“Who is rich? He who is happy with his lot.” – Pirkei Avos (4:1) At my seminars on the New Tax Act, I told the audiences about the unprecedented estate planning opportunity over the next two years of making gifts. The Estate Tax, Gift Tax and Generation-Skipping Tax exemptions are all at $5 million. For… Read More
Caring for a parent or other relative takes both time and money. There are several tax provisions that can help you save money when providing this type of care. Additional Exemption If you are supporting an elderly parent or other qualifying person, you may be able to claim him or her on your tax return… Read More
Open publication – Free publishing – More tax
Thank you to Atty Charles Rubin who posted about the news from the IRS on his blog: Rubin on Tax. Here is the IRS publication: click here Rubin says: Some things are fairly clear from the website information, and some things are not. As far as what is clear: a. The Form 8939 for allocating… Read More
The new tax law enacted in December 2010 raised the federal estate and gift tax exemption to $5 million and extended the “Bush tax cuts” temporarily for two years – 2011 and 2012. Another much-touted feature of the new law is the “portability” of the federal estate tax exemption. “Portable” means easily carried or transferred,… Read More
Under new IRS regulations, beginning with the 2011 tax year, financial institutions must report to the IRS on clients’ Forms 1099-B (Proceeds from Broker and Barter Exchange Transactions) not only gross proceeds of sales but also the adjusted cost basis for stock sold and whether the related gain or loss is long-term or short-term. The… Read More
Witches of Romania Curse Government for New Tax Law “Everyone curses the tax man, but Romanian witches angry about having to pay up for the first time are planning to use cat excrement and dead dogs to cast spells on the president and government. Also among Romania’s newest taxpayers are fortune tellers — but they… Read More
taxpayer’s have until April 18, 2011 to file 2010 Form 1040s. That’s a few extra days. April 15 falls on a Friday and its Emancipation Day in the District of Columbia. Pennsylvania Form PA-40 is due on April 15. Officially, tax season begins on January 14, 2011. That’s when IRS e-file opens to accept electronically… Read More
With the passage of the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization and Job Creation Act of 2010 (2010 Tax Act), Congress retroactively reinstated the ability of taxpayers to make direct qualified charitable distributions (QCDs) from an IRA, in amounts up to $100,000, by IRA owners who are at least age 70½ years of age. You have… Read More
We finally have tax legislation that answers the question of what will happen to the estate tax. The “Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization and Job Creation Act of 2010” (“2010 Tax Relief Act” or “Act”) was signed into law on December 17 by President Obama. (For a detailed description see They Call it a Tax… Read More