FreakinB: The_Six_Fingered_Man: Hey, I'm in the same boat. I think I put 85% of my biz entities on extension.

True. Godspeed, sir.

And to you as well.

We need to start an LP for Fark Tax Prep. "Rugen, Freakin, and Spunk, how can we help you screw the government today?"

ferretman: Taxes done yesterday......Paid Uncle Sam today....$597.00....I'm in the 25% tax bracket....next year lose the $400 'relief' from the Government. Glad my $597.00 is going to some unemployed person.

Perhaps if businesses weren't trying to avoid hiring people, that person wouldn't be unemployed. All the repeated excuses of "uncertainty" ring hollow.

MoxieLover: You people getting a "refund," what the hell is the matter with you? Don't let Uncle Sam earn interest on your money! Pay as little tax up front as possible and you won't need a "refund." Get them deductions workin' for you!

Dont encourage them. The majority of people should be encouraged to go with max withholdings because they are not responsible with their money in the first place. That annual bonus check gets them out of the trouble they got themselves into with credit cards and what-have-you.

The_Six_Fingered_Man:
We need to start an LP for Fark Tax Prep. "Rugen, Freakin, and Spunk, how can we help you screw the government today?"

I'm liking the sound of this. And I'm not even going to throw a fit because my name is last.

Atomic Spunk: The_Six_Fingered_Man:
We need to start an LP for Fark Tax Prep. "Rugen, Freakin, and Spunk, how can we help you screw the government today?"

I'm liking the sound of this. And I'm not even going to throw a fit because my name is last.

Wait till you see your partnership percentage.

MoxieLover: You people getting a "refund," what the hell is the matter with you? Don't let Uncle Sam earn interest on your money! Pay as little tax up front as possible and you won't need a "refund." Get them deductions workin' for you!

Claim married with 10 deductions through the year and I still got 5G back....4 kids and wife couldn't work last year due to pregnancy complications plus im only in year 3 of a 30 year mortgage so mostly interest and property taxes in MD are outrageous. Lot's to write off.

That reminds me, the wife and I have paid all our taxes except state. We owe them a dollar.

blackheart666:
Remember that when you vote for "choice" A and "choice" B to push the wedge issue of your preference that they wont actually act on.

/be a good serf

This. Demorepublicraticans are exactly the same in that they only want to shaft you out of your money.
They are just good at keeping you distracted by letting you argue about stupid trivial things like gay marriage and legalizing weed.

The_Six_Fingered_Man: The Earned Income Tax Credit is what is called "refundable." That means that if the credit exceeds your tax liability, you receive the difference as a refund.

Oh I get how that works. It just strikes me as a bit more socialisty and convoluted than I like. It would be nice to have a tax structure that has me paying for what I use to the people who provide it, instead of being used as a conduit for money from the fed to the state.

JesseL: The_Six_Fingered_Man: The Earned Income Tax Credit is what is called "refundable." That means that if the credit exceeds your tax liability, you receive the difference as a refund.

Oh I get how that works. It just strikes me as a bit more socialisty and convoluted than I like. It would be nice to have a tax structure that has me paying for what I use to the people who provide it, instead of being used as a conduit for money from the fed to the state.

You'll find no argument here, sir. I hate refundable credits from a purely philosophical standpoint.

And with that, it's time to head home, then back into the office at 9 am.

gameshowhost: blackheart666: Remember that when you vote for "choice" A and "choice" B to push the wedge issue of your preference that they wont actually act on.

Yes, because the (D)s pursue the same policy goals as the (R)s.

[special_ed_yaay.jpg]

Its not about what they "pursue" its about what they do. But you knew that.

BKITU: /Mine is going to go toward repaving a chunk of Interstate 10, which I almost never use. >=(

The federal income tax is not used for interstates. The gas tax is, but the gas tax is raided for other purposes.

The income tax is used to pay interest on the debt (pay the federal reserve, chinese, japanese, etc). If anything is left over it pays for welfare programs (individual and corporate) and warfare. Essentially the income tax pays for nothing that productive people need or want.

wildsnowllama: That reminds me, the wife and I have paid all our taxes except state. We owe them a dollar.

Send it to them in dimes!

vygramul: Hey - ask the Republicans to extend that relief. See what they say.

millionaires only need apply

So glad I do audits and not taxes.

/CPA

leadmetal: Essentially the income tax pays for nothing that productive people need or want I like.

FTFY

ferretman: Taxes done yesterday......Paid Uncle Sam today....$597.00....I'm in the 25% tax bracket....next year lose the $400 'relief' from the Government. Glad my $597.00 is going to some unemployed crack-head.

How else do you expect him to buy crack?

The commercials have been out asking us to seek out a CPA to do our taxes as the best choice. My question is why would a CPA be the best choice and not a trained tax professional? Isn't a CPA a Certified Public Accountant who is trained on many aspects with taxes being one of them and a tax professional does pretty much just that? Isn't it analogous to a general practitioner and a specialist? Wouldn't it be better to have somebody who knows the tax code backwards and forwards and live and breathes taxes rather than somebody who does taxes as part of what he does? This is not a slam on CPA's, I'm genuinely curious as to what a CPA knows more or better than a tax specialist.

But according to Bryan Fischer the Constitutions only applies to Christians so if your not a Christian I guess you don't have to file.

Actually he was only talking about the 1st but I bet money that if questioned he'd say the 16th should only apply to non-Christians.

Benjimin_Dover: The commercials have been out asking us to seek out a CPA to do our taxes as the best choice. My question is why would a CPA be the best choice and not a trained tax professional? Isn't a CPA a Certified Public Accountant who is trained on many aspects with taxes being one of them and a tax professional does pretty much just that? Isn't it analogous to a general practitioner and a specialist? Wouldn't it be better to have somebody who knows the tax code backwards and forwards and live and breathes taxes rather than somebody who does taxes as part of what he does? This is not a slam on CPA's, I'm genuinely curious as to what a CPA knows more or better than a tax specialist.

Are you thinking about a tax attorney? Surely by "tax professional" you dont mean someone that works at H&R Block. A cpa is licensed by the state to provide accounting services. This can be audits, tax, etc. As with anything else, some cpas are better than others. Let me put it this way...would you hire some guy that say they know how to do electrical wiring or would you hire a fully licensed electrician?

Ooh! Tax thread!

Ooh! CPAs! Some reminders:
1065 and 1041 extensions are 5 months. 1120 is still 6 months, but they were due last month.

FTF for partnerships and S-Corps with 0 liability is $195 per shareholder/partner per month, for at least 12 months (may turn out to be 24 soonish). Missing K-1s is $100 per schedule per month. I'm sure this will come as a great shock to some, but it shouldn't.

Also, PPS hasn't given out any 147Cs since November of 2008, so stop asking.

AEIC is over, so use the new edition of the 941.

Also, please check the XML on your schedule Bs. If you load all of your month 3 liabilities into month 2, your clients are going to get penalties.

Chewlies Gum Representative: Benjimin_Dover: The commercials have been out asking us to seek out a CPA to do our taxes as the best choice. My question is why would a CPA be the best choice and not a trained tax professional? Isn't a CPA a Certified Public Accountant who is trained on many aspects with taxes being one of them and a tax professional does pretty much just that? Isn't it analogous to a general practitioner and a specialist? Wouldn't it be better to have somebody who knows the tax code backwards and forwards and live and breathes taxes rather than somebody who does taxes as part of what he does? This is not a slam on CPA's, I'm genuinely curious as to what a CPA knows more or better than a tax specialist.

Are you thinking about a tax attorney? Surely by "tax professional" you dont mean someone that works at H&R Block. A cpa is licensed by the state to provide accounting services. This can be audits, tax, etc. As with anything else, some cpas are better than others. Let me put it this way...would you hire some guy that say they know how to do electrical wiring or would you hire a fully licensed electrician?

No, not those seasonal hacks. People like you mentioned. People who do nothing but taxes all year long. AND are certified to do so. I think I would want somebody who is a certified HVAC technician to wire my furnace and AC over a licenced elctrician who probably has done it and may even been trained. It may even be a part of being a licenced electrician. I think the phrase "Jack of all trades and master of none" has merit in many cases.

Anyway, it was just an honest question. No flames intended. (For once, LOL)

farking withholdings, how do they work?

No seriously. I'm not a tax person. I generally go to H&R Block(head), jk! But the real trick is to set up your withholdings right when you are on the job, b/c that's what makes everything work later.

Naturally if you go by what the sheet says to calculate it out, you are going to end up owing Uncle Sam a *ton* of money at the end of the year. Skipping over the completely abject racket that is...

You generally claim 0 or 1-2 if you are married with a kid or two making an average wage.

But, as that other guy pointed out. He claimed 0, so did his wife and they owed money on what is close to an average job (depending on where they live of course). If 0 is as low as you can go for the automatic stuff (his situation was not a bizarre one either) how the hell are you supposed to withhold the proper tax amount during the year?! Throw a dart at a board and *guess*?!

And what do you do if the tax laws change mid-year and suddenly your withhold amount is not enough and you owe money. How are you supposed to see that coming and adjust the withholdings for it?! (assuming my last job was telling me the truth, this happened to me a couple years ago.)

I honestly don't have an issue with paying taxes, I just want them pulled from my paycheck during the year, so I don't owe a lump sum at the end of the year. Heck, I even enjoy them pulling a bit more so I have a bit of a refund (I don't care if they make interest on it, since I don't have the capital to make the same interest myself.)

Any of our fark tax folks want to help out a bit here? I'm really sick of waiting for each tax season hoping that I got my withholdings right for the last year and that nothing changed mid-year to screw us over.

cuzsis: farking withholdings, how do they work?

No seriously. I'm not a tax person. I generally go to H&R Block(head), jk! But the real trick is to set up your withholdings right when you are on the job, b/c that's what makes everything work later.

Naturally if you go by what the sheet says to calculate it out, you are going to end up owing Uncle Sam a *ton* of money at the end of the year. Skipping over the completely abject racket that is...

You generally claim 0 or 1-2 if you are married with a kid or two making an average wage.

But, as that other guy pointed out. He claimed 0, so did his wife and they owed money on what is close to an average job (depending on where they live of course). If 0 is as low as you can go for the automatic stuff (his situation was not a bizarre one either) how the hell are you supposed to withhold the proper tax amount during the year?! Throw a dart at a board and *guess*?!

And what do you do if the tax laws change mid-year and suddenly your withhold amount is not enough and you owe money. How are you supposed to see that coming and adjust the withholdings for it?! (assuming my last job was telling me the truth, this happened to me a couple years ago.)

I honestly don't have an issue with paying taxes, I just want them pulled from my paycheck during the year, so I don't owe a lump sum at the end of the year. Heck, I even enjoy them pulling a bit more so I have a bit of a refund (I don't care if they make interest on it, since I don't have the capital to make the same interest myself.)

Any of our fark tax folks want to help out a bit here? I'm really sick of waiting for each tax season hoping that I got my withholdings right for the last year and that nothing changed mid-year to screw us over.

For correctly figuring your withholding, there is Publication 919, which explains how to account for the deductions you will likely take and figure the correct amount to have withheld. If tax laws change mid-stream, you can always file an amended W-4 to account for the change. It never matters at what point during the year any withholding is done, only that it was done.

Metraxis: cuzsis: farking withholdings, how do they work?

No seriously. I'm not a tax person. I generally go to H&R Block(head), jk! But the real trick is to set up your withholdings right when you are on the job, b/c that's what makes everything work later.

Naturally if you go by what the sheet says to calculate it out, you are going to end up owing Uncle Sam a *ton* of money at the end of the year. Skipping over the completely abject racket that is...

You generally claim 0 or 1-2 if you are married with a kid or two making an average wage.

But, as that other guy pointed out. He claimed 0, so did his wife and they owed money on what is close to an average job (depending on where they live of course). If 0 is as low as you can go for the automatic stuff (his situation was not a bizarre one either) how the hell are you supposed to withhold the proper tax amount during the year?! Throw a dart at a board and *guess*?!

And what do you do if the tax laws change mid-year and suddenly your withhold amount is not enough and you owe money. How are you supposed to see that coming and adjust the withholdings for it?! (assuming my last job was telling me the truth, this happened to me a couple years ago.)

I honestly don't have an issue with paying taxes, I just want them pulled from my paycheck during the year, so I don't owe a lump sum at the end of the year. Heck, I even enjoy them pulling a bit more so I have a bit of a refund (I don't care if they make interest on it, since I don't have the capital to make the same interest myself.)

Any of our fark tax folks want to help out a bit here? I'm really sick of waiting for each tax season hoping that I got my withholdings right for the last year and that nothing changed mid-year to screw us over.

For correctly figuring your withholding, there is Publication 919, which explains how to account for the deductions you will likely take and figure the correct amount to have withheld. If tax laws change mid-stream, you can always file an amended W-4 to account for the change. It never matters at what point during the year any withholding is done, only that it was done.

That's a longer version of the form they give out when you go to calculate your withholdings. Is this new? Or are businesses just doing things half-assed? (The short version of the form doesn't work at all to calculate withholdings and isn't worth looking at.)

Also, it's all well and good I can change my withholdings midstream, I've done it before. And obviously you know to do it if there's a major life change on your end. But that doesn't work if you don't know the tax law has changed (I honestly don't have the time to be researching it every month.) How do you know when *that* happens?

cuzsis: That's a longer version of the form they give out when you go to calculate your withholdings. Is this new? Or are businesses just doing things half-assed? (The short version of the form doesn't work at all to calculate withholdings and isn't worth looking at.)

Also, it's all well and good I can change my withholdings midstream, I've done it before. And obviously you know to do it if there's a major life change on your end. But that doesn't work if you don't know the tax law has changed (I honestly don't have the time to be researching it every month.) How do you know when *that* happens?

Most taxpayers take the standard deduction, and so the guidelines in the instructions to Form W-4 suffice. Pub 919 is not a new thing, though. I am aware of editions of that publication dating back to at least 1995. As for tax law changes, they generally make the news, and get published to www.irs.gov fairly soon after they are signed. Also, I wouldn't sweat it too badly. If an individual owes less than $1,000.00 in tax (ie Liability - withholding < $1,000.00), the estimated tax penalty does not apply, and so getting any required payment in by the unextended due date of the return will suffice. If you're worried about that, though, look at the Instructions for Form 2210,

BKITU: I was being TOTALLY SERIOUS you know.

I figured that might be the case, but some people actually think the income tax pays for the roads.

Hydra, you do realize that regardless of the means the US government uses to fund itself, there will always be an agency responsible for administering that funding scheme, be it income taxes, a VAT, aggregation of various funding schemes implemented by the several states, or an excise tax on unicorn farts? I'm all in favor of a vastly simplified tax code, but anyone who tells you that the US can somehow do without an IRS is either delusional or lying.

The_Six_Fingered_Man: The one thing I hate doing is trying to recreate a prior year return prepared by someone who appears to be a monkey punching a keyboard with a banana. There are some things that I just cannot believe a EA/CPA tries to get away with. I once saw a prior year return that had dry cleaning as a 2106 expense. For a cubicle jockey.

For a short while, a ephemeral branch of one of the various "tax preparer" chains popped up near me. Apparently, the employees there spent as much time filling out "schedule 420" as they did helping folks prepare their returns.

I feel bad for anyone who had their taxes done there.

ferretman: Taxes done yesterday......Paid Uncle Sam today....$597.00....I'm in the 25% tax bracket....next year lose the $400 'relief' from the Government. Glad my $597.00 is going to some unemployed crack-head.

So you only earned $2388 this year? ;-)

Yes, I realize you probably meant you only owed $597 additional for the year, as opposed to $597 for the whole year.

And as long as I'm bowing to pedantry, and before all you CPAs jump on me, I understand the difference between total tax rate and marginal tax rate, and how "25% bracket" means it's only 25% on the portion within that bracket. You can all relax and put the slide rules and pitch forks down now.

*whew*

Adolf Oliver Nipples: Absolute nonsense. Why don't you look up how much corporations pay annually in taxes and get back to us with some numbers.

Ok, let's start with GE, a nice little company with its fingers in abso-farking-lutely everything. Here's a short read at the NYT: "G.E.'s Strategies Allow It To Avoid Taxes Altogether."

If you can't get to the NYT article, here's a tiny excerpt:

The company reported worldwide profits of $14.2 billion, and said $5.1 billion of the total came from its operations in the United States.

Its American tax bill? None. In fact, G.E. claimed a tax benefit of $3.2 billion.

Metraxis: If an individual owes less than $1,000.00 in tax (ie Liability - withholding < $1,000.00), the estimated tax penalty does not apply, and so getting any required payment in by the unextended due date of the return will suffice.

It's even more generous than that, according to this page at the IRS's website (new window):

Generally, most taxpayers will avoid this penalty if they owe less than $1,000 in tax after subtracting their withholdings and credits, or if they paid at least 90% of the tax for the current year, or 100% of the tax shown on the return for the prior year, whichever is smaller.

It's that third one I'm counting on this year. I moved a bunch of stuff around last year, and some of that fell in the "taxable event" category. I paid a craptop of the taxes on it via withholding, but I have no idea if it's anywhere near enough. But, what I've paid beats the "100% of the tax shown on the return for the prior year" threshold by a very wide margin, so even if I end up owing a ton, I won't be getting a penalty on top of it.

"I would just like to take a moment to point out that the corporations, while they don't claim the 16th is illegal, they just flaunt it anyway, don't pay taxes and get hand outs from the government (both sides) while raking in huge profits and putting thousands of working people into poverty."

How exactly does a company put me into poverty?

I wish I could get people thinking differently... The IRS did not give you anything... you did not get a 'bonus'...

It is money you earned. While I am happy the IRS thinks I should be allowed to keep a portion of what I earned... I never look at tax returns as 'winning'.

If the IRS is sending me a check, I failed in my planning for the tax year. Ideally I should either owe, or get back about $20. Any more than that, and I did not plan well.

And if anyone is confused about that thinking, the easiest way I can explain it is... Would you rather loan the govt money interest free for a year, or put your money to work earning you interest instead?

im14u2c: Adolf Oliver Nipples: Absolute nonsense. Why don't you look up how much corporations pay annually in taxes and get back to us with some numbers.

Ok, let's start with GE, a nice little company with its fingers in abso-farking-lutely everything. Here's a short read at the NYT: "G.E.'s Strategies Allow It To Avoid Taxes Altogether."

If you can't get to the NYT article, here's a tiny excerpt:

The company reported worldwide profits of $14.2 billion, and said $5.1 billion of the total came from its operations in the United States.

Its American tax bill? None. In fact, G.E. claimed a tax benefit of $3.2 billion.

And that PROFIT was paid out to shareholders, who paid taxes on it and the shareholders ARE the corporation so no. The corporation did not pay $0 taxes. What you meant to say is that the same pile of money wasn't taxed twice. You money grabbers would love it if the same pile of money was taxed two, three, seven times until it was whittled down to nothing and the government had it all. Hell in fact, you probably would want to keep taxing it until the money was owed for the priviledge of making it. The states do it now pretty much. I would love to see somebody go through and calculate somebody's taxes if they had income in all 50 states and see if at the end the their total tax liability of fed plus 50 states equals more than 100% of income.

EmmaLou:
I'm not in the tax business, but I'm not retarded with my money. Getting thousands of dollars back each year just means you're stupid.

Yeah I feel real stupid as I book those plane tickets to Europe with money that just plopped in my bank account. And to think I could have been spending several hours rolling coins I had sitting in a coffee can all year, which I totally would not have spent on porn, if only I was a smart Farker.

virgo47: EmmaLou:
I'm not in the tax business, but I'm not retarded with my money. Getting thousands of dollars back each year just means you're stupid.

Yeah I feel real stupid as I book those plane tickets to Europe with money that just plopped in my bank account. And to think I could have been spending several hours rolling coins I had sitting in a coffee can all year, which I totally would not have spent on porn, if only I was a smart Farker.

ure still an idjiot.

/tax refund is not free money
//makes that speech 750+ times a year
JC