Individual Income Taxation

TOPICS

June 1, 2018

Tax treatment of individual owners of bitcoin and other virtual currencies held for personal use or investment

Tax preparers will need to be proactive in helping their clients identify and report any potentially taxable transactions.

May 17, 2018

Does an early retirement distribution qualify for the medical expense exemption?

This article examines three Tax Court cases where the petitioners attempted to use medical hardship to avoid rules on early withdrawals.

May 10, 2018

IRS issues HSA contribution limits for 2019

The IRS issued the inflation-adjusted contribution limits for 2019 for health savings accounts.

May 1, 2018

Revenue procedure contains tax rate tables and inflation adjustments under new tax law

The IRS announced new lower tax brackets for 2018 and a number of other new items affected by the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.

May 1, 2018

Qualified equity grants: A welcome alternative for startup companies

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act provides an alternative designed to help ease the burden on employees receiving stock.

May 1, 2018

Gravel mined on Seneca land is not exempt from tax

Income from selling gravel mined on Seneca Nation land was not exempt from tax under two treaties between the United States and the Seneca Nation.

May 1, 2018

Using big data to identify tax risk

This column provides background on usable data readily available from the IRS and a case study in
which students can use the IRS data to assess audit risk.

May 1, 2018

Counterintuitive tax planning: Increasing taxable scholarship income to reduce taxes

This article discusses the potential benefit of choosing to include scholarships or grants in income.

May 1, 2018

Casualty losses and expenditures under Sec. 162 or 165

Two Code provisions, Sec. 162 and Sec. 165, offer a potential deduction for a taxpayer who has property that has been damaged by a casualty.

April 26, 2018

IRS gives taxpayers relief from erroneous HSA contributions

The IRS announced it will allow taxpayers to treat $6,900 as the 2018 limit for deductible contributions to HSAs for individuals with family coverage.

April 19, 2018

Bunching charitable donations after the new tax law

A potential side effect of fewer taxpayers itemizing their deductions is that these taxpayers may choose to reduce or eliminate charitable contributions.

April 1, 2018

New withholding rules necessitated by new tax law

The IRS issued Notice 2018-14 to provide more guidance on the withholding rules that were changed by P.L. 115-97, known as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act.

April 1, 2018

Exiting the U.S. tax system

An exit strategy can help mitigate unexpected and potentially costly tax consequences upon departure from the United States.

April 1, 2018

Congress extends expired provisions

The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 has many tax provisions, including retroactive extensions of a number of tax credits.

April 1, 2018

Current U.S. tax incentives for higher education expenses

This article examines the requirements and limitations taxpayers face when seeking benefits of significant education-related income tax provisions.

March 15, 2018

The Sec. 199A qualified business income deduction and fiscal years

Taxpayers who receive income from fiscal-year passthrough entities need guidance on when to claim the new Sec. 199A deduction for qualified business income.

March 8, 2018

The physical presence test for excluding foreign earned income

Under Sec. 911, a U.S. citizen whose tax home is in one or more foreign countries, who spends enough there, can exclude a certain amount of foreign earned income.

March 1, 2018

IRS releases updated withholding calculator and 2018 Form W-4

The IRS has completed updating its online withholding calculator that individual taxpayers can use to determine how many withholding allowances they should claim for 2018.

March 1, 2018

Strategies for minimizing estimated tax payments

Taxpayers can use various techniques to minimize estimated tax payments throughout the year while also avoiding underpayment penalties.

March 1, 2018

Individual taxation: Report of recent developments

This article is a semiannual review of developments
in individual federal taxation, including issues of alimony, trade or business expenses, and recognition of loss.