ForumsHome

Up to All Forums

This Question is Possibly Answered

1 "correct" answer available (5 pts) 3 "helpful" answers available (4 pts)

1 2 Previous Next

21 Replies Last post: Mar 31, 2009 2:55 PM by bmeighan

Event: Navigating business taxes with TurboTax

Apr 1, 2009 1:58 PM

SBOCTeam 328 posts since
Jul 27, 2007

Don't know a thing about business taxes? You're covered!

A common challenge to most start-up entrepreneurs is complying with the Internal Revenue Service and ever changing regulations. Bob Meighan, Vice President of Consumer Advocacy for TurboTax can help you navigate through this dynamic world, whether you're a corporation, partnership, or multi-member LLC. He can provide extra guidance to simplify tax preparation and help you maximize tax savings.

Founded in 1983, Intuit Inc. is a leading provider of business and financial management solutions for small and mid-sized businesses; financial institutions, including banks and credit unions; consumers and accounting professionals. Its flagship products and services, including QuickBooks®, Quicken® and TurboTax® software, simplify small business management and payroll processing, personal finance, and tax preparation and filing. More information can be found at http://www.intuit.com.

Bob Meighan, Vice President of Consumer Advocacy, is the customer's voice at Intuit. As vice president for consumer advocacy in the TurboTax organization, he represents customers to ensure that new products meet their needs. He also shares the knowledge he gains from customers throughout the TurboTax development teams.

Bob joined Intuit in September 1991 and has held several positions within TurboTax. Before that, he spent 11 years at Price Waterhouse where he was a senior manager in the advanced technology group.

Ask Bob:

How do I handle major life changes?
What are some major red flags that trigger audits?
Which deductions are the most overlooked?

Post your question here today and then join us on March 31 at 2:00PM EST for Bob's response.

Tags: turbotax, turbo_tax, quickbooks, quicken, intuit, audits, deductions, payroll_processing, personal_finance, filing, filing_taxes, bob_meighan, corporation, partnership, llc, tax_preparation, tax_savingsbusiness_tax, start_up, irs, internal_revenue_service, best_practices, best_technique, home_based_business, small_business, small_business_taxes, starting_a_business, taxes, tips, technology, web, entrepreneur Report as inappropriate

caffeinated 176 posts since
Apr 29, 2008

1. Re: Event Mar. 31: Navigating business taxes with TurboTax Mar 14, 2009 3:02 PM

Hi Bob,

I've only used TurboTax to file my personal taxes and I think its a great product. I'd like to start using it for my small business. Can I make quarterly tax payments using one of your small business products? If so, how does it calculate estimated payments if its my first year using the software?

Thanks for helping!

caffeinated

Report as inappropriate

Howard 82 posts since
Jul 29, 2008

2. Re: Event Mar. 31: Navigating business taxes with TurboTax Mar 30, 2009 8:33 AM

Can you tell us about the recovery rebate credit? Who qualifies for this? And how much are they worth?

Report as inappropriate

Vince 91 posts since
Aug 15, 2008

3. Re: Event Mar. 31: Navigating business taxes with TurboTax Mar 30, 2009 11:36 AM

Bob, What are the main reasons why some tax returns get audited? And how can businesses avoid sending these red flags?

Report as inappropriate

antiques4me 22 posts since
Feb 19, 2009

4. Re: Event Mar. 31: Navigating business taxes with TurboTax Mar 30, 2009 12:51 PM

Can you share with information on deduction limits, receipts required, etc.for donation deductions? Also can a donation be service related, e.g. a friend of mine is a lawyer and provided free legal advice to a non-profit for an entire month.

Report as inappropriate

CommunityTeam 132 posts since
Jul 27, 2007

5. Re: Event Mar. 31: Navigating business taxes with TurboTax Mar 31, 2009 1:59 PM

Everyone please join me in welcoming Bob Meighan from TurboTax. While Bob begins responding to the questions, Community please begin posting your questions to Bob. Simply login to your account and hit the reply button and then post your question. Please note, that your questions will be put in a queue. Bob may not be able to get to all the questions, but he'll do his best to answer all questions.

Report as inappropriate

bmeighan 10 posts since
Feb 20, 2009

6. Re: Event Mar. 31: Navigating business taxes with TurboTax Mar 31, 2009 2:07 PM

in response to: caffeinated

Our small business products are just like our products for doing your individual taxes. All of our TurboTax products can easily calculate and schedule your estimated tax payments. If it's your first year, you'll have to tell TurboTax how much you expect to make for the year. Then TurboTax will determine the minimum payment needed to avoid any "underpayment" penalties. After the first
year, TurboTax will have sufficient information to do the calculation for you unless you want to tweak your forecast to increase or decrease income and/or expenses.

Report as inappropriate

simon07 38 posts since
Nov 28, 2007

7. Re: Event Mar. 31: Navigating business taxes with TurboTax Mar 31, 2009 2:08 PM

If I run a part-time business at home what type of deductions would I qualify for?

Report as inappropriate

bmeighan 10 posts since
Feb 20, 2009

8. Re: Event Mar. 31: Navigating business taxes with TurboTax Mar 31, 2009 2:12 PM

in response to: Howard

The recovery rebate credit is a one-time benefit for people who didn't receive the full economic stimulus payment last year and whose circumstances may have changed, making them
eligible now for some or all of the unpaid credit.

You may be eligible for the credit this year if you:

Did did not receive an economic stimulus payment last year.

Received less than the maximum economic stimulus payment in 2008 - $600 per taxpayer; $1,200 if married filing jointly -because your qualifying or gross income was either too high or too low.

You gained an additional qualifying child (had a baby!) in 2008.

Could be claimed as a dependent on someone else's tax return in 2007, but cannot be claimed as a dependent on another return in 2008.

You did not have a valid Social Security number in 2007 but received one in 2008.

You need to claim the recovery rebate credit on Form
1040, 1040A or 1040EZ. Tax software programs like TurboTax will automatically determine if you qualify and for how much.

Report as inappropriate

bmeighan 10 posts since
Feb 20, 2009

9. Re: Event Mar. 31: Navigating business taxes with TurboTax Mar 31, 2009 2:18 PM

in response to: Vince

Vince... First,let's scope audits because they seem to take on a life much bigger than warranted. In general, only about 1% of all returns get audited. Of those, the majority are what are called "correspondence audits." That means the IRS sends you a letter asking for more information on a particular item of income or deduction. Generally, an income item reported to the IRS doesn't match what you reported. These are pretty simple to take care of.

Although the IRS does not disclose the formula for
identifying which returns to audit, it's pretty easy to figure it out. At a high level, the IRS looks at those areas which have been abusive in the past or where there is a lot of cash involved. Abusive areas have included charitable contributions, home office deductions, and car expenses. Any business that deals in a lot of cash will certainly get some attention. As a result, small
business owners will see the risk of an audit triple versus a wage earner.

TurboTax has a feature called the Audit Risk Meter that
assesses your risk of an audit, identifies those audit risk areas and helps you mitigate the risk. The key takeaway here is to keep good records, document your expenses, and keep receipts for everything. What I tell our customers is not to shortchange your tax deductions simply because you want to reduce your audit risk. Rather, claim every legitimate deduction you can and keep good records
and receipts. A good offense is the best defense against an IRS audit.

Report as inappropriate

bmeighan 10 posts since
Feb 20, 2009

10. Re: Event Mar. 31: Navigating business taxes with TurboTax Mar 31, 2009 2:18 PM

in response to: simon07

Simon07... Running a part time business qualifies for all the normal business related deductions PLUS you may qualify for a home office deduction. This all assumes that you are in business to earn a profit. If you consistently lose money from this business, the IRS will consider it a hobby. As for the deductions, here are some:

Advertising
Car expenses
Labor
Rent
Utilities, property taxes, insurance- a proportionate part

The list goes on and on. I encourage you to check out TurboTax Home & Business, which will identify all the deductions to which you are entitled.

Report as inappropriate

Bernoulli 9 posts since
Dec 6, 2007

11. Re: Event Mar. 31: Navigating business taxes with TurboTax Mar 31, 2009 2:22 PM

Hi Bob,

I have a tax deduction question. For equipment used both for business and personal use (e.g., camera or computer), what percentage of the use must be for business in order for me to deduct the cost? Does TurboTax assist me with these types of questions?

Thanks!

Report as inappropriate

bmeighan 10 posts since
Feb 20, 2009

12. Re: Event Mar. 31: Navigating business taxes with TurboTax Mar 31, 2009 2:24 PM

With two weeks to go to the tax filing deadline, here are 4 tips I'd like to share with all of you:

File Electronically - Filing electronically enables you to get your refund in as little as 10 days versus 4-6 weeks for a paper-filed return. With about 80% of all returns showing a refund, hopefully you'll be one of the lucky 80%. Plus, with the average refund running at about $2800 now, you'll want to get your hands on this money fast. It's your money and it should be in your pocket, not the IRS'.
Select Direct Deposit - If you're getting a refund, specify that you want the refund direct deposited in your bank account. This will shave another couple of days off the wait for your refund check. Plus, you won't have to make a separate trip to the bank to deposit a paper check.
Go Online to File - There are many online sites offering tax preparation. TurboTax, for example, is available 24x7 and even offers a free solution for simpler federal returns. State is extra. If you've never tried tax software before, going online is an excellent way to discover all the benefits at no cost or obligation. Even if you select one of the "for fee" solutions, you generally don't pay until you're satisfied with the result.
Double Check Your Return Before Filing - Regardless of how you prepare your return, always double check the return (especially for reasonableness). Pay particular attention to the big error people make with their social security numbers.

Hopefully these tips will help.

Report as inappropriate

CommunityTeam 132 posts since
Jul 27, 2007

13. Re: Event Mar. 31: Navigating business taxes with TurboTax Mar 31, 2009 2:26 PM

Don't forget to refresh your screens to see Bob's latest response. We are at the half hour mark, Community get your questions in now. Simply login to your account and hit reply to post your question.

Report as inappropriate

bmeighan 10 posts since
Feb 20, 2009

14. Re: Event Mar. 31: Navigating business taxes with TurboTax Mar 31, 2009 2:31 PM

in response to: Bernoulli

Bernoulli... For assets used for personal and business, you should allocate the deduction betweeen the two based on its use. The great thing about tax software like TurboTax is that it will do all this work for you. With TurboTax, you simply identify the equipment and how much you use it for business. TurboTax will do the rest including determining it's "useful life", depreciation deduction, etc. Keep in mind that with most tax rules, there are some exceptions. For example, there are special rules for assets known as "listed property." This includes computers. I hate all these details and that's why I honestly rely on tax software to do the hard stuff.

Report as inappropriate

1 2 Previous Next

ForumsHome

This Question is Possibly Answered

Event: Navigating business taxes with TurboTax

Apr 1, 2009 1:58 PM

More Like This

Most Recent Forum Posts

Legend