New in 2012: Due Diligence Checklist Filing Requirement

On December 20, 2011, the IRS released regulations requiring paid tax preparers to file due diligence checklists with every return claiming the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC).  The Paid Preparer’s Earned Income Credit Checklist, Form 8867, was previously required of tax preparers to complete and retain in their own personal records; it was intended to help them acquire the necessary eligibility information from their clients.

The IRS press release explains, “The regulations also reflect recent congressional action to increase the penalty for noncompliance with the due diligence requirement from $100 to $500.”

For more information on these final regulations, refer to the Treasury Decision 9570 published in the Federal Register.

Extended Deadline for Various Tax-Exempt Organizations

On December 16^th, 2011, the IRS announced that it had extended the January and February filing deadlines for tax-exempt organizations until March 30, 2012.  Due to portions of the IRS’s e-filing system being offline during January and February of this year, the IRS has granted the extension.  The rest of the system will be fully operational and all businesses and individuals are expected to file accurate and timely returns.

The extension applies to all those tax-exempt organizations whose normal filing deadline is either January 17^th or February 15^th of this year; this includes those organizations that had an extension deadline for these same dates.  The majority of tax-exempt organizations have a May 15^th filing deadline and will be unaffected by this extension.

For more information, refer to Notice 2012-4 posted on IRS.gov.

Payroll Tax Cut Extended into 2012

The reduced payroll tax rate effective in 2011 has been temporarily extended into 2012, benefiting nearly 160 million workers.  The cut, which reduced the Social Security tax withholding rate from 6.2 percent to 4.2 percent, will continue to be in effect through February 29^th, 2012 and will have no effect on employees’ future Social Security benefits.

Employers are expected to implement the new tax rate as soon as possible in 2012 but no later than January 31, 2012.  Any Social Security tax over-withheld in January should be compensated in an offsetting adjustment in employee pay as soon as possible and no later than March 31, 2012.  Employers and payroll companies must manage the withholding changes; employers are not required to take any action.

The press release explains, “The IRS will issue additional guidance as needed to implement the provisions of this new two-month extension, including revised employment tax forms and instructions and information for employees who may be subject to the new “recapture” provision.  For most employers, the quarterly employment tax return for the quarter ending March 31, 2012, is due April 30, 2012.”

Earning a Professional Designation is Good for Your Professional Reputation

Whether it’s enhancing your skill-set with a current employer or distinguishing yourself by building credibility with your own clients, the QS designation will stand as proof of your expertise.  To earn this QuickBooks designation you must complete the Professional Bookkeeper’s Guide to QuickBooks (PBG) and pass the final exam with a score of 90% or higher.  And just like that you receive professional certification!

Additional Benefits

In addition to the skills you acquire in completing the PBG, you will also receive the following:

• Thorough and complete training on the latest and greatest version of QuickBooks Pro
• 6 months’ worth of access to our experienced, qualified QuickBooks professional accountants and CPAs to answer your questions
• Accounting 101 Review
• 30 hours of Continuing Professional Education (CPE) in most states
• A 100% money-back guarantee
• A valuable addition to your reference library

The PBG offers the most competitive QuickBooks training on the market.  Master QuickBooks and become the premier QuickBooks consultant in your area.  Call Universal at 1-877-833-7909 and enroll in the Professional Bookkeeper’s Guide to QuickBooks today!

Standard Mileage Rates Remain the Same

On December 9^th, the IRS announced the 2012 optional standard mileage rates which are used to calculate the deductible costs of operating an automobile for business, charitable, medical or moving purposes.

Beginning on Jan. 1, 2012, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car will be:

• 55.5 cents per mile for business miles driven
• 23 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes
• 14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable organizations

The rate for business miles driven is unchanged from the mid-year adjustment that became effective on July 1, 2011. The medical and moving rate has been reduced by 0.5 cents per mile.

More information on calculating mileage rates, refer to the IRS website at Rev. Proc. 2010-51.

US and Dual Citizens Living outside the States

Because some taxpayers are dual citizens of the US who sometimes fail to meet the filing deadline for income tax returns or Reports of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBARs), the IRS is helping them achieve compliance by issuing a fact sheet summarizing information about their filing requirements.

Penalties will not be imposed in all cases of noncompliance.  In fact, those taxpayers who owe no U.S. tax (e.g., due to the application of the foreign earned income exclusion or foreign tax credits) will owe no failure to file or failure to pay penalties.

This fact sheet is provided for information purposes only and covers the following topics:

1. US income tax filing requirement
2. Penalties imposed for failure to file income tax returns or to pay tax
3. Possible additional penalties that may apply in particular cases
4. FBAR filing requirement
5. How to file an FBAR
6. Possible penalties for failure to file FBAR
7. New reporting requirement for foreign financial assets

For more information, visit the IRS website.

Foreign Financial Asset Reporting

The IRS has released a new information reporting form that taxpayers will use this coming tax filing season to report specified foreign financial assets for tax year 2011.

The new form, 8938 (Statement of Specified Foreign Financial Assets), will be filed by taxpayers with specific types and amounts of foreign financial assets or foreign accounts. You must determine if your clients are subject to this new requirement because failing to comply will result in significant penalties.

This filing requirement is the result of a new effort by the IRS to improve tax compliance by U.S. taxpayers with offshore financial accounts.  Those who may be required to file Form 8938 include U.S. citizens and residents, nonresidents who elect to file a joint income tax return and certain nonresidents who live in a U.S. territory.

Form 8938 is required when the total value of specified foreign assets exceeds certain thresholds.  For more information on the new form and the specific thresholds, visit FATCA page of irs.gov.

UAC’s Training Programs Will Help You Gain That Competitive Edge

Universal Accounting Center offers the best accounting, bookkeeping and tax training available.  Consider growing your tax preparation business by offering additional services to potential clients, like accounting.

Most of your competitors don’t offer specialized small-business accounting services.  But after completing the Professional Bookkeeper (PB) program, you can!  Consider a training program that is catered to your needs and busy schedule—one that will enable you to earn a professional designation after just 60 hours of your valuable time.

When you enroll in the Professional Bookkeeper Program you receive to the following:

• Flexible training you complete on your own schedule
• Rich and engaging training DVDs you can view again and again
• Hands-on instruction and practice sets through which you gain much-needed experience
• Training in building and marketing your new practice
• 6 months of valuable follow-up support
• The opportunity to earn professional certification
• Our iron-clad risk-free guarantee

Expand your service offerings by enrolling in UAC’s valuable training programs.  Call 1-877-833-7909 to enroll today!

Resource

–.  “Information for US Citizens or Dual Citizens Residing Outside the US.” Dec. 2011 IRS.gov

–. “IRS Announces 2012 Standard Mileage Rates, Most Rates Are the Same as in July.” 9 Dec. 2011 IRS.gov

–. “IRS Releases Guidance on Foreign Financial Asset Reporting.” 14 Dec. 2011 IRS.gov

Preparers who must take the Registered Tax Return Preparer competency exam by the end of 2013 must also complete their CE courses in 2012.  These courses must be taken by IRS-approved providers.

According to the press release, the IRS requires organizations be one of the following in order to qualify as a provider:

• An accredited educational institution,
• Recognized for continuing education purposes by the licensing body of any state or U.S. territory,
• Approved by a qualifying organization as a provider of CE on subject matters designed for registered tax return preparers, enrolled agents, and enrolled retirement plan agents (such qualifying organizations will be known as accrediting organizations), or
• Any other professional organization, society or business recognized by the IRS as a provider of CE on subject matters designed for registered tax return preparers, enrolled agents, and enrolled retirement plan agents.

In order to become an accrediting organization, the required documentation—as outlined in section 4 of Revenue Procedure 2012-12—must be submitted to the address provided.  When approved, the organizations will be publicized by the IRS.

All approved organizations must obtain an IRS CE provider number which can be secured through an online application process.  An annual fee will also be required to cover third-party vendor costs for administering the CE provider application and renewal processes.  The fee includes the cost to be included on a public listing of all approved providers and to collect course collection information from providers; this enables the IRS to identify those individuals (via PTIN) who have completed a program. Qualifying organizations must renew their status with the IRS every three years.

For more information, visit the IRS at www.irs.gov/taxpros/ce.

UAC’s Training Programs Will Help You Gain That Competitive Edge

Universal Accounting Center offers the best accounting, bookkeeping and tax training available.  Consider growing your tax preparation business by offering additional services to potential clients, like accounting.

Most of your competitors don’t offer specialized small-business accounting services.  But after completing the Professional Bookkeeper (PB) program, you can!  Consider a training program that is catered to your needs and busy schedule—one that will enable you to earn a professional designation after just 60 hours of your valuable time.

When you enroll in the Professional Bookkeeper Program you receive to the following:

• Flexible training you complete on your own schedule
• Rich and engaging training DVDs you can view again and again
• Hands-on instruction and practice sets through which you gain much-needed experience
• Training in building and marketing your new practice
• 6 months of valuable follow-up support
• The opportunity to earn professional certification
• Our iron-clad risk-free guarantee

Expand your service offerings by enrolling in UAC’s valuable training programs.  Call 1-877-833-7909 to enroll today!

Resource

–.  “IRS Announces Standards for Continuing Education Providers and Accrediting Organizations.”  6 Dec 2011  IRS.gov

Okay, so it’s not that bad, but it will consume the majority of your time for the next few months.  So why not ensure that you’re making the most of that time?

A 2005 Microsoft survey found that professionals only average about three productive workdays every week.  When you’re paid by the hour, that reduces your income by 40%.  That’s a painful statistic for the self-employed.

But it doesn’t have be that way.  When you apply effective time management techniques, you use the workday to your advantage, maximizing your income by using less time to accomplish more work-related tasks.  Here are 6 tips we strongly recommend:

Delegate and outsource when possible. In a Small Business Review article, author John Egan lists this as his number one time management tip.  In his article he references Dave Durand, a time management expert who says small business owners should never engage in “minimum-wage work.”  He suggests handing those tasks off to someone else so the small-business owner can keep their “eye on the horizon.”  Sometimes it just doesn’t make sense to do everything yourself.  It’s wise to delegate and outsource some of those tasks that are too time-consuming for you, whether you partner with another professional to do them, or whether you assign the responsibility to someone within your organization.

Avoid time traps. No profession is immune to time leaks—interruptions, distractions, tangents that lead you off-task and make it difficult to be productive.  And it is impossible to plug those time leaks unless you know what they are.  Take a week or so to log interruptions, noting all those things that distract you from your core work tasks, specifically billable hours.  Once you have the information, you can evaluate it.  Which interruptions could have been avoided?  Which were of no value?  Perhaps someone regularly calls you for information that you could teach them to find themselves?  While the teaching moment may cost you an hour now, it may save you hours in the end.

Avoid multitasking. Most time management experts agree that splitting your attention amongst a slew of tasks can lessen productivity while generating more errors.  Focusing your attention on one task is the best way to accomplish more in less time and with greater accuracy.

Use “50% of your time engaged in the thoughts, activities and conversations that produce most of your results.” This tip comes recommended by authors Joe Mathews, Don Debolt and Deb Percival in an Entrepreneur.com article entitled “10 Time Management Tips That Work.”  It makes sense to focus your energy on those tasks that bring in the bacon.  However, often what we focus on isn’t necessarily what produces results.  Shifting your perspective on how you prioritize your time may be all it takes to put this principle into effect.

Plan each day.  Mathews, Debolt and Percival recommend you take 30 minutes each morning to schedule your workday.  Determine which tasks are most important and timely.  That way you ensure that you’re not only productive but responsible, completing those jobs that need your attention first.  Then, referring to that list of tasks, make a to-do list (and don’t forget, 50% of your day should be dedicated to those activities that produce the most results).

Plan for the big picture. While it’s important to plan your daily schedule, you should also look ahead and make plans for how you’d like to accomplish your vision.  This includes the big picture on where you see your business going, taking steps that will ensure you get there.

UAC’s QuickBooks Training Program

The Professional Bookkeeper’s Guide (PBG) to QuickBooks is designed to help you master all the software’s features and shortcuts, enabling you to work much more efficiently.  With 16 instructional CDs that contain 15 hours of training and an 800-page full-color instruction manual, you will have access to all you need in order to address your every client’s needs.

Upon completing the program you will be able to do the following:

• Pay bills quickly so that you and your clients never incur late penalties
• Be reminded when bills are due
• Write checks with one single click
• Create invoices quickly and effortlessly
• Become more organize by streamlining the process of tracking customers and vendors
• Keep on top of incoming and outgoing payments
• Access easy-to-read financial reports NOW
• Earn valuable certification as a QuickBooks Specialist

UAC’s Professional Bookkeeper’s Guide to QuickBooks (PBG) will enable you to master this accounting software, saving yourself time and energy as you work with your own and/or your clients’ accounts.  To become more efficient by learning all the time-saving features QuickBooks offers, call Universal at 1-877-833-7909 to enroll in the PBG Program today!

Resources

–.  “Survey Finds Workers Average Only Three Productive Days per Week.”  15 March 2005.  Microsoft.com

Egan, John.  “Time Management Tips.”  SmallBusinessReview.com

Mathews, Joe, Don Debolt and Deb Percival.  “10 Time Management Tips That Work.”  Entrepreneur.com

One way the IRSAC accomplishes this mission is through their annual report which was recently released to the public.  It’s important that tax professionals be apprised of all the key recommendations put forth by the IRSAC and all its subgroups.

In the 2011 General Report of the Internal Revenue Service Advisory Council, the IRSAC makes two key recommendations:

1. Congress must ensure that the IRS is adequately funded in order to experience continued success in service, compliance and enforcement.  Their findings conclude that taxpayers and the tax system will continue to suffer if adequate resources are not diverted to the IRS.
2. Resource allocation must ensure the proper balance among service, compliance and enforcement at the IRS.

The IRSAC is divided into four subgroups: Wage and Investment (W&I), Small Business/Self-Employed (SBSE), Large Business and International (LB&I), and Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR).  The focus of each group for this report is noted as follows:

Wage and Investment Subgroup: asked to recommend the best ways to simplify the Schedule D redesign and revise the corresponding instructions.

Small Business/Self-Employed Subgroup: recommended nine actions relating to nine issues raised in the report.

1. Empower exam managers as an alternative to SBSE fast track settlement program
2. Enhance worker classification compliance with increased publicity for the voluntary classification settlement program
3. Provide tentative independent contractor status for appropriate compliant taxpayers that provide notice to the IRS
4. Update de minimis fringe guidance
5. Revise IRS streamlined installment agreement program and related electronic payment systems including online and direct debit programs to improve collection
6. Enhance collections by taking unsecured debt into consideration
7. Revise the IRS’s penalty abatement processes and the Reasonable Cause Assistant (RCA) to provide efficient and consistent treatment for abatements
8. Adopt technology to make taxpayer examinations more efficient and less burdensome to the taxpayer
9. Use appropriate performance measures to enhance customer service and increate collections

Large Business and International Subgroup: reported on six issues which included 1. The IRS’ use of remote work, 2. ways the LB& I can gain greater commercial awareness, 3. improvement of Schedule UTP, 4. improvement of IRS’ distance learning methods, 5. expanding the use of Fast Track Settlement, and 6. the IRS’ use of academic research.

Office of Professional Responsibility: provided feedback and recommendations on five key topics: 1. exclusive authority over discipline, 2. coordination of administrative responsibility over discipline, 3. additional guidance to tax practitioners, 4. recision of changes to final regulations, and 5. suggested adoption of USPAP by OPR in judging appraiser conduct.

To read this report in full, visit the official IRS website.

UAC’s Free Tax Resources

If you’re interested in accessing more tax resources, visit Universal’s website for free tax articles, a tax glossary, access to our tax forum, and convenient links to IRS tax forms.

Resource

–. “2011 IRSAC Public Meeting Briefing Book.”  16 November 2011 IRS.gov

First, Shulman revealed some interesting facts regarding paid tax preparers.  For example, 740,000 individuals have registered and secured their PTIN, or Preparer Tax Identification Number, in the past year, joining the IRS’s growing database. Those individuals are encouraged to renew their PTINs, an annual requirement the IRS will strictly enforce. 60% of those individuals with current PTINs are not attorneys, CPAs, or enrolled agents.

The next phase in this program includes the competency testing and continuing education requirements.  In addition, the IRS is also considering proposals that would require the performance of background checks.

Shulman also announced four key points:

1. The creation of a ‘supervised preparer’ category among paid tax preparers which will apply to CPAs, attorneys, and enrolled agents who must secure and renew a PTIN but are exempt from the competency tests and continuing education requirements.
2. A disclaimer statement to be used by Registered Tax Return Preparers which will clarify, in all promotional materials, “the IRS does not endorse any particular individual tax return preparer.”
3. A clarification on the level of review the IRS will conduct before approving continuing education providers.
4. A current hold on a previously announced requirement of background checks and fingerprinting.

Shulman also acknowledged plans to deal with tax preparers who have demonstrated significant noncompliance in the accuracy and integrity of submitted returns.

Finally, the commissioner talked about what he calls the “real-time tax system.”  He explains as follows:

“…let me cast an eye toward the future and a potential new structure that would fundamentally change the way taxpayers and tax practitioners prepare and file individual returns…and one that leverages technological innovations. We’ve initially come to call this vision the real-time tax system because it would deal in real time and avoid audits that may take place years after a return is filed. We’re moving away from the after-the-fact, or “look-back” model – where we chased after taxpayers who had to hunt for, or recreate records and documentation – to one where we’re reducing burden. Under the vision of a real time tax system, the IRS could embed third-party information into its pre-screening filters, and could provide the opportunity for taxpayers to fix the return before we accept it, if it contains data that does not match our records. This is a tectonic shift.”

Shulman anticipates that such a change would generate more accurate returns with fewer problems upon return acceptance and less time spent auditing.

The IRS is making some significant changes of which all financial professionals must be aware.   Visit the IRS.gov for more information.

Universal Accounting’s Tax Training

UA’s Professional Tax Preparer program will help you comply with the new tax preparer regulations established by the IRS.  Not only could you earn the Professional Tax Preparer Designation, but you could also learn everything you need to know to pass the IRS Competency Exam and receive up to 60 CPE credits, depending on the number of modules you complete.

Acquire the expertise necessary to become a Professional Tax Preparer.  UAC’s tax courses will not only give you hands-on training in completing full individual (1040) and business returns (1065, 1120, 1120S), but it will also provide you with the following:

• 20 hours of valuable video instruction
• 2 instructional manuals
• Step-by-step instruction in becoming a sole practitioner
• One year of follow-up support from expert tax preparers
• The opportunity to earn valuable professional certification
• Our iron-clad, risk-free guarantee

Be in compliance with the IRS’s strict new requirements regarding paid tax preparers.  We now offer online tax courses and tax training.  Call 1-877-833-7909 to enroll today, and improve your competitive advantage while securing your professional standing in the tax industry.

Resource

–.  “Prepared Remarks of IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman at the AICPA Fall Meeting in Washington, D.C. on November 8, 2011.”  8 November 2011  IRS.gov

Law requires the yearly revision of tax provisions in conjunction with inflation.  Actual amounts that will affect 2012 returns, which will be filed in 2013, are noted as follows:

• The value of each personal and dependent exemption, available to most taxpayers, is $3,800, up $100 from 2011.
• The new standard deduction is $11,900 for married couples filing a joint return, up $300, $5,950 for singles and married individuals filing separately, up $150, and $8,700 for heads of household, up $200. Nearly two out of three taxpayers take the standard deduction, rather than itemizing deductions, such as mortgage interest, charitable contributions and state and local taxes.
• Tax-bracket thresholds increase for each filing status. For a married couple filing a joint return, for example, the taxable-income threshold separating the 15-percent bracket from the 25-percent bracket is $70,700, up from $69,000 in 2011.

Credits, deductions, and related phase outs.

• For tax year 2012, the maximum earned income tax credit (EITC) for low- and moderate- income workers and working families rises to $5,891, up from $5,751 in 2011. The maximum income limit for the EITC rises to $50,270, up from $49,078 in 2011.The credit varies by family size, filing status and other factors, with the maximum credit going to joint filers with three or more qualifying children.
• The foreign earned income deduction rises to $95,100, an increase of $2,200 from the maximum deduction for tax year 2011.
• The modified adjusted gross income threshold at which the lifetime learning credit begins to phase out is $104,000 for joint filers, up from $102,000, and $52,000 for singles and heads of household, up from $51,000.

For more information on these and other inflation adjustments, visit IRS.gov at Revenue Procedure 2011-52, which will be published in Internal Revenue Bulletin 2011-45 on November 7, 2011.

If you want to remain in the loop on important tax updates like these, join our free accounting and tax forums, follow us on Twitter and like us on FaceBook.  You’ll be surprised at how Universal’s virtual community will enable you to stay in-the-know.

Resource

–.  “In 2012, Many Tax Benefits Increase Due to Inflation Adjustments.”  20 Oct. 2011 IRS.gov

eFile Requirement for Paid Tax Preparers

For the January 2011 tax calendar, many paid tax preparers will be required, by law, to e-file federal income tax returns for individuals, trusts, and estates.

The IRS will be phasing in this new requirement over a two-year period, and, depending on their status, preparers must adhere to the following dates:

• January 1, 2011— for preparers who anticipate filing 100 or more Forms 1040, 1040A, 1040EZ and 1041 during the year; or
• January 1, 2012— for preparers who anticipate filing 11 or more 1040, 1040A, 1040EZ and 1041 during the year.

The first date applies to everyone in a firm that reasonably expects to file 100 or more forms, whether or not individual preparers will prepare and file that amount.  However, if clients so choose, they can independently submit paper forms.

The IRS reminds preparers that they must become an authorized e-file provider in order to comply with these requirements, a process that can take 45 days or more.  If you haven’t yet done so, you should begin the process now in order to be ready to e-file during the upcoming tax season.

Required Due Diligence Checklists

On October 6, 2011, the IRS announced that it is issuing proposed regulations requiring paid tax preparers to file Form 8867, a due diligence checklist, beginning in 2012.  The checklist must be submitted with any federal return claiming the Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), a form the IRS currently requires all tax preparers to complete and keep in their personal records.

Over ten years ago, Congress initiated the requirement to reduce errors on forms claiming the EITC; of forms submitted claiming the credit, over 66 percent are filed by paid tax preparers.  The checklist enables tax prepares to gather all the qualifying information from clients.  In the past, the IRS has simply required preparers to keep copies of the forms with their records in the event that they ever requested a review.  However, this new regulation requires that the form be submitted with returns beginning in January, 2012.

The Earned Income Tax Credit enables low and moderate-income working families to receive tax benefits dependent upon income, family size and filing status.  The maximum credit is $5,751.

What do you think of the new requirements?  Post your comments here!

Increase Your Options and Your Earning Potential

Becoming a tax preparer enables you to increase your competitive advantage and your earning potential!  And the tax training necessary to become a preparer isn’t as long and painful as you might expect.  Universal Accounting Center has made it easy with our online tax course.

Our Professional Tax Preparer program includes the following:

• Informative video instruction
• Full 1040 training
• Full business return (1065, 1120, 1120S) training
• One year follow-up Support from expert tax preparers

Many programs will lecture you on tax law and preparation practices, but Universal’s program is much more effective because it provides you with the hands-on practice that will perfect your skills.  Theory is taught as guiding principles, but the focus is on actually doing taxes to gain proficiency.

UAC’s Professional Tax Preparer program will enable you to become proficient in tax preparation while helping you comply with new IRS regulations.  Wouldn’t you like to have your own home-based tax business?

You’re just in time for next tax season.  Call Universal at 1-877-833-7909 to enroll today!

Resources

–. “IRS Issues Proposed Regulations That Would Require Tax Preparers to File Due Diligence Checklist with All EITC Claims Submitted in 2012.” 6 Oct. 2011  IRS.gov

–.  “Many Tax Return Preparers Must Use IRS e-file Beginning in 2011.”  29 Jan. 2011 IRS.gov

Notice 2011-80 informs tax professionals that PTINs must be renewed each calendar year using the online application or paper Form W-12.  The required fee will be $64.25.  All this is part of the return preparer initiative which enables the IRS to better monitor paid tax preparers and their compliance with federal tax laws.  In addition to these requirements, some preparers also must pass a competency exam.  All those who satisfactorily comply will be designated as a Registered Tax Return Preparer, meaning they are authorized to receive compensation for preparing tax returns for their clients.

The notice also clarifies the following:

• The IRS will continue to issue provisional PTINs through April 8, 2012 when they will be prepared to issue competency tests or suitability requirements to individuals so required.
• The 15-hour continuing education requirement for certain tax preparers will take effect in 2012.  And individuals required to pass the competency exam before December 31, 2013 must complete their continuing education requirements for 2013 and on.
• Preparers who pass the suitability check must also provide their fingerprints which will be run through the FBI database.
• Those participating in the PTIN, acceptance agent or authorized e-file provider programs, yet residing outside the US, will not have to provide fingerprints.  However, they must still comply with other suitability check requirements and meet any other requirements of the program in which they are participating.
• Attorneys, CPAs, enrolled agents, enrolled retirement plan agents and enrolled actuaries are, for now, also exempt from the fingerprinting requirement; they must still, however, answer the suitability questions on the PTIN application.

The IRS will be working with third-party vendors who will collect and process the fingerprints.  In additional to any fees these vendors charge for their services, the IRS will also charge $33 for fingerprinting and $27 for testing. For more information, visit www.IRS.gov/ptin

Universal Helps Tax Preparers be in Compliance

Consider Universal your source in preparing for the new IRS mandatory testing and continued tax education requirements.

Our online tax course, the Professional Tax Preparer program, is designed to help and includes the following:

• Informative video instruction
• Full 1040 training
• Full business return (1065, 1120, 1120S) training
• 6 months of follow-up support from expert tax preparers

Many programs will lecture you on tax law and preparation practices, but Universal’s tax training is much more effective because it provides you with the hands-on practice that will perfect your skills.  Theory is taught as guiding principles, but the focus is on actually doing taxes to gain proficiency.

Ensure that your home-based tax business is in compliance with the new IRS tax preparer regulations.  Improve your competitive advantage while securing your professional standing in the tax industry now.  Call Universal at 1-877-833-7909 today and enroll in the Professional Tax Preparer Program.

Please leave us with your feedback and comments.

Doug Shulman, IRS tax commissioner, explains, “This settlement program provides certainty and relief to employers in an important area.  This is part of a wider effort to help taxpayers and businesses get a fresh start with their tax obligations.”

Called the Voluntary Classification Settlement Program (VCSP), this plan enables qualified employers to secure considerable relief from unpaid federal taxes as long as they change the designation of workers and independent contractors to employees when the classification so applies.

To be eligible, the IRS requires the following from applicants:

• Consistently have treated the workers in the past as nonemployees,
• Have filed all required Forms 1099 for the workers for the previous three years
• Not currently be under audit by the IRS, the Department of Labor or a state agency concerning the classification of these workers

Those wishing to take advantage of the program can file Form 8952.  It must be submitted 60 days before they begin treating workers as employees.  Those accepted into the program need only pay a little over one percent of wages they paid in the past year to reclassified workers.  They will not be required to pay interest or penalties.  The IRS press release explains, “Participating employers will, for the first three years under the program, be subject to a special six-year statute of limitations, rather than the usual three years that generally applies to payroll taxes.”

For more information, visit the IRS.gov.

Order Your Copy of Red to Black, Today!

Businesses that struggle with this classification issue, are often experiencing deeper issues with the profitability of their businesses.  If your clients are in the red, you can help them change that!

Discover how to use accounting information to help turn a business around.  Red to Black in 30 Days will give you all the tools to apply the Universal Project Management Model required to save failing businesses.   This book is a guideline for accountants, tax preparers and consultants who work with these disheartened small business owners. Each chapter focuses on a crucial aspect of the turnaround process. Simple steps are outlined from initial contact through stabilization and profitable growth. This can be the guide through your first turnaround experience or enhance the accounting and management skills of even the seasoned financial professional.

For the cost of this one book you can enhance your value to current and prospective employers.  Order your copy now.