Monthly Archives: October 2016

Have Your Been Tracking Your Expenses?

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Tax Time is going to be here before we know it. If you aren’t tracking your expenses it’s going to make preparing your taxes more difficult and dare I say frustrating. Before the holiday press begins, please take a moment and look through your credit card statements and receipts and begin to list your expenses. Continue reading

A Little Advice From a CPA About Getting Married

Scribbled love and marriage symbols on metal cans

I know it’s not even Halloween just yet, there are a couple more weeks to go, but there are some of you who may be thinking about getting married next year. Perhaps even considering purchasing that engagement ring in time for Christmas or New Years? There is lots of advice about how much you should spend on the engagement ring, and on your wedding. Let me be the first to say that I understand how things can get carried away in the heat of the moment, but if there is anyway to plan ahead without creating undue stress, I would strongly advise it. Continue reading

News From the IRS

Advice on Moving an IRA, CPA vero beach, tax advice, financial adviceAs a CPA firm, it is our obligation to keep up with new rules and laws which affect the taxes of our community. We regularly study and learn about these new laws, not all of which we enjoy learning about, but this one is a ruling that will help some people a great deal. Taken from the IRS.GOV website:

“New Procedure Helps People Making IRA and Retirement Plan Rollovers

IR-2016-113, Aug. 24, 2016

WASHINGTON — The Internal Revenue Service today provided a self-certification procedure designed to help recipients of retirement plan distributions who inadvertently miss the 60-day time limit for properly rolling these amounts into another retirement plan or individual retirement arrangement (IRA).

In Revenue Procedure 2016-47, posted today on IRS.gov, the IRS explained how eligible taxpayers, encountering a variety of mitigating circumstances, can qualify for a waiver of the 60-day time limit and avoid possible early distribution taxes. In addition, the revenue procedure includes a sample self-certification letter that a taxpayer can use to notify the administrator or trustee of the retirement plan or IRA receiving the rollover that they qualify for the waiver.

Normally, an eligible distribution from an IRA or workplace retirement plan can only qualify for tax-free rollover treatment if it is contributed to another IRA or workplace plan by the 60th day after it was received. In most cases, taxpayers who fail to meet the time limit could only obtain a waiver by requesting a private letter ruling from the IRS.

A taxpayer who missed the time limit will now ordinarily qualify for a waiver if one or more of 11 circumstances, listed in the revenue procedure, apply to them. They include a distribution check that was misplaced and never cashed, the taxpayer’s home was severely damaged, a family member died, the taxpayer or a family member was seriously ill, the taxpayer was incarcerated or restrictions were imposed by a foreign country.

Ordinarily, the IRS and plan administrators and trustees will honor a taxpayer’s truthful self-certification that they qualify for a waiver under these circumstances. Moreover, even if a taxpayer does not self-certify, the IRS now has the authority to grant a waiver during a subsequent examination. Other requirements, along with a copy of a sample self-certification letter, can be found in the revenue procedure.

The IRS encourages eligible taxpayers wishing to transfer retirement plan or IRA distributions to another retirement plan or IRA to consider requesting that the administrator or trustee make a direct trustee-to-trustee transfer, rather than doing a rollover. Doing so can avoid some of the delays and restrictions that often arise during the rollover process. For more information about rollovers and transfers, check out the Can You Move Retirement Plan Assets? section in Publication 590-A or theRollovers of Retirement Plan and IRA Distributions page on IRS.gov.”

IF you have any questions about this information, please don’t hesitate to call myself or one of my associates. Moving IRA’s can seem like a daunting task, but if it’s done properly by a firm that knows what they are doing, it can be a smooth process.

 

Pete DiSalvo, CPA

Vero Beach Certified Public Accountant

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