The IRS continues to embrace technology and is quickly moving into the realm of social media with their new widgets. The widgets can be placed on websites, and social media sites to inform taxpayers about new developments with the IRS and tax breaks. Topics for the widgets include EITC (Earned Income Tax Credit), IRS Retirement Plans; HIRE Act tax breaks, due diligence, and non-profits. Be sure to keep a lookout for the new widgets on your tax professional’s website and social media pages. Examples are below:
The Tech Accountant
Showing posts with label Georgia Taxes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Georgia Taxes. Show all posts
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Monday, March 15, 2010
Fire and the Clouds- A Client Story
As many of you out there in blog land know, I am a supporter of using technology to make life a bit easier for myself and my clients. One of the more common technology products that I currently use is a cloud (online) backup and data storage solution. We have been using it for quite some time now and since it has been integrated within my firm’s daily processes, we think nothing of it. At least until recently…
A client of mine had a house fire back in 2009 and is still in the process of putting their life back together. As I met with him and his wife recently, we were all trying to piece back their businesses and personal financial information only to find out that the majority of their statements and contracts were destroyed. Luckily this client was having us scan all of their important financial data since 2004. I was able to pull out my trusty smartphone and login to our data storage and pull up everything we needed to get their taxes completed and provide them copies to recreate their records.
As I was leaving, the client told me that from now on he wanted to have me scan every piece of paper her ever receives. That way he would have no worries.
Just another example of how cloud data storage can save you and your small business. Stop by our website for more information on how you can protect you and your business.
The Tech Accountant
A client of mine had a house fire back in 2009 and is still in the process of putting their life back together. As I met with him and his wife recently, we were all trying to piece back their businesses and personal financial information only to find out that the majority of their statements and contracts were destroyed. Luckily this client was having us scan all of their important financial data since 2004. I was able to pull out my trusty smartphone and login to our data storage and pull up everything we needed to get their taxes completed and provide them copies to recreate their records.
As I was leaving, the client told me that from now on he wanted to have me scan every piece of paper her ever receives. That way he would have no worries.
Just another example of how cloud data storage can save you and your small business. Stop by our website for more information on how you can protect you and your business.
The Tech Accountant
Saturday, January 02, 2010
Tax Season less taxing with technology
Happy New Year everyone out there in blog land! Now that the holidays are over everyone’s focus is now on going back to work, paying off those Christmas bills and the dreaded taxes. Luckily there are ways to make filing your taxes a little less stressing. Typically you have to compile all of your tax data, schedule a time to meet with your tax professional and then wait for the return to be prepared. If you are one of those taxpayers that loves technology, then the following process may be of interest to you.
Some tax professionals allow their clients to fill out online tax organizers that will assist in getting all of your tax data compiled and ensure that you don’t forget any important paperwork. Once the online tax organizer is completed you send the organizer back along with your tax information via e-mail. This is very dangerous since you would be sending your tax data over the internet unsecure. This is where a client portal comes into play. A portal is similar to logging into online banking whereas you would login to your own secure account, fill out your tax organizer and upload all of your tax information. Once you have completed these tasks, an e-mail would be sent to your tax professional notifying them that your documents are ready to process. By using this approach, you can cut out wasted time playing phone tag with your tax professional to schedule an appointment, or sitting waiting in their office for them to review your information….that is unless you enjoy sitting and waiting on your tax professional to review your data.
Using technology can make your tax season less taxing.
B. N. S.
Some tax professionals allow their clients to fill out online tax organizers that will assist in getting all of your tax data compiled and ensure that you don’t forget any important paperwork. Once the online tax organizer is completed you send the organizer back along with your tax information via e-mail. This is very dangerous since you would be sending your tax data over the internet unsecure. This is where a client portal comes into play. A portal is similar to logging into online banking whereas you would login to your own secure account, fill out your tax organizer and upload all of your tax information. Once you have completed these tasks, an e-mail would be sent to your tax professional notifying them that your documents are ready to process. By using this approach, you can cut out wasted time playing phone tag with your tax professional to schedule an appointment, or sitting waiting in their office for them to review your information….that is unless you enjoy sitting and waiting on your tax professional to review your data.
Using technology can make your tax season less taxing.
B. N. S.
Saturday, December 12, 2009
The 2009 Look Back
With the year coming to an end, I thought this would be a great time to take a look back at some of the major developments that have affected the small business community the past year. This is just a quick review of some of the developments that we have read about and some that we have actually implemented in our firm. One interesting factor that we found was how different regulating bodies define the term small business and how those definitions affect a small business owner’s strategy going into the New Year.
Economy
While the economy has continued to decline for many small business owners, there are quite a few “indicators” that say that the economy is looking up for the small business owner. According to recent posts, the Small Business Administration is attempting to increase the assistance to small business owners and has redefined their definition of what constitutes a small business. The SBA also has a great deal of qualification factors for their financing programs so be sure that your small business will qualify for the programs offered. Since small businesses make up the majority of the economy, until those businesses have access to the necessary capital to expand; the economy for small business owners will continue to lag in 2010.
Taxes
The tax situation for the small business owner can be a strange beast considering there are different strategies that can be applied depending on the size and industry of your small business. Couple the tax code with the state of the economy, and it makes the road to recovery quite rocky for the small business owner. Although there is a great deal of tax incentives out there for small business owners, many are having a hard time implementing them without the help of additional funding. One example is the depreciation deduction. Many small businesses would like to purchase additional equipment and technology, to take the tax break, but without the necessary funding those deductions fall to the wayside.
Technology
Technology can be one of the better developments this past year for the small business owner. With technology changing virtually daily, there is always someone out there introducing a product that can make the small business owner lives run a bit less hectic. This past year there were quite a few introductions in Web 2.0 technologies that can help the small business owner increase their reach and web presence. More and more small businesses are starting to embrace the cloud computing or Software as a Service (SaaS) model as online data storage and software hosting solutions gains in new business. The use of smart phones has continued to see gains as even individuals are starting to use them to organize their personal lives. I personally see the trends in technology to continue to advance at more and more small businesses see the benefits of technology. Right now our firm can update information on social media sites, service accounting clients, and have anytime access to our data from our smart phones and I personally would not have it any other way.
Be sure to post some of your comments about this past year or what you feel will be the driving forces for small businesses in 2010. As for my opinion, I think that if small businesses look for ways to streamline their operations with the use of technology, and think outside the box when it comes to marketing the road to recovery can be a bit smoother in 2010.
B. N. S.
Economy
While the economy has continued to decline for many small business owners, there are quite a few “indicators” that say that the economy is looking up for the small business owner. According to recent posts, the Small Business Administration is attempting to increase the assistance to small business owners and has redefined their definition of what constitutes a small business. The SBA also has a great deal of qualification factors for their financing programs so be sure that your small business will qualify for the programs offered. Since small businesses make up the majority of the economy, until those businesses have access to the necessary capital to expand; the economy for small business owners will continue to lag in 2010.
Taxes
The tax situation for the small business owner can be a strange beast considering there are different strategies that can be applied depending on the size and industry of your small business. Couple the tax code with the state of the economy, and it makes the road to recovery quite rocky for the small business owner. Although there is a great deal of tax incentives out there for small business owners, many are having a hard time implementing them without the help of additional funding. One example is the depreciation deduction. Many small businesses would like to purchase additional equipment and technology, to take the tax break, but without the necessary funding those deductions fall to the wayside.
Technology
Technology can be one of the better developments this past year for the small business owner. With technology changing virtually daily, there is always someone out there introducing a product that can make the small business owner lives run a bit less hectic. This past year there were quite a few introductions in Web 2.0 technologies that can help the small business owner increase their reach and web presence. More and more small businesses are starting to embrace the cloud computing or Software as a Service (SaaS) model as online data storage and software hosting solutions gains in new business. The use of smart phones has continued to see gains as even individuals are starting to use them to organize their personal lives. I personally see the trends in technology to continue to advance at more and more small businesses see the benefits of technology. Right now our firm can update information on social media sites, service accounting clients, and have anytime access to our data from our smart phones and I personally would not have it any other way.
Be sure to post some of your comments about this past year or what you feel will be the driving forces for small businesses in 2010. As for my opinion, I think that if small businesses look for ways to streamline their operations with the use of technology, and think outside the box when it comes to marketing the road to recovery can be a bit smoother in 2010.
B. N. S.
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Georgia Refunds…Rotten Peaches
There has been a great deal of news on Georgia circulating lately and that made me feel that focusing a blog post specifically on Georgia would be a good idea. Typically being the bearer of bad news is not a desirable position to be in, but many Georgia taxpayers may already know about the state the economy in Georgia is in. As of July 15th, the Georgia Department of Revenue has not sent around 400,000 tax refunds to taxpayers and the interest clock is ticking. In a way there is a silver lining behind the dark cloud in that taxpayers finally will receive interest on money they have loaned the state the only question now is when will taxpayers receive their refunds and interest payments (which will come in separate checks)?
There is some good news coming out of Georgia however. The state will offer sales tax holidays for back to school shoppers from July 30th to August 2nd. Now wouldn’t it be nice if the Department of Revenue could give the taxpayers their money so they could shop for back to school? We will simply have to wait and see.
Keeping Your Business N Synergy
There is some good news coming out of Georgia however. The state will offer sales tax holidays for back to school shoppers from July 30th to August 2nd. Now wouldn’t it be nice if the Department of Revenue could give the taxpayers their money so they could shop for back to school? We will simply have to wait and see.
Keeping Your Business N Synergy
Monday, May 05, 2008
Know the Rules for Summer Help Hires
Now that the spring has sprung, summer can’t be too far away. This will bring many young job seekers, looking for temporary work that the summer months bring. It is important for the small business owner to know the rules when hiring in the summer. Here are a few tips to get your business’ summer search started:
1. Withholding taxes is done on ALL summer employees (yes summer help is considered an employee)
2. Parents with children can allow them to work in the business from the ages of 14-21
3. Check state labor laws for additional details regarding summer help.
Hope the information puts your business on the right track to a healthy summer season
Keeping Your Business N Synergy
1. Withholding taxes is done on ALL summer employees (yes summer help is considered an employee)
2. Parents with children can allow them to work in the business from the ages of 14-21
3. Check state labor laws for additional details regarding summer help.
Hope the information puts your business on the right track to a healthy summer season
Keeping Your Business N Synergy
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Georgia Taxes on My Mind?
News from the home state are that the Georgia State Senate approved a bill that will do away with the state portion of the property tax. The planned tax relief would provide Georgia taxpayers with about $94 million per year in tax savings. Additional amendments will put a freeze on property tax rates at the 2008 rates until the property is sold.
More Georgia tax details
Keeping Your Business N Synergy
More Georgia tax details
Keeping Your Business N Synergy
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