COVID-19 news and information for CPAs

TOPICS

August 28, 2020

Guidance issued on payroll tax deferral

The IRS issued guidance on the payroll tax deferral ordered by President Donald Trump on Aug. 8. The notice requires employers to withhold deferred taxes during the period from Jan. 1 to April 30, 2021.

August 28, 2020

How lenders should account for forgivable PPP loans

The forgivable portion of a Paycheck Protection Program loan should be accounted for by the lender as an interest-bearing loan until payment for that loan is received from the SBA, according to new Technical Question and Answer Guidance issued by the AICPA.

August 27, 2020

Tools to help nonfilers receive economic impact payments

The IRS provided information and tools that tax practitioners can use to inform individuals who are eligible to receive economic impact payments but did not receive one automatically.

August 25, 2020

New PPP forgiveness guidance addresses owner-employee compensation, rent-related costs

The SBA and Treasury published an interim final rule that provides clarity on Paycheck Protection Program loan forgiveness issues related to owner-employee compensation calculations and the eligibility of nonpayroll costs related to certain lease and property ownership scenarios.

August 24, 2020

IRS stops sending balance-due notices, corrects payroll tax penalties

The IRS has stopped sending balance-due notices to taxpayers as it works to process its backlog of unopened mail. It is also working to correct certain erroneous penalties for some employers who reduced their payroll tax deposits to claim COVID-19 relief-related credits.

August 24, 2020

Teleworking and state and local taxes

This episode explores the huge implications for state and local taxes raised by workers more often untethered from the employer’s physical location, sometimes in another state. And now, during the COVID-19 pandemic, remote teleworking has become the rule for many professions.

August 21, 2020

Video interview tips for forensic accountants and auditors

Social distancing rules designed to stunt the growth of the COVID-19 pandemic have made it impossible, or at least impractical, to conduct in-person interviews for forensic and auditing engagements.

August 20, 2020

Implementing the payroll tax deferral

We explore the range of issues that Treasury and the IRS face as they implement this order and what it all could mean for employers and employees.

August 20, 2020

AICPA urges firms to schedule peer reviews as off-site deadline is extended

The AICPA Peer Review Board voted to continue permitting remote system reviews for CPA firms without prior approval of the administering entity for system reviews commencing before June 30, 2021.

August 20, 2020

Promoting resilience helps firms and people in turbulent times

Amid the coronavirus pandemic and social upheaval, taking a fresh look at your practice and leading with emotional intelligence can lead to improvements in business results and employee welfare.

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.