Small Business

Federal and state laws prohibit prospective employers from asking certain questions that are not related to the job they are hiring for. Questions should be job-related and not used to find out personal information. In general, employers should not be asking about your race, gender, religion, marital status, age, disabilities, ethnic background, country of origin, sexual preferences or age. Some questions you should not ask during an interview are: Do you have any disabilities?, How old are you?, What is your religious affiliation?, What is your ethnic background?, Are you married?, Do you have children?, or What is your sexual orientation?.

W-9, W-4 and employment understanding document should be filled out by all independent contractors.
If you’ve made the determination that the person you’re paying is an independent contractor, the first step is to have the contractor complete Form W-9 (PDF), Request for Taxpayer Identification Number and Certification. This form can be used to request the correct name and Taxpayer Identification Number, or TIN, of the worker. A TIN may be either a Social Security Number (SSN), or an Employer Identification Number (EIN). The W-9 (PDF) should be kept in your files for four years for future reference in case of any questions from the worker or the IRS.
A penalty can be levied against you, the employer, for omission of this information on certain forms.

You should require all your independent contractors to fill out IRS Form W-9. Their social security or employer identification number will be listed on this document for your use on required forms to be filed with the IRS and other taxing authorities. A penalty can be levied against you, the employer for omission of this information on certain forms.

Plan sponsors must generally file the return on the last day of the seventh month after their plan year ends (if that due date falls on a Saturday, Sunday or Federal holiday, then it may be filed on the next business day). Forms 5500 and 5500-SF must be filed electronically through the DOL’s Employee Retirement Income Security Act Filing Acceptance System (EFAST2). Use Form 5558 to request a 2 and a half month extension.

No. You are allowed the maximum allowed expense amount of the Section 179 deduction even if you purchase the equipment and place it in service on the last day of the taxable year.

You must file IRS Form 8300 within 15 days of receipt of more than a $10,000 cash transaction. There are penalties for failure to file Form 8300. Only cash payments require this additional reporting. Cash is money. It is currency and coins of the United States and any other country. Cash is also certain monetary instruments - a cashier’s check, bank draft, traveler’s check, or money order Funds received by check or wire transfers do not apply. Speak to your local CPA about the IRS reporting requirements. You can obtain copies of IRS/FinCEN Form 8300 by: Calling the IRS forms line at (800) 829-3676 : Downloading Form 8300 in English or Spanish: Visiting the FinCEN Web site A business should mail Form 8300 to: Internal Revenue Service Detroit Computing Center, P.O. Box 32621, Detroit, MI 48232

If you have self-employment income, then you can take a deduction for health insurance expenses incurred for yourself, your spouse, and your dependents. If you are reporting a loss from your self-employed activity, then you are not eligible to deduct your health insurance costs since this particular deduction is limited by your self-employment income

Generally, the preliminary costs of investigating and setting up a business are amortized over a 60-month period. Startup expenses are things associated with setting up your business or investigating the purchase of an existing business.
Among the items that count as startup expenses: Doing an analysis of your potential market(s) , Paying for consultants , Buying initial supplies , Advertising your new business , Paying employees before the business opens .
Among the expenses that can qualify as an organizational cost: State incorporation fees , Lawyers' charges for drafting incorporation papers , Initial accounting fees .
For 2011 ONLY, You could have writen off up to $5,000 in business startup costs and another $5,000 in organizational expenses in the year that you start a business. (Note: These deductions are reduced if you have more than $50,000 of either type of expense.) Once you've written off that first $5,000, you can still get a tax benefit from other expenses. However, those startup costs will have to be written off, or amortized, over 15 years.
Depreciate your initial equipment and furniture - the assets you buy for your startup can be written off. However, unlike supplies and other expenses, assets have to be depreciated. There are different rules for different assets. Get a tax benefit for merchandise you first bought for yourself - If you've never used these items for business before, you could depreciate them, based on their value when you started using them in your business. Most office equipment, could be written off over seven years; computers can be deducted over a five-year period.
Whether it makes sense to take as many deductions of business startup costs as you can in the year you start a business depends on individual circumstances. In some cases, owners of startups may prefer to stretch out deductions over several years so that they balance out more evenly against eventual revenue streams. A tax pro can advise you on the best expense- and tax-planning strategies for your own startup venture.

To claim a home office expense you must be able to prove that you use the home area exclusively and on a regular basis. Generally, exclusivity would mean a place of business where you met with clients, customers or patients in the normal course of business. Your home office qualifies on a regular basis if you spend most of your working time there and most of your business income is attributable to the activity there. Business Income may limit your home office deductions. The disallowed amounts may be carried over to future years. Use IRS Form 8829 to claim the home office deduction. Speak to your local CPA about your potential home office deductibility.