Tax news and information - Journal of Accountancy

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June 27, 2018

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.

June 22, 2018

A new playing field for business

The Supreme Court’s decision on sales tax collection could give smaller companies that rely on in-store sales a better chance to compete with virtual retailers.

June 21, 2018

Supreme Court overturns Quill’s physical presence requirement

The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday held that states can assert nexus for sales and use tax purposes without requiring a seller’s physical presence in the state.

June 18, 2018

Disguised-sale partnership regs. withdrawn

The IRS announced that it was withdrawing temporary regulations on the treatment of partnership liabilities for disguised-sale purposes and proposing to reinstate the old rules.

June 15, 2018

AICPA advocates for IRS tax guidance priorities

The AICPA sent a letter to the IRS with recommendations for items of tax guidance that should be priorities for the Service to issue from July 1, 2018, to June 30, 2019.

June 12, 2018

How tax reform is impacting tax practitioners

Tax practitioners usually get to enjoy some down time during the summer. But this year summer may be a little more hectic than usual thanks to the changes brought about by tax reform.

June 12, 2018

Planning ideas from Form 1040 (and beyond)

Learn about a few of the many valuable planning opportunities you can uncover when reviewing a client’s tax forms.

June 8, 2018

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.

June 4, 2018

How tax reform — and Excel — are changing the CPA Exam

Mike Decker, the vice president of examinations at the AICPA, discusses changes being made to the exam as a result of tax reform — and about how Excel will now be available for use on the test.

June 1, 2018

Line items

IRS to shut down OVDP … Longer carried interest holding period includes S corporations … Coinbase notifies customers of IRS summons compliance

June 1, 2018

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.

June 1, 2018

Guidance addresses partnership accounting when IRS collects underpayments

A new TQA discusses taxes on partnership income.

June 1, 2018

Gravel mining income not exempt under Native American treaties

The Tax Court holds that the treaty provisions apply to tribes, not individuals.

June 1, 2018

Child tax credit now higher, more widely available

Middle-income taxpayers are more likely to have a greater benefit than before.

June 1, 2018

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.

June 1, 2018

Tax overhaul may fuel life settlement industry

A doubled estate/gift tax exemption makes policies less necessary, while more favorable basis rules decrease gain on their sale.

June 1, 2018

Retaining stellar tax professionals

Retain an all-star staff by providing employees exceptional on-the-job experiences.

June 1, 2018

Captive insurance: Avoiding the risks

Survive IRS scrutiny of this potentially valuable arrangement.

May 30, 2018

AICPA recommends IRS FAQs on virtual currency taxation

The comments were prompted by new questions that have emerged about how the tax rules apply to virtual currency transactions since the AICPA first submitted comments.

May 25, 2018