requires that depreciation be calculated and accounted as an expense. Read the rest of this entry »

A tax audit is usually not a welcoming experience for anyone in business.  Whether it is in part or total, the experience can be a minor problem if the audit is only about certain records, or a major dilemma in accounting for a complete audit of the business. Read the rest of this entry »

You can lower your upcoming tax liability by making the following adjustments during the last quarter in the year. (2007)

1. This year, employers may put up to $15,500 of their pretax income into a 401(k). Next year and the next, you will learn about the new and upcoming tax laws during this same period of time.

2. Will you be celebrating your 50th birthday by the end of the year? You can give yourself an extra $5,000 per year. Contributions for IRA, Individual Retirement Accounts are capped at $4,000 this year and for people 50 or older, $5,000 a year. Read the rest of this entry »

A large number of workers are no longer provided with a work uniform; therefore, many individuals now have to buy their own work supplies. Work clothing that is required, but not paid for by an employer, can be listed as a tax deduction.

Itemizing individual purchases that are tax deducible may seem to be too complicated or take a long period of time, taking the time to itemize tax deductions, like a Self Employed Tax Deduction,  is worth it for many taxpayers. Read the rest of this entry »

One of the frequently over looked deductions is your children. Many home-based business owners hire family members to fill available staff positions.  An advantage or tax benefit of hiring your children is that they will have money to save for college and or their own personal expenses.

Young teens can work in family owned home-based business ventures by answering the phone, taking messages or orders. Typing, filling and answering correspondence are duties that can generally be carried out by a young teenager. Training is key no matter how old or young the staff member is. Read the rest of this entry »

Most people find financial statements identical to a foreign language.  To ensure that financial statements are easier to understand, there is a set of rules and practices known as the generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP). Development of these rules provides a basic guideline accounting because I think it’s fair to say that it can get obtuse at times. There are a lot of variations to the meaning so here is the best answer.  It’s the generally accepted accounting rules and procedures that are necessary to define accounting practice. Basically it’s a set of theories that accountants come to accept, and controversies are lively with some methods between accountants. Read the rest of this entry »

There are 5 factors in which the accounting professional will take into consideration in determining the fee.

The complexity of the business depends on the nature of the business. It will determine the amount of time and effort to record the business transaction. It will layout the guidelines as:- Read the rest of this entry »