Better tax break when applying the research credit against payroll taxes
The credit for increasing research activities, often referred to as the research and development (R&D) credit, is a valuable tax break available to certain eligible small businesses. Claiming the credit involves complex calculations, which we’ll take care of for you.
But in addition to the credit itself, be aware that there are two additional features that are especially favorable to small businesses:
- Eligible small businesses ($50 million or less in gross receipts for the three prior tax years) may claim the credit against alternative minimum tax (AMT) liability.
- The credit can be used by certain smaller startup businesses against their Social Security payroll and Medicare tax liability.
Let’s take a look at the second feature. The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) has doubled the amount of the payroll tax credit election for qualified businesses and made a change to the eligible types of payroll taxes it can be applied to, making it better than it was before the law changes kicked in.
Election basics
Subject to limits, your business can elect to apply all or some of any research tax credit that you earn against your payroll taxes instead of your income tax. This payroll tax election may influence you to undertake or increase your research activities. On the other hand, if you’re engaged in — or are planning to undertake — research activities without regard to tax consequences, you could receive some tax relief.
Many new businesses, even if they have some cash flow, or even net positive cash flow and/or a book profit, pay no income taxes and won’t for some time. Thus, there’s no amount against which business credits, including the research credit, can be applied. On the other hand, any wage-paying business, even a new one, has payroll tax liabilities. Therefore, the payroll tax election is an opportunity to get immediate use out of the research credits that you earn. Because every dollar of credit-eligible expenditure can result in as much as a 10-cent tax credit, that’s a big help in the start-up phase of a business — the time when help is most needed.
Eligible businesses
To qualify for the election a taxpayer must:
- Have gross receipts for the election year of less than $5 million, and
- Be no more than five years past the period for which it had no receipts (the start-up period).
In making these determinations, the only gross receipts that an individual taxpayer considers are from the individual’s businesses. An individual’s salary, investment income or other income aren’t taken into account. Also, note that an entity or individual can’t make the election for more than six years in a row.
Limits on the election
The research credit for which the taxpayer makes the payroll tax election can be applied against the employer portion of Social Security and Medicare. It can’t be used to lower the FICA taxes that an employer withholds and remits to the government on behalf of employees. Before a provision in the IRA became effective for 2023 and later years, taxpayers were only allowed to use the payroll tax offset against Social Security, not Medicare.
The amount of research credit for which the election can be made can’t annually exceed $500,000. Prior to the IRA, the maximum credit amount allowed to offset payroll tax before 2023 was only $250,000. Note, too, that an individual or C corporation can make the election only for those research credits which, in the absence of an election, would have to be carried forward. In other words, a C corporation can’t make the election for the research credit to reduce current or past income tax liabilities.
These are just the basics of the payroll tax election. Keep in mind that identifying and substantiating expenses eligible for the research credit itself is a complex task. Contact us about whether you can benefit from the payroll tax election and the research tax credit.
© 2024
A job loss is bad but the tax implications could make it worse
Unemployment has been holding steady recently at 3.7%. But there are still some people losing their jobs — particularly in certain industries including technology and media. If you’re laid off or terminated from employment, taxes are likely the last thing on your mind. However, there are tax implications due to your altered employment circumstances.
Depending on your situation, the tax aspects can be complex and require you to make decisions that may affect your tax bill for this year and for years to come. Be aware of these three areas.
1.Unemployment and payments from your former employer
Many people are surprised to find out that federal unemployment compensation is taxable. (Some states exempt unemployment comp from state tax.) In addition, payments from a former employer for any accumulated vacation or sick time are taxable. Although severance pay is also taxable and subject to federal income tax withholding, some elements of a severance package may get special treatment. For example:
- If you sell stock acquired by way of an incentive stock option (ISO), part or all of your gain may be taxed at lower long-term capital gain rates rather than at ordinary income tax rates, depending on whether you meet a special dual holding period.
- If you received — or will receive — what’s commonly referred to as a “golden parachute payment,” you may be subject to an excise tax equal to 20% of the portion of the payment that’s treated as an “excess parachute payment” under very complex rules, along with the excess parachute payment also being subject to ordinary income tax.
- The value of job placement assistance you receive from your former employer usually is tax-free. However, the assistance is taxable if you had a choice between receiving cash or outplacement help.
2.Health insurance costs
Under the COBRA rules, employers that offer group health coverage generally must provide continuation coverage to most terminated employees and their families. While the cost of COBRA coverage is usually expensive, the amount of any premium you pay for insurance that covers medical care is an eligible medical expense for tax purposes. That means it’s deductible if you itemize deductions and if your total medical expenses exceed 7.5% of your adjusted gross income.
If your former employer pays some of your medical coverage for a period of time after termination, you won’t be taxed on the value of the benefit.
3.Retirement plan balance
Employees whose employment is terminated may need tax planning help to determine the best option for amounts they’ve accumulated in retirement plans sponsored by former employers, such as a 401(k) plan. In many cases, a direct, tax-free rollover to an IRA is the best move. You may also choose to leave the account in your previous employer’s 401(k) plan (although the employer may elect to distribute the funds to you). Or, if you get a new job, you may want to transfer the money in the account with your former employer to your new employer’s 401(k) plan.
If you’re under age 59½, and make withdrawals from your former company’s plan or IRA to supplement missing income, you may owe an additional 10% penalty tax unless you qualify for an exception.
If a distribution from the retirement plan includes employer securities in a lump sum, the distribution is taxed under the lump-sum rules, except that “net unrealized appreciation” in the value of the stock isn’t taxed until the securities are sold or otherwise disposed of in a later transaction.
Further, any loans you’ve taken out from your former employer’s retirement plan, such as a 401(k)-plan loan, may be required to be repaid immediately, or within a specified period. If they aren’t, they may be treated as if the loan is in default. If the balance of the loan isn’t repaid within the required period, it will typically be treated as a taxable deemed distribution.
If you need assistance, contact us. We can help you navigate the best path forward during this transition period.
© 2024
Empower your sellers with sales enablement
The driving revenue force of just about every kind of business is sales. But all too often, once a sales team is up and running, it’s left to its own devices to maintain its strengths, develop new skills and upgrade its technology. This can produce mixed results — some sales departments are remarkably self-sufficient while others could really use more organizational support.
To remove the guesswork, many of today’s businesses are investing in sales enablement. This is an enterprise-wide, collaborative and continuous approach to empowering the sales department to do its best work.
Pillars of the concept
Wait a minute, you might say, isn’t sales enablement just another name for sales training? No, not entirely.
Training is certainly a part of the equation. A sales enablement program will involve ongoing training on the latest sales techniques, changes in the marketplace, the company’s latest products or services, and so forth. But this training doesn’t occur haphazardly — it’s regularly scheduled and typically segmented into easily digestible learning modules, generally a more effective approach than overloading sales reps with info on a sales retreat or in sporadic seminars.
There are several other pillars of sales enablement as well. One is content. Under their programs, many companies build a library of materials that features items such as:
- Books and articles on best practices,
- Customer testimonials,
- Product “spec sheets,” slide decks and demos, and
- Reports and spreadsheets with the latest competitive intelligence.
Another key feature of a sales enablement program is coaching. This may involve engaging outside consultants to provide coaching services to sales reps or developing internal mentoring or partnering.
Technology is also central to sales enablement. Most programs involve regular discussions with the leadership team and IT department about what tools could best serve the sales team. Notably, there are multiple software platforms on the market focused on sales enablement that can help businesses set up and manage their programs. Some customer relationship management software offers help in this area, too.
Benefits in the offing
There’s a reason sales enablement has caught on with many different types of companies. There are significant benefits in the offing.
First, a well-designed program can get new hires up to speed much more quickly than a more casual, ad hoc approach to “rookie” training. And for fully onboarded and seasoned employees, sales enablement can save time and effort by providing easy access to the relevant and up-to-date data, content and tools that support their activities. Ultimately, it can boost productivity for the whole team and, thereby, revenue for the business.
Also, the ongoing training and coaching features of sales enablement help sales reps keep their skills sharp and their knowledge growing. The aforementioned learning modules, webinars, podcasts, quizzes and other learning formats may give them an edge over competitors with less educational support.
There’s the engagement factor, too. A sales enablement program communicates to new hires, as well as established reps, that the organization fully supports them. As word gets around, you may attract stronger job candidates and enjoy better employee retention rates.
A major initiative
As the saying goes, nothing worth doing is easy. To implement and run a successful sales enablement program, you’ll need to invest considerable time and resources. And before any of that, you’ll need to set clear, measurable objectives — as well as a reasonable budget. For help with the financial side of planning a major initiative like this, contact us.
© 2024
Maximize the QBI deduction before it’s gone
The qualified business income (QBI) deduction is available to eligible businesses through 2025. After that, it’s scheduled to disappear. So if you’re eligible, you want to make the most of the deduction while it’s still on the books because it can potentially be a big tax saver.
Deduction basics
The QBI deduction is written off at the owner level. It can be up to 20% of:
- QBI earned from a sole proprietorship or single-member LLC that’s treated as a sole proprietorship for tax purposes, plus
- QBI from a pass-through entity, meaning a partnership, LLC that’s treated as a partnership for tax purposes or S corporation.
How is QBI defined? It’s qualified income and gains from an eligible business, reduced by related deductions. QBI is reduced by: 1) deductible contributions to a self-employed retirement plan, 2) the deduction for 50% of self-employment tax, and 3) the deduction for self-employed health insurance premiums.
Unfortunately, the QBI deduction doesn’t reduce net earnings for purposes of the self-employment tax, nor does it reduce investment income for purposes of the 3.8% net investment income tax (NIIT) imposed on higher-income individuals.
Limitations
At higher income levels, QBI deduction limitations come into play. For 2024, these begin to phase in when taxable income before any QBI deduction exceeds $191,950 ($383,900 for married joint filers). The limitations are fully phased in once taxable income exceeds $241,950 or $483,900, respectively.
If your income exceeds the applicable fully-phased-in number, your QBI deduction is limited to the greater of: 1) your share of 50% of W-2 wages paid to employees during the year and properly allocable to QBI, or 2) the sum of your share of 25% of such W-2 wages plus your share of 2.5% of the unadjusted basis immediately upon acquisition (UBIA) of qualified property.
The limitation based on qualified property is intended to benefit capital-intensive businesses such as hotels and manufacturing operations. Qualified property means depreciable tangible property, including real estate, that’s owned and used to produce QBI. The UBIA of qualified property generally equals its original cost when first put to use in the business.
Finally, your QBI deduction can’t exceed 20% of your taxable income calculated before any QBI deduction and before any net capital gain (net long-term capital gains in excess of net short-term capital losses plus qualified dividends).
Unfavorable rules for certain businesses
For a specified service trade or business (SSTB), the QBI deduction begins to be phased out when your taxable income before any QBI deduction exceeds $191,950 ($383,900 for married joint filers). Phaseout is complete if taxable income exceeds $241,950 or $483,900, respectively. If your taxable income exceeds the applicable phaseout amount, you’re not allowed to claim any QBI deduction based on income from a SSTB.
Other factors
Other rules apply to this tax break. For example, you can elect to aggregate several businesses for purposes of the deduction. It may allow someone with taxable income high enough to be affected by the limitations described above to claim a bigger QBI deduction than if the businesses were considered separately.
There also may be an impact for claiming or forgoing certain deductions. For example, in 2024, you can potentially claim first-year Section 179 depreciation deductions of up to $1.22 million for eligible asset additions (subject to various limitations). For 2024, 60% first-year bonus depreciation is also available. However, first-year depreciation deductions reduce QBI and taxable income, which can reduce your QBI deduction. So, you may have to thread the needle with depreciation write-offs to get the best overall tax result.
Use it or potentially lose it
The QBI deduction is scheduled to disappear after 2025. Congress could extend it, but don’t count on it. So, maximizing the deduction for 2024 and 2025 is a worthy goal. We can help.
© 2024
Beware of a stealth tax on Social Security benefits
Some people mistakenly believe that Social Security benefits are always free from federal income tax. Unfortunately, that’s often not the case. In fact, depending on how much overall income you have, up to 85% of your benefits could be hit with federal income tax.
While the truth about the federal income tax bite on Social Security benefits may be painful, it’s better to understand it. Here are the rules.
Calculate provisional income
The amount of Social Security benefits that must be reported as taxable income on your tax return depends on your “provisional income.” To arrive at provisional income, start with your adjusted gross income (AGI), which is the number that appears on Page 1, Line 11 of Form 1040. Then, subtract your Social Security benefits to arrive at your adjusted AGI for this purpose.
Next, take that adjusted AGI number and add the following:
- 50% of Social Security benefits,
- Any tax-free municipal bond interest income,
- Any tax-free interest on U.S. Savings Bonds used to pay college expenses,
- Any tax-free adoption assistance payments from your employer,
- Any deduction for student loan interest, and
- Any tax-free foreign earned income and housing allowances, and certain tax-free income from Puerto Rico or U.S. possessions.
The result is your provisional income.
Find your tax scenario
Once you know your provisional income, you can determine which of the following three scenarios you fall under.
Scenario 1: All benefits are tax-free
If your provisional income is $32,000 or less, and you file a joint return with your spouse, your Social Security benefits will be federal-income-tax-free. But you might owe state income tax.
If your provisional income is $25,000 or less, and you don’t file jointly, the general rule is that Social Security benefits are totally federal-income-tax-free. However, if you’re married and file separately from your spouse who lived with you at any time during the year, you must report up to 85% of your Social Security benefits as income unless your provisional income is zero or a negative number, which is unlikely.
Having federal-income-tax-free benefits is nice, but, as you can see, this favorable outcome is only allowed when provisional income is quite low.
Scenario 2: Up to 50% of your benefits are taxed
If your provisional income is between $32,001 and $44,000, and you file jointly with your spouse, up to 50% of your Social Security benefits must be reported as income on Form 1040.
If your provisional income is between $25,001 and $34,000, and you don’t file a joint return, up to 50% of your benefits must be reported as income.
Scenario 3: Up to 85% of your benefits are taxed
If your provisional income is above $44,000, and you file jointly with your spouse, you must report up to 85% of your Social Security benefits as income on Form 1040.
If your provisional income is above $34,000, and you don’t file a joint return, the general rule is that you must report up to 85% of your Social Security benefits as income.
As mentioned earlier, you also must report up to 85% of your benefits if you’re married and file separately from your spouse who lived with you at any time during the year — unless your provisional income is zero or a negative number.
Turn to us
This is only a very simplified explanation of how Social Security benefits are taxed. With the necessary information, we can precisely calculate the federal income tax, if any, on your Social Security benefits.
© 2024
B2B businesses: Assess customer credit carefully
Does your company operate in the business-to-business (B2B) marketplace? If so, you’re no doubt aware of the double-edged sword that is customer credit.
On the one hand, it’s common practice. Most customers likely expect to be offered a credit option when engaging in B2B transactions. On the other, credit arrangements inevitably come with risk of late payments or nonpayment, which can lead to cash flow problems for you.
To manage this risk, it’s critical to keep a close eye on how your B2B business is handling customer credit. A good place to start is at the beginning — with credit assessment.
Gather the pertinent data
Presumably, you already ask new customers to complete a credit application. If you’ve been using the same form for a while, reevaluate it to see whether you should add questions or update the design. The application should request basic information such as each customer’s:
- Business name,
- Physical address and website URL,
- General phone number and email address, and
- Employer Identification Number for tax purposes.
Bear in mind that you can request additional specifics. For example, perhaps inquire into how long the business has been operating, under what entity type it operates and whether it has a parent company.
If the company is privately owned, consider asking for a set of its most recent financial statements — or, at the very least, its latest income statement and balance sheet. (Financial statements of publicly owned businesses are published in their annual reports.)
On the income statement, analyze financial data such as after-tax profit margin, which can be calculated by dividing net income by net sales. Ideally, this metric will have remained steady or increased over the course of the year. The company’s profit margin also should be similar to that of other businesses in its industry.
From the balance sheet, you can determine current ratio, which can be calculated by dividing the company’s current assets by its current liabilities. The higher this ratio is, the more likely the business will be able to cover its bills.
Check references … and more
Along with the information mentioned above, references are key. Ensure someone on your staff is following up on these.
Begin with the company’s bank reference to learn or verify its checking and savings account balances, as well as the amount available on its line of credit (if it has one). Find out whether the business has recently violated any of its loan covenants.
Next, contact multiple trade references for the company. Establish the length of time that each reference has worked with the potential customer, as well as the approximate size of each of the accounts. Also inquire about the potential customer’s payment history with each reference.
In addition, order a credit report on the business from one of the major credit rating agencies. The report will describe the company’s payment histories with various creditors and reveal whether it has filed for bankruptcy or had a lien or judgment against it.
Last, consider using “adverse media screening” in your due diligence process. This is when a prospective borrower is “screened against” various media sources to determine whether the person or entity has been a party to any suspicious, unethical or illegal activities. It can also reveal worrisome news, such as stories about impending lawsuits or plans to shut down a division.
Improve the odds
As a B2B company, you don’t have to accept customer credit problems, and the resulting negative cash flow impact, as a “cost of doing business.” By continuously improving your approach to credit assessment, you’ll stand a better chance of avoiding unreliable payers. We can help you review your process and choose the optimal metrics.
© 2024
Bartering is a taxable transaction even if no cash is exchanged
If your small business is strapped for cash (or likes to save money), you may find it beneficial to barter or trade for goods and services. Bartering isn’t new — it’s the oldest form of trade — but the internet has made it easier to engage in with other businesses.
However, if your business begins bartering, be aware that the fair market value of goods that you receive in these types of transactions is taxable income. And if you exchange services with another business, the transaction results in taxable income for both parties.
Fair market value
Here are some examples of an exchange of services:
- A computer consultant agrees to offer tech support to an advertising agency in exchange for free advertising.
- An electrical contractor does repair work for a dentist in exchange for dental services.
In these cases, both parties are taxed on the fair market value of the services received. This is the amount they would normally charge for the same services. If the parties agree to the value of the services in advance, that will be considered the fair market value unless there’s contrary evidence.
In addition, if services are exchanged for property, income is realized. For example:
- If a construction firm does work for a retail business in exchange for unsold inventory, it will have income equal to the fair market value of the inventory.
- If an architectural firm does work for a corporation in exchange for shares of the corporation’s stock, it will have income equal to the fair market value of the stock.
Joining a club
Many businesses join barter clubs that facilitate barter exchanges. These clubs generally use a system of “credit units,” which are awarded to members who provide goods and services. The credits can be redeemed for goods and services from other members.
In general, bartering is taxable in the year it occurs. But if you participate in a barter club, you may be taxed on the value of credit units at the time they’re added to your account, even if you don’t redeem them for actual goods and services until a later year. For example, let’s say that you earn 2,500 credit units one year, and that each unit is redeemable for $2 in goods and services. In that year, you’ll have $5,000 of income. You won’t pay additional tax if you redeem the units the next year, since you’ve already been taxed on that income.
If you join a barter club, you’ll be asked to provide your Social Security number or Employer Identification Number. You’ll also be asked to certify that you aren’t subject to backup withholding. Unless you make this certification, the club is required to withhold tax from your bartering income at a 24% rate.
Tax reporting
By January 31 of each year, a barter club will send participants a Form 1099-B, “Proceeds from Broker and Barter Exchange Transactions,” which shows the value of cash, property, services and credits that you received from exchanges during the previous year. This information will also be reported to the IRS.
Exchanging without exchanging money
By bartering, you can trade away excess inventory or provide services during slow times, all while hanging on to your cash. You may also find yourself bartering when a customer doesn’t have the money on hand to complete a transaction. As long as you’re aware of the federal and state tax consequences, these transactions can benefit all parties involved. Contact us if you need assistance or would like more information.
© 2024
Key 2024 inflation-adjusted tax parameters for small businesses and their owners
The IRS recently announced various inflation-adjusted federal income tax amounts. Here’s a rundown of the amounts that are most likely to affect small businesses and their owners.
Rates and brackets
If you run your business as a sole proprietorship or pass-through business entity (LLC, partnership or S corporation), the business’s net ordinary income from operations is passed through to you and reported on your personal Form 1040. You then pay the individual federal income tax rates on that income.
Here are the 2024 inflation adjusted bracket thresholds.
- 10% tax bracket: $0 to $11,600 for singles, $0 to $23,200 for married joint filers, $0 to $16,550 for heads of household;
- Beginning of 12% bracket: $11,601 for singles, $23,201 for married joint filers, $16,551 for heads of household;
- Beginning of 22% bracket: $47,151 for singles, $94,301 for married joint filers, $63,101 for heads of household;
- Beginning of 24% bracket: $100,526 for singles, $201,051 for married joint filers, $100,501 for heads of household;
- Beginning of 32% bracket: $191,951 for singles, $383,901 for married joint filers, $191,951 for heads of household;
- Beginning of 35% bracket: $243,726 for singles, $487,451 for married joint filers and $243,701 for heads of household; and
- Beginning of 37% bracket: $609,351 for singles, $731,201 for married joint filers and $609,351 for heads of household.
Key Point: These thresholds are about 5.4% higher than for 2023. That means that, other things being equal, you can have about 5.4% more ordinary business income next year without owing more to Uncle Sam.
Section 1231 gains and qualified dividends
If you run your business as a sole proprietorship or a pass-through entity, and the business sells assets, you may have Section 1231 gains that passed through to you to be included on your personal Form 1040. Sec. 1231 gains are long-term gains from selling business assets that were held for more than one year, and they’re generally taxed at the same lower federal rates that apply to garden-variety long-term capital gains (LTCGs), such as stock sale gains. Here are the 2024 inflation-adjusted bracket thresholds that will generally apply to Sec. 1231 gains recognized by individual taxpayers.
- 0% tax bracket: $0 to $47,025 for singles, $0 to $94,050 for married joint filers and $0 to $63,000 for heads of household;
- Beginning of 15% bracket: $47,026 for singles, $94,051 for joint filers, $63,001 for heads of household; and
- Beginning of 20% bracket: $518,901 for singles, $583,751 for married joint filers and $551,351 for heads of household.
If you run your business as a C corporation, and the company pays you qualified dividends, they’re taxed at the lower LTCG rates. So, the 2024 rate brackets for qualified dividends paid to individual taxpayers will be the same as above.
Self-employment tax
If you operate your business as a sole proprietorship or as a pass-through entity, you probably have net self-employment (SE) income that must be reported on your personal Form 1040 to calculate your SE tax liability. For 2024, the maximum 15.3% SE tax rate will apply to the first $166,800 of net SE income (up from $160,200 for 2023).
Section 179 deductions
For tax years beginning in 2024, small businesses can potentially write off up to $1,220,000 of qualified asset additions in year one (up from $1,160,000 for 2023). However, the maximum deduction amount begins to be phased out once qualified asset additions exceed $3,050,000 (up from $2,890,000 for 2023). Various limitations apply to Sec. 179 deductions.
Side Note: Under the first-year bonus depreciation break, you can deduct up to 60% of the cost of qualified asset additions placed in service in calendar year 2024. For 2023, you could deduct up to 80%.
Just the beginning
These are only the 2024 inflation-adjusted amounts that are most likely to affect small businesses and their owners. There are others that may potentially apply, including: limits on qualified business income deductions and business loss deductions, income limits on various favorable exceptions such as the right to use cash-method accounting, limits on how much you can contribute to your self-employed or company-sponsored tax-favored retirement account, limits on tax-free transportation allowances for employees, and limits on tax-free adoption assistance for employees. Contact us with questions about your situation.
Should your business change its health care plan for next year?
Open enrollment for most health care plans is many months away. That makes now a good time for businesses to consider changing their employer-sponsored coverage for next year, or perhaps to think about launching a plan for the very first time.
If you’re going to do either, you’ll have many details to sort through. To simplify matters a bit, let’s look at a few “big picture” factors that can serve as good starting points for contemplating the size and shape of your plan.
Funding approach
As you’re likely aware, there are two broad types of employer-sponsored health insurance plans: fully insured and self-funded (also known as self-insured). A fully insured plan is simply one you buy from an insurer. This is the most common approach for small to midsize businesses because it limits financial risk while offering the most predictable costs.
Under a self-funded plan, your company funds and administers the insurance, usually with the help of a third-party administrator. This approach may save money if your business can design its own plan and manage the claims process. However, you assume financial risk for the plan — costs can be unpredictable and potentially catastrophic.
Size of network
The size of a plan’s network determines how many options employees have when picking providers and how much they’ll pay out of pocket. A smaller network of preferred providers often grants the most coverage with lower out-of-pocket costs for employees when they visit those providers. Participants can typically still pick out-of-network services, but they’ll usually pay more out of pocket. Rightsizing your network is critical to participant satisfaction.
Tax-advantaged accounts
Although technically not insurance, widely used tax-advantaged accounts can be strong additions to a benefits package. These include Health Savings Accounts (HSAs), which must be offered in conjunction with high-deductible health plans, and Flexible Spending Accounts (FSAs).
HSAs and FSAs let employees set aside pretax dollars from their paychecks to use for eligible medical expenses. HSA funds remain in participants’ accounts until used, while FSA dollars typically must be spent within the year or lost (though a plan can provide for a grace period of up to 2½ months after the end of the plan year). A third option is a Health Reimbursement Arrangement (HRA). This is an employer-funded plan under which participants submit out-of-pocket medical expenses, such as deductibles and copays, for tax-free reimbursement.
Availability of government assistance
If your business happens to be considered a small business for health insurance purposes, you may want to check out the Small Business Health Options Program (SHOP). This federal marketplace is designed for small-business owners looking for health care plans. To qualify, a company typically must:
- Have one to 50 employees,
- Provide health benefits to all staffers working 30 or more hours per week,
- Reach plan enrollment of at least 70% of employees,
- Maintain an office or have an employee in the state of the SHOP used.
Every state runs its own SHOP marketplace, but they’re similar. Your state’s SHOP may be a good place to start if you’re ready to sponsor a plan but aren’t sure where to begin.
A major decision
Making changes to an existing health care plan or launching a new one is a major business decision, so be sure to go about it carefully. Hold honest discussions with your leadership team. Perhaps survey your employees to get a better idea of what plan features they value and whether there are any you should add. Consider engaging an insurance broker for assistance. For help identifying the costs and tax impact of health insurance, or any employer-sponsored benefit, contact us.
© 2024
Key 2024 inflation-adjusted tax amounts for individuals
The IRS recently announced various 2024 inflation-adjusted federal tax amounts that affect individual taxpayers.
Most of the federal income tax rate bracket thresholds are about 5.4% higher than for 2023. That means that you can generally have about 5.4% more income next year without owing more to the federal government.
Standard deduction
Here are the inflation-adjusted standard deduction numbers for 2024 for those who don’t itemize:
- $14,600 if you’re single or use married filing separate status (up from $13,850 in 2023).
- $29,200 if you’re married and file jointly (up from $27,700).
- $21,900 if you’re a head of household (up from $20,800).
Older taxpayers and those who are blind are entitled to additional standard deduction allowances. In 2024 for those age 65 or older or blind, the amounts will be: $1,550 for a married taxpayer (up from $1,500 in 2023) and $1,950 for a single filer or head of household (up from $1,850 for 2023).
For an individual who can be claimed as a dependent on another taxpayer’s return, the 2024 standard deduction will be the greater of: 1) $1,300 (up from $1,250 for 2023) or 2) $450 (up from $400 for 2023) plus the individual’s earned income, not to exceed $14,600 (up from $13,850 for 2023).
Ordinary income and short-term capital gains
Here are the 2024 inflation-adjusted bracket thresholds for ordinary income and net short-term capital gains:
- 10% tax bracket: $0 to $11,600 for singles, $0 to $23,200 for married joint filers, $0 to $16,550 for heads of household;
- Beginning of 12% bracket: $11,601 for singles, $23,201 for married joint filers, $16,551 for heads of household;
- Beginning of 22% bracket: $47,151 for singles, $94,301 for married joint filers, $63,101 for heads of household;
- Beginning of 24% bracket: $100,526 for singles, $201,051 for married joint filers, $100,501 for heads of household;
- Beginning of 32% bracket: $191,951 for singles, $383,901 for married joint filers, $191,951 for heads of household;
- Beginning of 35% bracket: $243,726 for singles, $487,451 for married joint filers and $243,701 for heads of household; and
- Beginning of 37% bracket: $609,351 for singles, $731,201 for married joint filers and $609,351 for heads of household.
Long-term capital gains and dividends
Here are the 2024 inflation-adjusted bracket thresholds for net long-term capital gains and qualified dividends:
- 0% tax bracket: $0 to $47,025 for singles, $0 to $94,050 for married joint filers, and $0 to $63,000 for heads of household;
- Beginning of 15% bracket: $47,026 for singles, $94,051 for married joint filers, and $63,001 for heads of household; and
- Beginning of 20% bracket: $518,901 for singles, $583,751 for married joint filers and $551,351 for heads of household.
Gift and estate tax
The annual exclusion for gifts made in 2024 will be $18,000 (up from $17,000 for 2023). That means you can give away up to $18,000 to as many individuals as you wish without incurring gift tax or using up any of your unified federal gift and estate tax exemption.
In 2024, the unified federal gift and estate tax exemption will be $13,610,000 (up from $12,920,000 for 2023).
For gifts made in 2024, the annual exclusion for gifts to a noncitizen spouse will be $185,000 (up from $175,000 in 2023).
Conclusion
This article only covers some of the inflation-adjusted tax amounts. There are others that may potentially apply, including: alternative minimum tax parameters, kiddie tax amounts, limits on the refundable amount of the Child Tax Credit, limits on the adoption credit, IRA contribution amounts, contributions to your company’s retirement plan and health savings account amounts. Various other inflation-adjusted amounts may affect your tax situation if you own an interest in a sole proprietorship or a pass-through business. Contact us with questions.