The Small Business Tax Help Blog

Archive for February, 2007

If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!

Question: WA State, Snohomish County, Personal Property taxes for a Business?

I have a small business in Snohomish county, WA State. I received a form to fill out for 2009 personal property tax for the business. It is asking me to list all of the items in the building we put in as improvements to run our business, all items gifted, purchased, used or new that are used in the sell or trade of product. Then the form goes on to tell me the county will excess me on the fair market value established by the county and bill me for the taxes due.

I thought everything I purchased or was given was all ready taxed at the time of the sale to me or to the person that gifted it to the business. Why a double tax? (because they can?)

Is there a way around this, has anyone run into this tax before that can tell me what to do?
John

Answer: How is your company structured? The tax method depends on the type of business: if you are an LLC you get taxed WAY different than a Sole Prop.

I would STRONGLY advise talking to a Tax Accountant. I know it costs some cash, but you could end up owing the State/Feds a TON of money if you don't know how to structure your tax system.

Candidate Q&A: Maria Rodriguez

Maria Rodriguez, 50, lives in Long Grove. She is serving her second term as Long Grove's village president. Rodriguez owns and operates a small manufacturing business with her husband, Ray. They have three children.

Tax Breaks for Self-Employed Individuals and Small Business Owners

Question: I began business in 2003 selling medical equipment and applied for and received an EIN. Do I now need Tax ID?

I recently started a new contract and am being asked to provide a federal tax id#. When I presented my EIN, under which I have worked for the past 4 years, I was told that I needed to obtain a TID. Can anyone help?

Answer: Who told you that? An EIN IS your federal tax id. Is your business a corporation? That could confuse things.

First Spin

You Are Listening To... Review: Carissa’s Wierd - They’ll Only Miss You When You Leave: Songs 1996-2003 Carissa’s Wierd They’ll Only Miss You When You Leave: Songs 1996-2003 [Hardly Art] Need to know: Before there was Band of Horses, Grand Archives and Sera Cahoone, there was a band called Carissa’s Weird (the misspelling of “weird” was on purpose).

Olav H. Hauge - Tid å hausta inn

Question: How do I go about opening a small business in Illinois?

I am a single mother of two, and I am interested in opening a small business for infants and children’s items. What is the process to do this, and about how much does it cost excluding my inventory? I already know how much that will be. Do I need a business license? And how do I get a tax ID certificate for the business? I really want to do this and any help would be greatly appreciated!

Answer: Contact the Small Business Development Center. There's an office in every county. Use the following website to find the Center nearest you ...

http://www.sba.gov/aboutsba/sbaprograms/sbdc/sbdclocator/SBDC_LOCATOR.html

FBR decides to close audit cases for 2008

KARACHI (January 15 2010): Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has decided to close audit cases for tax year 2008 other than the cases selected through random ballot.

New Business Tips : How to Open a Business

Question: Who’s responsibility is it to make sure enough tax is withheld from an employee’s paycheck?

A friend of mine didn’t have enough money taken out of her check and now owes the IRS about $700. She filled out her W-4 correctly to have the deductions withheld but her employer failed to take enough money out. Is this her fault? Does she still have to pay this amount, even though her employer didn’t withhold enough money? I figured it out and according to the amount the government requires you to pay (10%), she does actually owe the money, but had her employer been taking out the money correctly, it would have been paid all year long. I told her it didn’t matter if her employer didn’t take enough money out, it was still her responsibility to make sure her withholding was correct, and thus, her fault she now owes but she insists its not her fault. Thanks in advance for your help!

Answer: It's the employee's job to make sure enough tax is being withheld. If she can't pay it all now it's import that she file her taxes anyway and submit a form to make installment payments to the IRS. They'll bill her monthly based on the number of payments she requests.
.

Last Chance to Avoid Underpayment Penalty

January 15 is the deadline for 2009 Estimated Tax Payments.

Economic Stimulus - How Does It Affect Your Paycheck?