New Tax Laws - Linkenheimer LLP CPAs & Advisors

There’s a Deduction For Student Loan Interest … But Do You Qualify For It?

If you’re paying back college loans for yourself or your children, you may wonder if you can deduct the interest you pay on the loans. The answer is yes, subject to certain limits. The maximum amount of student loan interest you can deduct each year is $2,500. Unfortunately, the deduction is phased out if your adjusted gross income (AGI) exceeds certain levels, and as explained below, the levels aren’t very high.

The interest must be for a “qualified education loan,” which means a debt incurred to pay tuition, room and board, and related expenses to attend a post-high school educational institution, including certain vocational schools. Certain postgraduate programs also qualify. Therefore, an internship or residency program leading to a degree or certificate awarded by an institution of higher education, hospital or health care facility offering postgraduate training can qualify.

It doesn’t matter when the loan was taken out or whether interest payments made in earlier years on the loan were deductible or not.

By Linkenheimer LLP|2022-01-03T22:58:51+00:00January 3rd, 2022|deduction, deductions, New Tax Laws|0 Comments

California Tax Updates for 9/16

Update 1:

Moving out of California? The CA Franchise Tax Board (FTB) acknowledges that a variety of factors have led to many individuals and businesses leaving CA. If you do, be sure to update your address. It’s common, said the FTB, for taxpayers to move after filing a tax return. Without an updated address on file, taxpayers may be unreachable if the FTB needs more information to resolve an issue with a return or payment. Each year, says the FTB, thousands of refunds are returned to them because of a bad address, leaving issues unresolved. Failing to respond to a notice could bring additional penalties, fees and collection action. Contact your Linkenheimer CPA with questions.

Update 2:

Coming soon to California businesses, the Homeless Hiring Tax Credit. The CA Franchise Tax Board (FTB) has announced details of this newly enacted credit. It will be available to qualifying taxpayers who hire new employees deemed to be eligible homeless individuals. Employers may receive $2,500 to […]

By Linkenheimer LLP|2021-09-16T21:18:04+00:00September 16th, 2021|ca, CA tax, california, ftb, New Tax Laws|0 Comments

COBRA Provisions Play Critical Role in COVID-19 Relief Law

During the COVID-19 pandemic, many employees and their families have lost group health plan coverage because of layoffs or reduced hours. If your business has had to take such steps, and it’s required to offer continuing health care coverage under the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA), the recently passed American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) includes some critical provisions that you should be aware of.

100% subsidy

Under the ARPA, assistance-eligible individuals (AEIs) may receive a 100% subsidy for COBRA premiums during the period beginning April 1, 2021, and ending on September 30, 2021.

An AEI is a COBRA qualified beneficiary — in other words, an employee, former employee, covered spouse or covered dependent — who’s eligible for and elects COBRA coverage because of a qualifying event of involuntary termination of employment or reduction of hours. For purposes of the law, the subsidy is available for AEIs for the period beginning April 1, 2021, and ending September 30, 2021.

Extended election period

Individuals without a COBRA election in effect on April 1, 2021, but who would be an AEI if they did, are eligible for the subsidy. Those who elected but discontinued COBRA coverage before April 1, 2021, are also eligible if they’d […]

By Linkenheimer LLP|2021-03-24T21:18:41+00:00March 24th, 2021|covid-19, Health care, New Tax Laws|0 Comments

New COVID-19 Relief Law Extends Employee Retention Credit

Many businesses have retained employees during the COVID-19 pandemic and enjoyed tax relief with the help of the employee retention credit (ERC). The recent signing of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) brings good news: the ERC has been extended yet again.

The original credit

As originally introduced under last year’s CARES Act, the ERC was a refundable tax credit against certain employment taxes equal to 50% of qualified wages, up to $10,000, that an eligible employer paid to employees after March 12, 2020, and before January 1, 2021. An employer could qualify for the ERC if, in 2020, there was a:

Full or partial suspension of operations during any calendar quarter because of governmental orders limiting commerce, travel or group meetings because of COVID-19, or
Significant decline in gross receipts (less than 50% for the same calendar quarter in 2019).

The definition of “qualified wages” depends on staff size. If an employer averaged more than 100 full-time employees during 2019, qualified wages are generally those paid to employees who aren’t providing services because operations were suspended or due to the decline in gross receipts. Qualified wages may include certain health care costs and are […]

By Linkenheimer LLP|2021-03-17T23:03:46+00:00March 17th, 2021|business, covid-19, credit, employer, New Tax Laws, tax credit|0 Comments

New Law: Parents and Other Eligible Americans to Receive Direct Payments

The American Rescue Plan Act, signed into law on March 11, provides a variety of tax and financial relief to help mitigate the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Among the many initiatives are direct payments that will be made to eligible individuals. And parents under certain income thresholds will also receive additional payments in the coming months through a greatly revised Child Tax Credit.

Here are some answers to questions about these payments.

What are the two types of payments?

Under the new law, eligible individuals will receive advance direct payments of a tax credit. The law calls these payments “recovery rebates.” The law also includes advance Child Tax Credit payments to eligible parents later this year.

How much are the recovery rebates?

An eligible individual is allowed a 2021 income tax credit, which will generally be paid in advance through direct bank deposit or a paper check. The […]

By Linkenheimer LLP|2021-03-16T17:19:14+00:00March 16th, 2021|child, credit, New Tax Laws, tax credit, tax deductions|0 Comments