IRS

For many years, states and local governments have been trying to rein in unlicensed income tax preparers, and the Internal Revenue Service joined a few years ago with the idea of a national testing and regulatory system that the agency would oversee. So, it created one.

For many farmers, harvest time comes at the end of the summer. The same thing is true for your clients who are active traders in the stock market. But you must caution them that the tax landscape has changed in recent years.

The Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) is one of the most widely-used credits by U.S. taxpayers, it's also often mis-used and even thought the Internal Revenue Service has been scolded for its poor management of the EITC, the agency is still lacking.

Are your clients making plans to send their kids off to camp this summer? Depending on the arrangements, they may be entitled to claim a healthy tax credit – the dependent care credit (also known as the “child care credit” ) – for the daily expenses. However, there are no tax benefits available for overnight camps or other personal expenses.

After several years of head-scratching, the IRS has finally offered guidance on the tax treatment for virtual currencies like Bitcoin (IRS Notice 2014-21). In brief, taxpayers have been advised to treat Bitcoin as property for U.S. tax purposes. But accountants, particularly those with small business clients, are still struggling to get a better handle on how this will work in real-life situations.

If a client owns a “vacation home” in a resort area – say, a seaside cottage or a mountaintop cabin – the family may enjoy getaways there during the summer months. But when the kids grow up and the trip becomes a hassle, the place may lie dormant for much of the season. It could be time for the client to turn their summer retreat into a rich source of rental income.

The IRS recently released new tax forms for Tax Year 2014, for which individuals will file by April 15, 2015.

The IRS will be holding two free webinars for small businesses and encouraging them to check out several key tax benefits and a special relief program for employers who reclassify their workers as employees.