G4 CPA Firm, Inc.

09/24/2024

We are hiring!

We are a small accounting firm in the west end looking for someone to join our team during tax season. This will begin as a part-time position (~December-May) but has the potential to extend past this window. This would be discussed at a later date. Prior accounting or tax experience is preferred but not required. We would like at least 20 hours a week, with the possibility of working up to 40. This is a very flexible position as long as you are committed!

You will be required to be able to work alone, with others, follow instructions, and be willing to learn. You will receive any training needed, but knowledge of computers, Microsoft software, Airtable, and QuickBooks are ideal.

Job Tasks may include, but are not limited to:
Scanning tax and client documents
Printing, saving, and sorting client copies of tax returns
Tax preparation
Bookkeeping
Assisting any coworkers with daily tasks
Preparing tax documents for tax preparation

Please feel free to share this post with anyone you know that may be a good fit. We’d love to chat and are available to answer any questions. Please email your resume to [email protected] if you are interested!

06/11/2024

Businesses: The Employer-Provided Childcare Tax Credit is worth up to $150,000

The Employer-Provided Childcare Tax Credit is an incentive for businesses to provide childcare services to their employees.

About the tax credit
This tax credit helps employers cover some costs for childcare resource and referral and for a qualified childcare facility. A qualified childcare facility is one that meets the requirements of all laws and regulations of the state or local government in which it’s located.

The credit is worth up to $150,000 per year to offset 10% of qualified childcare resource and referral costs and 25% of qualified childcare facility costs.

Who is eligible
To be eligible for the credit, an employer must have paid or incurred qualified childcare costs during the tax year to provide childcare services to employees.

Qualified childcare costs are:

Costs associated with acquiring, constructing, rehabilitating or expanding property used as the taxpayer’s qualified childcare facility.

Operating expenses paid by the business, including amounts paid to support childcare workers through training, scholarship programs and providing increased compensation to employees with higher levels of childcare training.

Qualified resource and referral costs which include amounts paid or incurred under a contract with a qualified childcare facility to provide childcare services to employees of the taxpayer.
How to claim the credit
Employers should complete Form 8882, Credit for Employer-Provided Childcare Facilities and Services, to claim the credit. The credit is part of the general business credit subject to the carryback and carryforward rule. This means employers may carryback unused credit one year and then carryforward 20 years after the year of the credit. Taxpayers whose only source for the credit is from pass-through entities can report the credit directly on Form 3800, General Business Credit.

Businesses can find out more at the IRS Employer-Provided Childcare Tax Credit page on IRS.gov including, more information on claiming the credit and the requirements for qualified childcare expenditures and qualified childcare facilities.

Pay your taxes. Get your refund status. Find IRS forms and answers to tax questions. We help you understand and meet your federal tax responsibilities.

06/10/2024

Newlyweds tax checklist

Summer wedding season has arrived, and newlyweds can make their tax filing easier by doing a few things now. A taxpayer's marital status as of December 31 determines their tax filing options for the entire year, but that's not all newlyweds need to know.

Report a name change
Report any name changes to the Social Security Administration. The name on a person's tax return must match what’s on file at the SSA. If it doesn't, it could delay any tax refund. To update information, taxpayers should file Form SS-5, Application for a Social Security Card. It’s available on SSA.gov, by phone at 800-772-1213 or at a local SSA office.

Update address
Notify the United States Postal Service, employers and the IRS of any address change. To officially change their mailing address with the IRS, taxpayers must compete and submit Form 8822, Change of Address. See page 2 of the form for detailed instructions.

Check withholding
Newly married couples must give their employers a new Form W-4, Employee's Withholding Certificate, within 10 days. If both spouses work, they may move into a higher tax bracket or be affected by the additional Medicare tax. They can use the Tax Withholding Estimator on IRS.gov to check their withholding and for help completing a new Form W-4.

Review filing status
Married people can choose to file their federal income taxes jointly or separately each year. While filing jointly is usually more beneficial, it's best to figure the tax both ways to find out which makes the most sense. Taxpayers should remember that if a couple is married as of December 31, the law says they're married for the whole year for tax purposes.

Beware of scams
All taxpayers should be aware of and avoid tax scams. The IRS will never contact a taxpayer using email, phone calls, social media or text messages. First contact generally comes in the mail. To find out if they owe money to the IRS, taxpayers can view their tax account.

Pay your taxes. Get your refund status. Find IRS forms and answers to tax questions. We help you understand and meet your federal tax responsibilities.

01/25/2024

Issue Number: IR-2024-20

Inside This Issue

Treasury, IRS announce special relief for certain rollovers to or from Maryland Prepaid College Trust accounts

WASHINGTON — The Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service issued Notice 2024-23 announcing special relief for taxpayers impacted by recent system issues affecting the Maryland Prepaid College Trust as described in the notice.

Generally, federal tax law only allows one tax-free rollover in a 12-month period from one qualified tuition program to another for the benefit of the same beneficiary. The notice issued today provides that the 12-month limitation for taxpayers making such rollovers will not be asserted by the IRS provided the rollover in question meets the criteria described in Notice 2024-23.

Under the newly issued notice, a qualified tuition program distribution will be treated as a qualified rollover (as defined in the notice) if the following criteria are met:

The taxpayer makes a rollover to or from the designated beneficiary’s Maryland Prepaid College Trust account before Jan. 1, 2025;
The 12-month limitation described above would otherwise apply to the rollover to or from the Maryland Prepaid College Trust account; and
The rollover was preceded by a qualified rollover from that same designated beneficiary’s Maryland Prepaid College Trust account after Dec. 31, 2021.
If a taxpayer eligible for the relief described in Notice 2024-23 receives a Form 1099-Q that includes a distribution that is treated as a qualified rollover under Notice 2024-23, then the amount corresponding to the qualified rollover is not includible in gross income, and the taxpayer is not required to report the amount on the taxpayer’s tax return.

Taxpayers eligible for relief under Notice 2024-23 are not required to file Form 5329, Additional Taxes on Qualified Plans (including IRAs) and Other Tax-Favored Accounts, for such a distribution and the 10% addition to tax does not apply.

More detailed information regarding section 529 of the Internal Revenue Code may be found on the IRS.gov webpage at Topic No. 313, Qualified Tuition Programs (QTPs).

Pay your taxes. Get your refund status. Find IRS forms and answers to tax questions. We help you understand and meet your federal tax responsibilities.

12/20/2023

IRS reminds those aged 73 and older to make required withdrawals from IRAs and retirement plans by Dec. 31; notes changes in the law for 2023

WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service today reminded people born before 1951 of the year-end deadlines to take required minimum distributions (RMDs) from funds held in individual retirement arrangements (IRAs) and other retirement plans, and noted new requirements under the law beginning in 2023.

Required minimum distributions, or RMDs, are amounts that many retirement plan and IRA account owners must withdraw each year. RMDs are taxable income and may be subject to penalties if not timely taken. For individuals born before 1951, RMDs from IRAs and retirement plans should, for the most part, already have begun and are required for 2023.

New for 2023: The Secure 2.0 Act raised the age that account owners must begin taking RMDs. For 2023, the age at which account owners must start taking required minimum distributions goes up from age 72 to age 73, so individuals born in 1951 must receive their first required minimum distribution by April 1, 2025.

See Retirement Plan and IRA Required Minimum Distributions FAQs for more detailed information regarding the new provisions in the law.

IRAs: The RMD rules require individuals to take withdrawals from their IRAs (including SIMPLE IRAs and SEP IRAs) every year once they reach age 72 (73 if the account owner reaches age 72 in 2023 or later), even if they’re still employed.

Owners of Roth IRAs are not required to take withdrawals during their lifetime. However, after the death of the account owner, beneficiaries of a Roth IRA are subject to the RMD rules.

Retirement plans: The RMD rules also apply to employer-sponsored retirement plans, including profit-sharing plans, 401(k) plans, 403(b) plans and 457(b) plans. Participants in employer-sponsored retirement plans can delay taking their RMDs until they retire, unless they are a 5% owner of the business sponsoring the plan.

Designated Roth accounts in a 401(k) or 403(b) plan are subject to the RMD rules for 2023. Beginning in 2024, designated Roth accounts will not be subject to the RMD rules while the account owner is still alive.

The RMD Comparison Chart highlights several of the basic RMD rules that apply to IRAs and defined contribution plans.

RMD calculations and tax on missed distributions

An IRA trustee or plan administrator must either report the amount of the RMD to the IRA owner or offer to calculate it. An IRA owner or trustee must calculate the RMD separately for each IRA owned, but the owner can make withdrawals from the account(s) of their choice as long as the total equals or exceeds the total annual requirement. Although the IRA trustee or plan administrator may calculate the RMD, the account owner is ultimately responsible for taking the correct RMD amount.

If an account owner fails to withdraw the full amount of the RMD by the due date, the owner is subject to an excise tax equal to 25% of the amount not withdrawn for 2023 and later years. The SECURE 2.0 Act dropped the excise tax rate from 50% for distributions required for 2023 and reduces the tax rate to 10% if the error is corrected within two years. The account owner should file Form 5329, Additional Taxes on Qualified Plans (Including IRAs) and Other Tax-Favored Accounts, with their federal tax return for the year in which the full amount of the RMD was required but not taken.

The IRS has worksheets to calculate the RMD and payout periods.

Inherited IRAs

An RMD may be required for an IRA, retirement plan account or Roth IRA inherited from the original owner. The factors that affect the distribution requirements for inherited retirement plan accounts and IRAs include:

Whether the account owner died after 2019 (the SECURE Act made changes to the RMDs for beneficiaries if the death of the account holder occurred after 2019).
The relationship of the beneficiary to the account owner and certain characteristics of the beneficiary (spouse, minor child, disabled or chronically ill individual, entity other than an individual).
Whether the original account owner passed away before or after their required beginning date (the date the original account owner was required to begin taking RMDs).
IRS Notice 2023-54 provides that certain non-spouse beneficiaries subject to the 10-year distribution rule will not fail the RMD requirements because they didn’t make distributions in 2023.

Retirement Topics - Beneficiary and Required Minimum Distributions for IRA Beneficiaries have information on taking RMDs from an inherited IRA or retirement account and reporting taxable distributions as part of gross income. Publication 559, Survivors, Executors and Administrators, can help those in charge of the estate complete and file federal income tax returns and explains their responsibility to pay any taxes due on behalf of the person who has died.

2020 coronavirus-related distribution

Distribution requirements were waived for 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. An account owner or beneficiary who received an RMD in 2020 had the option of returning it to their IRA or other qualified plan to avoid paying taxes on that distribution. A 2020 RMD that qualified as a coronavirus-related distribution could be repaid over a three-year period or have the taxes due on the distribution spread over three years.

A 2020 withdrawal from an inherited IRA could not be repaid to the inherited IRA but may be spread over three years for income inclusion. For more information see Coronavirus Relief for Retirement Plans and IRAs.

Taxpayers can find forms, instructions, publications, Frequently Asked Questions regarding Required Minimum Distributions and other easy-to-use tools at

Pay your taxes. Get your refund status. Find IRS forms and answers to tax questions. We help you understand and meet your federal tax responsibilities.

12/14/2023

Issue Number: IR-2023-239

Inside This Issue

IRS issues standard mileage rates for 2024; mileage rate increases to 67 cents a mile, up 1.5 cents from 2023

WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service today issued the 2024 optional standard mileage rates used to calculate the deductible costs of operating an automobile for business, charitable, medical or moving purposes.

Beginning on Jan. 1, 2024, the standard mileage rates for the use of a car (also vans, pickups or panel trucks) will be:

67 cents per mile driven for business use, up 1.5 cents from 2023.
21 cents per mile driven for medical or moving purposes for qualified active-duty members of the Armed Forces, a decrease of 1 cent from 2023.
14 cents per mile driven in service of charitable organizations; the rate is set by statute and remains unchanged from 2023.
These rates apply to electric and hybrid-electric automobiles as well as gasoline and diesel-powered vehicles.

The standard mileage rate for business use is based on an annual study of the fixed and variable costs of operating an automobile. The rate for medical and moving purposes is based on the variable costs.

It is important to note that under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, taxpayers cannot claim a miscellaneous itemized deduction for unreimbursed employee travel expenses. Taxpayers also cannot claim a deduction for moving expenses, unless they are members of the Armed Forces on active duty moving under orders to a permanent change of station. For more details see Moving Expenses for Members of the Armed Forces.

Taxpayers always have the option of calculating the actual costs of using their vehicle rather than using the standard mileage rates.

Taxpayers can use the standard mileage rate but generally must opt to use it in the first year the car is available for business use. Then, in later years, they can choose either the standard mileage rate or actual expenses. Leased vehicles must use the standard mileage rate method for the entire lease period (including renewals) if the standard mileage rate is chosen.

Notice 2024-08 contains the optional 2024 standard mileage rates, as well as the maximum automobile cost used to calculate the allowance under a fixed and variable rate (FAVR) plan. In addition, the notice provides the maximum fair market value of employer-provided automobiles first made available to employees for personal use in calendar year 2024 for which employers may use the fleet-average valuation rule in or the vehicle cents-per-mile valuation rule.

12/01/2023

National Tax Security Awareness Week, Day 5: As tax season approaches, IRS, Security Summit partners warn taxpayers, tax professionals to watch out for emerging scams by email, text, phone

WASHINGTON - To wrap up National Tax Security Awareness Week, the Internal Revenue Service and the Security Summit partners today reminded taxpayers and tax professionals to stay alert against emerging scams during the upcoming filing season and throughout the year.

With identity thieves constantly changing tactics to try to steal information from taxpayers and businesses, the Security Summit partners remind people to watch out for a variety of aggressive schemes that can surface on email, by text, over the phone or through the mail.

These threats are present year-round, but the approach of tax season means that identity thieves will intensify efforts trying to impersonate the IRS and others involved in tax and financial work to get sensitive information.

Identity thieves also use recent news events, including tragedies, to try tricking taxpayers. And in another common tax season scam, identity thieves will pose as new, potential clients to tax professionals by email or over the phone in hopes of obtaining access to company systems. Ultimately, successful attempts to get this information means fraudsters can try filing fake tax returns with a goal of getting a refund.

"Identity thieves are relentless and use a variety of techniques. As Tax Security Awareness Week concludes, we urge people to be careful with their personal information and be wary of email and text scams," said IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel. "With people anxious to receive the latest information about a refund or other issues during tax season, scammers will regularly pose as the IRS, a state tax agency or others in the tax industry. People should be incredibly wary about unexpected messages that can be an elaborate trap by scam artists, especially during filing season."

During National Tax Security Awareness Week, now in its eighth year, the Security Summit partnership of the IRS, state tax agencies and the nation’s tax community work to raise awareness among taxpayers, tax professionals and the business community about the importance of safeguarding information to protect against identity theft. The Security Summit formed in 2015 to combat tax-related identity theft through better public-private sector coordination as well as strengthening internal protections in the tax community and raising public awareness about security threats.

With the tax season fast approaching, the Security Summit partners remind taxpayers and others to take extra steps to protect their financial and tax information. As the IRS and the Summit partners have strengthened their internal defenses in recent years to protect against fraud, identity thieves have increasingly focused on more elaborate ways to obtain sensitive taxpayer information in hopes of evading systemic defenses by the IRS and the Summit partners in tax community.

In this final installment of the National Tax Security Week Awareness series, the Summit partners urged taxpayers and tax professionals to be alert to fake communications posing as legitimate organizations in the tax and financial community, including the IRS and states. These messages can arrive in many ways, including an unsolicited text or email to lure unsuspecting victims to provide valuable personal and financial information that can lead to identity theft. These include:

Phishing is an email sent by fraudsters claiming to come from the IRS or another legitimate organization, including state tax organizations or a financial firm. The email lures the victims into the scam by a variety of ruses such as enticing victims with a phony tax refund or frightening them with false legal/criminal charges for tax fraud.
Smishing is a text or smartphone SMS message that uses the same technique as phishing. Scammers often use alarming language like, "Your account has now been put on hold," or "Unusual Activity Report" with a bogus "Solutions" link to restore the recipient's account. Unexpected tax refunds are another potential target for scam artists.
The IRS initiates most contacts through regular mail, which means taxpayers shouldn’t be getting an unexpected message by email, text or social media regarding a bill or tax refund.

The Summit partners remind taxpayers and others never to click on any unsolicited communication claiming to be the IRS or others because it may surreptitiously load malware. It may also be a way for malicious hackers to load ransomware that keeps the legitimate user from accessing their system and files.

Individuals should never respond to tax-related phishing or smishing or click on the URL link. Instead, the scams should be reported by sending the email or a copy of the text/SMS as an attachment to [email protected].

Taxpayers can also report scams to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration or the Internet Crime Complaint Center. The Report Phishing and Online Scams page at IRS.gov provides complete details. The Federal Communications Commission's Smartphone Security Checker is a useful tool against mobile security threats.

The IRS also warns taxpayers to be wary of messages that appear to be from friends or family but are possibly stolen or compromised email or text accounts from someone they know. This remains a popular way to target individuals and tax preparers for a variety of scams. Individuals should verify the identity of the sender by using another communication method; for instance, calling a number they independently know to be accurate, not the number provided in the email or text.

Signs that a scam may be underway

Taxpayers should watch for a number of tell-tale signs that could be an indication that they have been a victim of identity theft or a tax scam. Among some of the signs are:

Taxpayers receiving a tax transcript in the mail from the IRS that was not ordered.
Taxpayers receiving an unrequested Employer Identification Number.
Taxpayers receiving W-2’s from an unknown employer.
Taxpayers unexpectedly getting a notice or an email from a tax preparation company that is:
Confirming access to an existing online account.
Disabling an existing online account.
Confirming a new online account.
Getting a letter from the IRS during a year that the taxpayer didn’t earn income or a tax return hadn’t been filed. In this situation, it’s possible an identity thief has submitted a tax return in the honest taxpayer’s name. In this situation, where the taxpayer didn’t earn money or file a return, the warning sign is a letter showing:
Additional tax is owed.
A refund was offset because of a balance due.
Collection actions have been taken.
Generally, the IRS starts with a mailed paper bill to a person who owes taxes. If a taxpayer wants to verify what taxes they owe the IRS, they should view tax account information. But they should not click on links in email or texts saying they owe a bill.

Protect against becoming a victim, again

Taxpayers who believe they're victims of tax-related identity theft – and who have not received an IRS letter alerting them to ID theft – should complete Form 14039, Identity Theft Affidavit.

The IRS will work to verify the legitimate taxpayer, clear the fraudulent return from their account and generally place a special marker on the account that will generate an IP PIN each year for the taxpayer who is a confirmed identity theft victim. This ensures that the criminal does not come back in the future claiming to be the victim and trying to commit the fraud yet again.

In most tax-related identity theft cases, there is no need for taxpayers to file Form 14039, Identity Theft Affidavit. That's because the IRS identifies a suspicious tax return based on hundreds of processing filters and pulls the suspicious return for review. The IRS will send a letter to the taxpayer and will not process the tax return until hearing back from the taxpayer.

Pay your taxes. Get your refund status. Find IRS forms and answers to tax questions. We help you understand and meet your federal tax responsibilities.

11/22/2023

Saver’s Credit can help low- and moderate-income taxpayers to save more in 2024

WASHINGTON —The Internal Revenue Service reminds low- and moderate-income taxpayers that they can save for retirement now and possibly earn a special tax credit in 2024 and years ahead.

The Retirement Savings Contributions Credit, also known as the Saver’s Credit, helps offset part of the first $2,000 workers voluntarily contribute to Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs), 401(k) plans and similar workplace retirement programs. The credit also helps any eligible person with a disability who is the designated beneficiary of an Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) account and makes a contribution to that account. For more information about ABLE accounts, see Publication 907, Tax Highlights for Persons With Disabilities.

The maximum Saver’s Credit is $1,000 ($2,000 for married couples). The credit can increase a taxpayer’s refund or reduce the tax owed but is affected by other deductions and credits. Distributions from a retirement plan or ABLE account reduce the contribution amount used to figure the credit.

Contribution deadlines
Individuals with IRAs have until April 15, 2024 - the due date for filing their 2023 return - to set up a new IRA or add money to an existing IRA for 2023. Both Roth and traditional IRAs qualify.

Individuals with workplace retirement plans still have time to make qualifying retirement contributions and get the Saver’s Credit on their 2023 tax return. Elective deferrals (contributions) to workplace retirement plans must be made by December 31 to a:

401(k) plan.
403(b) plan for employees of public schools and certain tax-exempt organizations.
Governmental 457 plan for state or local government employees.
Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) for federal employees.
See the instructions to Form 8880, Credit for Qualified Retirement Savings Contributions, for a list of qualifying workplace retirement plans and additional details.

Eligibility
To be eligible, taxpayers must be 18 years of age and older, not claimed as a dependent and not a full-time student. The Saver’s Credit has income limits based on a taxpayer’s adjusted gross income and their marital or filing status.

2023 income limits are:

Married couples filing jointly with adjusted gross incomes up to $73,000.
Heads of household with adjusted gross incomes up to $54,750.
Married individuals filing separately and singles with adjusted gross incomes up to $36,500.
Taxpayers can use the Interactive Tax Assistant tool for the Saver’s Credit to determine their eligibility.

Visit the Saver’s Credit page on IRS.gov to learn about rules, contribution rates and credit limits.

Pay your taxes. Get your refund status. Find IRS forms and answers to tax questions. We help you understand and meet your federal tax responsibilities.

11/17/2023

Treasury and IRS issue proposed regulations defining energy property

WASHINGTON — The Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service today issued proposed regulations updating rules for the investment tax credit under section 48 (ITC) that have been unchanged since 1987. The proposed rules update the types of energy properties eligible for the section 48 ITC, reflecting changes in the energy industry, technological advances, and updates from the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA).

Energy industry participants will appreciate that the proposed regulations provide definitions of energy properties for which the ITC was available before the IRA. These include, but are not limited to, solar process heat, fiber-optic solar property, combined heat and power system property, qualified fuel cell property, and qualified microturbine property.

These proposed regulations also address technologies that were added to the ITC as energy property by the IRA, including electrochromic glass, energy storage technology, microgrid controllers, and biogas property. Importantly, the IRA added new provisions to the ITC to allow smaller projects to include the cost of certain types of interconnection property in their credit amount.

Additionally, the proposed regulations provide general rules for the ITC including the application of the “80/20” Rule to retrofitted energy property, dual use property, and issues related to multiple owners of an energy property.

Additional information about guidance issued under the IRA is available at

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11/17/2023

Treasury, IRS propose regulations implementing disallowance of deductions for certain conservation easement contributions by partnerships, S corporations

WASHINGTON — The Department of the Treasury and the Internal Revenue Service today issued proposed regulations that provide guidance under a new section of the law that disallows deductions for certain charitable conservation contributions by partnerships and other pass-through entities. Syndicated conservation easements have been included in the IRS’ annual list of “Dirty Dozen” tax schemes for many years.

The SECURE 2.0 Act of 2022 added new subsections to the part of the tax law that provides rules for deductions for charitable contributions under Internal Revenue Code section 170.

"The IRS is focusing its new compliance efforts on those who evade taxes through complex partnership structures and overvalued conservation easement contributions. The regulations issued today will stem the tide of certain syndicated conservation easements that are nothing more than retail tax shelters, while protecting the integrity of legitimate conservation easements and helping law-abiding taxpayers more easily meet their obligations,” said IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel.

Generally, these regulations affect partnerships and S corporations that make conservation contributions and upper-tier partnerships, upper-tier S corporations, partners and S corporation shareholders that are allocated a portion of these contributions. The regulations provide definitions, explanations, computational guidance and examples of the new law, which disallows deductions if the amount of the contribution is more than two and a half times the sum of each partner’s or shareholder’s relevant basis in the partnership or S corporation.

The proposed regulations also provide guidance on the statutory exceptions to the new disallowance rule, particularly the exception for family partnerships and S corporations and the exception for contributions made outside a three-year holding period. The proposed regulations also provide updates concerning substantiation and reporting rules for certain charitable contributions.

The commitment to making sure that partnerships, other pass-through entities and their owners comply with the tax law is a significant part of the agency’s strategic plan.