The Seventh Circuit held that an atheist group and two of its members did not have standing to challenge the Sec. 107(2) parsonage exemption because the members had never actually tried to claim the exemption and had therefore suffered no injury.
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TOPICS
Individuals
New Law Creates Tax-Favored Savings Accounts for Disabled Taxpayers
Congress approved the Achieving a Better Life Experience (ABLE) Act of 2014, which will allow disabled individuals to save money to pay for their disability expenses in tax-favored accounts, called ABLE accounts.
Final Rules Govern Reporting of Specified Foreign Financial Assets
Individuals who are required to report interests in foreign financial assets to the IRS got guidance on the process in the form of final regulations.
Substantiating Expenses: All or Nothing
Without proper substantiation, no deduction is allowed for a Sec. 274(d) expense, even if the court believes that a legitimate expenditure was made.
Employees Can Deduct Expenses for Local Lodging
Regulations the IRS issued finalize rules allowing employees to deduct certain expenses paid or incurred for local lodging as business expenses.
Land Sales: Is the Taxpayer Considered a Dealer or Investor?
Recent court decisions are reminders that land may not always be a capital asset that gives rise to a capital gain when sold. Land may also be held for sale to customers in the ordinary course of business, in which case gain on the sale of the land will be ordinary income.
Divorce Litigation: How Much Is a Professional Practice Worth?
This item concentrates on valuations of professional practices during divorce proceedings.
Complex Foreign Reporting Rules Make Compliance Difficult for Individual Taxpayers
Certain foreign reporting requirements may not be well-known by individual taxpayers; therefore, these reporting requirements may be overlooked, causing those individuals to bear heavy penalties for noncompliance.
Valuing Partnership Interests Acquired in Exchange for Services
This column addresses the rules that currently govern the receipt of a partnership interest in exchange for services. Practitioners should be aware that proposed regulations and Notice 2005-43 provide new rules and new safe-harbor provisions that will apply to the receipt of a partnership interest by a service partner when the regulations are finalized.
Capital Gains Treatment for Patent Royalties Denied
The Tax Court held that a taxpayer had not transferred all substantial rights in patents to an unrelated corporation because he was in control of the corporation; therefore, he was not entitled to capital gain treatment under Sec. 1235 for royalties on the patents that the corporation paid to him.
2014–2015 Per Diem Rates for Business-Related Travel
The IRS issued its annual update of special per diem rates for use in substantiating certain business expenses taxpayers incur when traveling away from home in 2014 and 2015.
Minimum Essential Coverage, Other Health Care Reform Guidance Issued
The IRS released health care guidance, including final regulations on minimum essential coverage, a list of hardship exemptions from individual shared-responsibility penalty, and indexed adjustments for certain calculations under the premium tax credit.
Rules Updated for Transit Fare Smart Cards and Qualified Transportation Fringe Benefits
The IRS announced that, beginning after Dec. 31, 2015, employers will no longer be permitted to provide qualified transportation fringe benefits in the form of cash reimbursement in geographic areas where a terminal-restricted debit card is readily available.
IRS Fills in Details of One-a-Year IRA Rollover Rule
The IRS clarified how the recently announced change in how it interprets the statutory one-rollover-per-year rule for IRAs will affect 2014 rollovers and how the rules will apply starting in 2015.
Final Regulations Address Gain or Loss Recognition for Identified Mixed Straddles
The IRS issued final regulationsaddressing the time for recognizing gain or loss accruing up to the date a taxpayer enters into an identified mixed straddle for such positions identified after Aug. 18, 2014.
Forfeited Gambling Winnings Not Included in Income
The IRS advised that gambling winnings that a taxpayer surrenders to a state as part of a program intended to help treat gambling addiction do not have to be reported by a casino to the taxpayer on Form W-2G and are not includible in gross income by the taxpayer.
Benefits of Using Convertible Tablet PCs for Tax Instruction
This column looks at the benefits of using a convertible tablet PC to teach tax concepts, whether in academia, in-house training, or continuing education.
Innocent Spouse Relief Under Rev. Proc. 2013-34
The IRS’s new revenue procedure revised the rules for taxpayers who request equitable relief from joint and several tax liability under Sec. 6015(f) or from tax liability arising from the operation of community property laws under Sec. 66(c).
Retiree Tax Planning With Qualified Longevity Annuity Contracts
The IRS recently issued regulations authorizing a new type of annuity contract for certain tax-favored retirement plans and IRAs: Qualified longevity annuity contracts.
2015 Inflation-Adjusted Items and Tax Tables Issued
The IRS issued the annual inflation adjustments for 2015 for more than 40 tax provisions as well as the 2015 tax rate tables for individuals and estates and trusts.
TAX PRACTICE MANAGEMENT
2025 tax software survey
AICPA members in tax practice assess how their return preparation software performed during tax season and offer insights into their procedures.
