2015 Inflation Adjustments on Several Tax Benefits and Retirement Adjustments

Posted on by katemley

IRS Announces 2015 Inflation Adjustments on Several Tax Benefits and Retirement Adjustments

The IRS recently announced annual inflation adjustments for several tax provisions, which will apply to the 2015 tax year. Some of the affected provisions include: income tax rate schedules, the estate tax exemption, long-term care adjustments, and retirement adjustments. Below is a summary of those adjustments.

Tax Rates. Beginning in the 2015 tax year, the following tax rates will apply:

If the Taxable Income Is: The Tax for Married Individuals Filing Jointly is:
Less than or equal to $18,45010% of the taxable income
Over $18,450 but not over $74,900
  		$1,845 plus 15% of the excess over $18,450
Over $74,900 but not over $151, 200$10,312.50 plus 25% of the excess over $74,90010% of the taxable income
Over $151,200 but not over $230,450$29,387.50 plus 28% of the excess over $151,200
Over $230,450 but not over $411,500$51,566.50 plus 33% of the excess over $230,450
Over $411,500 but not over $464,850$111,324 plus 35% of the excess over $411,500
Over $464,850$129,996.50 plus 39.6% of the excess over $464,850
If the Taxable Income Is: The Tax for Heads of Households is:
Not over $13,15010% of the taxable income
Over $13,150 but not over $50,200$1,315 plus 15% of the excess over $13,150
Over $50,200 but not over $129,600$6,872.50 plus 25% of the excess over $50,200
Over $129,600 but not over $209,850$26,722.50 plus 28% of the excess over $129,600
Over $209,850 but not over $411,500$49,192.50 plus 33% of the excess over $209,850
Over $411,500 but not over $439,000$115,737 plus 35% of the excess over $411,500
Over $439,000$125,362 plus 39.6% of the excess over $439,000
If the Taxable Income Is: The Tax for Unmarried Individuals is:
Not over $9,22510% of the taxable income
Over $9,225 but not over $37,450$922.50 plus 15% of the excess over $9,225
Over $37,450 but not over $90, 750$5,156.25 plus 25% of the excess over $37,450
Over $90,750 but not over $189,300$18,481.25 plus 28% of the excess over $90,750
Over $189,300 but not over $411,500$46,075.25 plus 33% of the excess over $189,300
Over $411,500 but not over $413,200$119,401.25 plus 35% of the excess over $411,500
Over $413,200$119,996.25 plus 39.9% of the excess over $413,200
If the Taxable Income Is:The Tax for Married Individuals Filing Separate Returns is:
Not over $9,22510% of the taxable income
Over $9,225 but not over $37,450$922.50 plus 15% of the excess over $9,225
Over $37, 450 but not over $75,600$5,156.25 plus 25% of the excess over $37,450
Over $75,600 but not over $115,225$14,693.75 plus 28% of the excess over $75,600
Over $115,225 but not over $205,750$25,788.75 plus 33% of the excess over $115,225
Over $205,750 but not over $232,425$55,662 plus 35% of the excess over $205,750
Over $232,425$64,989.25 plus 39.6% of the excess over $232,425
If the Taxable Income Is:The Tax for Estates and Trusts is:
Not over $2,500
15% of the taxable income
Over $2,500 but not over $5,900$375 plus 25% of the excess over $2,500
Over $5,900 but not over $9,050$1,225 plus 28% of the excess over $5,900
Over $9,050 but not over $12,300$2,107 plus 33% of the excess over $9,050
Over $12,300$3,179.50 plus 39.6% of the excess over $12,300

Estate Tax Exemption. The Estate Tax is a tax imposed on the transfer of property at a person’s death, for any portion of the decedent’s gross estate that exceeds the Federal Estate Tax Exemption. This year the estate tax exclusion has increased from a total of $5,340,000 to $5,430,000. This means that decedents who die in 2015 have an estate tax exclusion that has increased by $90,000 from the previous year.

Long-term Care. Deductions for Long Term Care Insurance Premiums have increased slightly from 2014. The 2015 deductible limits under §213(d)(10) for eligible long-term care premiums are as follows:

Attained Age Before Close of Taxable YearLimitation on Premiums
40 or less $380
More than 40 but not more than 50 $710
More than 50 but not more than 60 $1,430
More than 60 but not more than 70 $3,800
More than 70$4,750

Retirement Adjustments. The elective deferral (contribution) limit for employees who participate in 401(k), 403(b), most 457 plans, and the government’s Thrift Savings Plan has increased from $17,500 to $18,000. In addition, if you are 50 or over you can contribute an additional $6,000 as a catch-up contribution. However, the limit on annual contributions to IRA accounts remains unchanged at $5,500 with the catch-up contribution limit remaining $1,000.

The deduction for taxpayers making contributions to traditional IRA accounts is phased out gradually starting at an Adjusted Gross Income (AGI) of $61,000 for single taxpayers and heads of households, $98,000 for married couples filing jointly (when the spouse who makes the IRA contribution is covered by a workplace retirement plan), and $183,000 for an IRA contributor not covered by a workplace retirement plan but who is married to someone who is covered. 

The deduction for taxpayers making contributions to a Roth IRA is phased out gradually starting at an AGI of $183,000 for married couples filing jointly and $116,000 for singles and heads of households.

Lastly, the AGI limit for the saver’s credit (retirement savings contribution credit) for low and moderate income workers has also increased slightly for 2015. The credit is now $61,000 for married couples filing jointly, $45,750 for heads of household, and $30,500 for singles and married couples who file separately.

If you have any questions about how these adjustments might affect your tax situation, please feel free to contact our office for further assistance.

Missouri Legislature Overrides Vetoes on Taxpayer Friendly Bills

Posted on by katemley

Missouri Legislature Overrides Vetoes on Taxpayer Friendly Bills: An Overview of Senate Bills 829 & 727

This past week the Missouri Legislature voted to override the governor’s veto on several bills including Senate Bill 829 regarding the burden of proof in taxpayer liability cases, and Senate Bill 727 regarding sales taxes for farmer’s markets. Both of these bills are effective retroactively beginning August 28, 2014.

Senate Bill 829 repeals and replaces section 136.300 of the Missouri Revised Statutes, amending the burden of proof requirements in taxpayer liability cases. Although Senate Bill 829 was signed by both the house and senate earlier this year, it was vetoed by Governor Jay Nixon on June 11. While the governor’s veto was in place, the Department of Revenue (DOR) only had the burden of proof in tax liability disputes if the taxpayer met certain threshold requirements. Such requirements included whether (1) the taxpayer was a partnership, corporation, or trust, (2) the taxpayer’s net worth did not exceed $7 million and (3) the taxpayer had less than 500 employees.

On September 10 the legislature overturned the governor’s veto, enacting Senate Bill 829. The bill replaces the threshold requirements mentioned above, and places the burden of proof on the DOR with respect to any factual issue relevant to ascertaining the liability of the taxpayer as long as the taxpayer has (1) produced evidence that shows that there is a reasonable dispute with respect to the issue and (2) has adequate records of its transactions and provides the DOR reasonable access to the records. Now because the burden of proof is on DOR, they have to prove liability for claims stating that a taxpayer owes additional taxes (this act includes issues regarding the applicability of an exemption but excludes issues regarding the applicability of any tax credit). In addition, by placing the burden of proof on DOR, the bill mirrors current Internal Revenue Service procedure concerning federal tax liability. Overall the bill is favorable to the taxpayer and creates consistency between the state and federal tax liability procedures.

Senate Bill 727 amends Chapters 144 and 208 of the Missouri Revised Statutes by adding three new sections, the first of which, section 144.527, is related to sales taxes at farmer’s markets.

Section 144.527, specifically exempts “all sales of farm products sold at farmer’s markets” from sales and use taxes as defined in Chapter 144. In addition, the section states that in order to qualify as a “farmer’s market,” the individual farmer, group of farmers, nonprofit, or cooperative must (1) consistently occupy a given site throughout the season, (2) operate as a “common marketplace” for farmers to sell farm products directly to consumers, and (3) be a marketplace where the sole intent and purpose of the farmers is to generate a portion of their household income. While section 144.527 limits farmer’s markets to the “sale of farm products,” it defines “farm products” very broadly so as to encompass almost any type of food that one might find at a farmer’s market (including baked goods made with farm products). However, the term “farm products” would exclude any third party goods or other non-farm product goods that a farmer may want to sell. Lastly, the exemption does not apply to persons or entities with total annual sales of $25,000 or more from farmer’s markets participating in the tax exempt program. 

If you have any questions regarding how these bills may affect your tax matter or farmer’s market, please feel free to contact our office.

Final Regulations Issued for Use of Truncated Taxpayer Identification Numbers

Posted on by katemley

New IRS Regulations Aim to Fight Identity Theft Through Use of Truncated Taxpayer Identification Numbers

This week, in an effort to safeguard taxpayers from identity theft, the IRS issued its final regulations regarding the use of Truncated Tax Identification Numbers or (TTINs). The final regulations, published on July 15, are amendments to the Income Tax Regulations and Procedure and Administration Regulations, which allow the tax filer to truncate a payee’s identification number on certain documents. The Service states that the amendments are specifically targeted at reducing the risk of identity theft, which can stem from the use of an employee’s entire identification number on documents.

A “Truncated” identification number simply takes an existing nine-digit identification number and replaces the first five numbers with either asterisks or “X”s so that only the last four digits remain. (i.e. A tax identification number of 99-9999999 would become XX-XXX9999). Because a TTIN is merely a method of masking taxpayer identification numbers that already exist, use of a TTIN does not require the Service to issue any new identification numbers or expend any funds for the taxpayer to be able to use a TTIN. The new regulations allow for TTIN to be used for a taxpayer’s social security number (SSN), IRS individual taxpayer identification number (ITIN), IRS adoption taxpayer identification number (ATIN), or employer identification number (EIN) on payee statements and certain other documents.

Before issuing their final regulations, the IRS ran a pilot program, which allowed certain qualified filers to truncate an individual’s payee identification number on a paper payee statements for Forms 1098, 1099, and 5498. This program ran from 2009 to 2010. In 2011 the IRS extended the pilot program for two more years and modified it by removing Form 1098-C from the list of eligible documents.

In January of 2013, the US Treasury and the IRS issued proposed regulations, in response to the growing threat of identity theft and associated tax fraud. The proposed regulations largely mirrored the pilot program, with TTINs permitted on electronic payee statements in addition to paper statements.

The final regulations became effective on July 15, 2014 and permit the use of TTINs “on any federal tax-related payee statement or other document required to be furnished to another person….” TTINs may not be used (1) on any return or statement filed with, or furnished to, the IRS, (2) where prohibited by statute, regulation, or other guidance by the IRS, or (3) where a SSN, ITIN, ATIN, or EIN is specifically required. Further a TTIN cannot be used by an individual to truncate their own identification number on any statement or other document that they give to another person. This includes an employer’s EIN on a W-2 or Wage and Tax Statement that they might give to an employee, and also an individual’s identification number on either a W-9 or Request for Taxpayer Number and Certification. 

If you have questions about the use of TTINs, please contact our office.

Anticipating a shortfall on your 2013 tax return?

Posted on by katemley

Haven’t seen your CPA since you filed your tax return in early 2013?  Paid the minimum in estimated taxes to avoid being penalized by the IRS? Made approximately the same amount of money in 2012 as 2013? You may have a problem – a tax debt problem. Don’t panic, review all your options before taking drastic action to pay that tax bill.

So what happened? A lot. 2013 brings with it many tax increases for those in higher income tax brackets.  Individuals earning over $250,000 and couples earning over $300,000 will start to lose their itemized deductions. Individuals earning over $400,000 and couples over $450,000 hit the new 39.6% top marginal tax rate.  Additionally, they are subjected to the 3.8% medicare surtax on investment income.  Finally, they lose the personal exemption of $3,900 this year.  These quickly add up.  Capital gains rates have taken a “bump” too for those earning more than $400,000 as a single person and over $450,000 as a couple, from 15% to 20%. 

These new changes may cause some to be surprised when they pick up their tax returns.  Taxpayers who have owed little or none before may find themselves in a situation where they don’t have liquid cash to simply write a check the U.S. Treasury. If you don’t have the cash, the last thing you want to do is take action that increases your 2014 tax bill.  In other words, you wouldn’t want to take an early withdrawal from your IRA or 401(k).  These withdrawals could cause you to incur both taxes and penalties. Further, you want to avoid a cash out of non-retirement assets that drive up your capital gains taxes or cause you to incur other ordinary income tax consequences. 

Perhaps you have access to a line of credit to pay your taxes – either secured or unsecured – such as a home equity loan or line of credit through a bank card. These could carry hefty closing costs if you are trying to establish them for the purpose of accessing cash to pay the taxes. And, home equity loans on average carry a 6% interest rate at this time.  Other lines of credit could carry interest rates in the double digits. A problem with using the line of credit, especially if you don’t have it established, is that it could take time to obtain the cash.  Delay in paying the tax bill could cause further penalties and interest.

One option that you can consider, if you need time, is asking the IRS for a “full pay delay.” It is not uncommon for the IRS to place a 120 day hold on collection action while you acquire funds.  Another option is to establish a payment agreement directly with the IRS.  In many cases, the payment agreement can be established without full financial disclosure and without the filing of a tax lien.  The interest rate at the IRS is actually pretty low, currently about 3%.  Additionally, penalties for failure to full pay your tax bill will accrue.  Regardless, this is another viable option that may very well be your cheapest overall option.

When analyzing this type of situation, regardless of what option the taxpayer chooses to resolve the debt, the taxpayer must plan for 2014 current taxes.  This will be necessary to avoid a similar shortfall like the one in 2013.  So, from a cash-flow perspective, the taxpayer will have to balance some mechanism to retire the 2013 taxes while not creating a new balance for 2014. 

If a taxpayer has a $25,000 shortfall for 2013, that will likely also be the case for 2014.  As such, an increase of greater than $2,000 per month in estimated taxes will be required to close the gap.  This type of foresight is necessary when looking at options to deal with the 2013 debt.

If you would like more assistance with resolving your 2013 tax balances and planning for 2014, please don’t hesitate to contact our office.