Monthly News: April 2020

Covid-19 has taken over all aspects of our lives.  The IRS and taxes is no exception.  The IRS has shut down most of their services and has been having any employees that can work remotely do so.  The amount of people able to do this are few.  The Federal income tax returns and payment requirements have been postponed until July 15, 2020.  The IRS will not charge penalties or interest during this postponement.

The Stimulus money that will be sent to you will not be taxed.  After much debate the Legislators have passed a multi-billion bill that will help the economy, small business, and workers including self-employed, gig workers and most American’s.

The coronavirus paid-leave package includes tax credits for many employers.  The law requires companies with fewer than 500 employees to provide sick and family leave for employees who can’t work due to the needs of their family.  If they are caring for a family member who has covid-19 or if their children can’t attend school or day cares this bill offsets the quarterly payroll taxes dollar for dollar.

Congress is working on further future stimulus measures.  The details are yet to be worked out.  This will include loans forgiven to keep paying employees during the shut-down.  Check with your local banker for the details and remember that all the details are not completely so your business maybe not be listed right now but may be included in the future.

If you have tax resolution needs, be sure to address these quickly after the reopening of the IRS.  These types of crisis tend to relax some of the requirements to resolve your tax problems.  Best practice is to wait until the IRS has time to get back to work before applying for an installment agreement or Offer in Compromise.  The IRS will be inundated with correspondence just as they were last year with the government shut-down.