How the suspension of personal exemptions affects health-care-related provisions
IRS guidance clarifies what it means to claim a personal exemption deduction.
Individual income taxation
Meals continue to be deductible under new IRS guidance
The IRS issued guidance on the deductibility of meal and entertainment expenses after the modification of Sec. 274 by the TCJA.
New life for IRA qualified charitable distributions
The TCJA’s higher standard deduction makes before-tax giving more attractive.
Qualified business income deduction regs. proposed
'Reliance' regs., other guidance cover many questions about the TCJA's 20% deduction for noncorporate entities.
IRS issues 2018–2019 per-diem rates
The IRS issued its annual update of the special per-diem rates for business travel away from home from Oct. 1, 2018, through Sept. 30, 2019.
Taxpayers denied insolvency exclusion of COD income
Cash held by a couple's son as their nominee tipped their balance sheet to positive, the Tax Court holds.
Vacation home rentals and the TCJA
Allocation of certain expenses between personal and rental use may need to change under the law known as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.
Profit motive key in hobby loss cases
Tax Court cases evaluate the nine-factor test in Regs. Sec. 1.183-2 for determining when losses may be deducted.
Deemed personal exemption amount introduced for various tax benefits
The IRS issued guidance on how it intends to interpret the exemption amount in tax years 2018 through 2025 in determining who is a qualifying relative for purposes of the various Code provisions that refer to the definition of a dependent in Sec. 152.
Qualified business income deduction regs. proposed
The IRS issued guidance on the new Sec. 199A deduction for qualified business income in the form of proposed regulations and a separate notice on how to calculate W-2 wages for those purposes.
Final rules govern adequate substantiation for charitable contributions
Final regulations address how taxpayers can comply with the requirements for adequate substantiation of charitable contributions of money or property.
AICPA: 2019 Form W-4 needs to be simplified
The AICPA’s Tax Executive Committee sent a letter to the IRS, urging the Service to simplify the proposed draft 2019 Form W-4, Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate.
Analyzing the new personal casualty loss tax rules
Targeted relief is undercut by new statutory limitations included in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.
Claiming child tax benefits for noncustodial parents
IRS guidance on the waiver of a dependency exemption remains significant with the newly enhanced child tax credit.
Form 1040 to be shorter but with more schedules
The IRS is working on a draft version of the 2018 Form 1040, U.S. Individual Income Tax Return, that reduces the size of the form to two half-pages in length and eliminates more than 50 lines.
Draft 2019 Form W-4 and instructions posted
The IRS released a draft Form W-4, Employee’s Withholding Allowance Certificate, and its instructions, for individual taxpayers to use to determine their income tax withholding for 2019.
Gravel mining income not exempt under Native American treaties
The Tax Court holds that the treaty provisions apply to tribes, not individuals.
IRA distribution to pay spousal support is taxable
The Tax Court holds that writing checks from funds distributed is not a transfer of an account interest incident to divorce.
Child tax credit now higher, more widely available
Middle-income taxpayers are more likely to have a greater benefit than before.
Short sale is considered one transaction
The Tax Court denies the taxpayers' claimed loss on the sale of their former home followed by an exclusion of cancellation-of-debt income.
