Tax, accounting, auditing news - Journal of Accountancy

March 19, 2020

Coronavirus relief bill contains tax credits for employers

Here’s a look at the payroll tax credit provisions for employers in the coronavirus relief bill President Donald Trump signed on Wednesday.

March 19, 2020

Consumer confidence, spending are top coronavirus concerns

The sudden onset of the coronavirus is testing many companies’ financial stability and emergency preparedness. But financial executives tend to believe their businesses are positioned to weather the storm.

March 18, 2020

AICPA expresses strong concern over lack of filing relief in coronavirus tax notice

The IRS delayed any tax payments due April 15 to July 15 without interest or penalties accruing. The relief does not extend any tax return filing deadlines.

March 18, 2020

Prometric closes CPA Exam test centers for 30 days

Prometric’s CPA Exam test centers are closing for 30 days in the US and Canada to protect the health of test takers and staff during the coronavirus outbreak.

March 18, 2020

In focus: Map of coronavirus cases in the U.S.

The COVID-19 outbreak that began in China has now spread globally. Here’s a view of reported cases in the U.S.

March 17, 2020

Treasury secretary announces 90-day delay in tax payment deadline

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin announced that individuals and businesses can delay their tax payments for 90 days due to the coronavirus pandemic.

March 17, 2020

How the coronavirus may affect financial reporting and auditing

The coronavirus pandemic looks likely to create major challenges for the preparation of financial statements, both for the current quarter and also for annual financial reports and audits over the next year.

March 13, 2020

What to do if staff can’t make it to the office

As the coronavirus pandemic leads to staff scattering, here is expert advice on what firms can do to make remote working work.

March 12, 2020

Final regs. raise offer-in-compromise user fee

The IRS issued final regulations raising the offer-in-compromise user fee from $186 to $205, a 10% increase instead of the increase to $300 included in proposed regulations.

March 12, 2020

FASB provides accounting relief for LIBOR transition

Accounting for the transition away from the London Interbank Offered Rate and similar rates should be less complex as a result of a standard issued by FASB.

March 12, 2020

SEC exempts certain companies from ICFR attestation requirement

The SEC issued amendments that exempt smaller reporting companies with less than $100 million in revenue from the requirement to obtain attestation of their internal control over financial reporting from an outside auditor.

March 11, 2020

High-deductible health plans can cover coronavirus testing, treatment

To facilitate the nation’s response to COVID-19, the IRS issued guidance permitting high-deductible health plans to cover costs for testing and treating the virus without satisfying a deductible requirement.

March 10, 2020

Calming clients’ fears during the coronavirus outbreak

How can CPAs deal with client anxieties during a time of uncertainty? The best steps include preparing them for unexpected events before they happen and acknowledging their concerns.

March 10, 2020

AU-C 800 series amended to conform with auditor reporting standard

The AICPA Auditing Standards Board issued new guidance that is intended to align the AU-C 800 series with the board’s new standard on auditor reporting.

March 9, 2020

FASB makes narrow changes to financial instruments guidance

FASB issued narrow changes to its guidance for financial instruments accounting, including the credit losses standard issued in 2016.

March 9, 2020

GASB addresses certain component unit criteria, deferred compensation plans

A proposal issued by GASB addresses certain component unit criteria and accounting for certain Internal Revenue Code Sec. 457 deferred compensation plans.

March 5, 2020

35 questions for coronavirus planning

Business leaders should be proactive in putting emergency plans in place in response to the spread of coronavirus. Here’s a checklist for organizations related to employees, customers, and vendors.

March 5, 2020

Coronavirus looms over positive economic outlook

Projections for the next 12 months are generally positive, but concerns about the effect of the virus diminished that enthusiasm, according to a quarterly survey.

March 4, 2020

Conditional coronavirus relief provided by SEC

The SEC said public companies that have trouble meeting filing obligations because of the coronavirus outbreak may qualify for regulatory relief under certain conditions.

March 4, 2020

Emotional impact of elder abuse outweighs the financial toll

Fraud and financial abuse harm clients psychologically more than they do financially, according to the AICPA Personal Financial Planning Trends Survey.

FROM THIS MONTH'S ISSUE

Build reusable Skills in Anthropic’s Claude AI

Instead of rewriting prompts each time, CPAs can turn routine tasks into reusable AI Skills. This Technology Q&A walks through how to build Claude Skills that process files, ask setup questions, and export clean Excel outputs.