How Tax Law Is Made and Administered: The Short Course p. 4 --
Where to Find Tax Rules p. 5 --
Marginal Tax Rate and Tax Brackets p. 5 --
What is-And Isn't-Income p. 7 --
A Word About Tax Shelters p. 9 --
Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) p. 10 --
2 Deductible Business Expenses p. 13 --
What Is a Deductible Business Expense? p. 16 --
Is It a Current or Future Year Expense? p. 18 --
Top Deductions for Businesses p. 18 --
General Business Credit p. 30 --
Vehicle Expenses p. 30 --
How and Where to Claim Expense Deductions p. 36 --
3 Writing Off Long-Term Business Assets p. 39 --
Tax Treatment of Business Costs p. 41 --
De Minimis Safe Harbor p. 42 --
Bonus Depreciation p. 42 --
Section 179: Expensing Business Assets p. 45 --
Depreciating Business Assets p. 48 --
How to Report Depreciation and Section 179 Deductions p. 53 --
Tax Basis of Business Assets p. 56 --
Leasing Instead of Buying p. 59 --
When You Dispose of Business Assets: Depreciation Recapture p. 61 --
Tax Errors in Depreciation p. 62 --
4 Bookkeeping and Accounting p. 65 --
Why You Need a Bookkeeping System p. 66 --
Should You Hire a Bookkeeper? p. 67 --
Bookkeeping Basics p. 67 --
What Kinds of Records to Keep p. 71 --
How Long Records Should Be Kept p. 74 --
Bookkeeping Methods of Tracking Income and Expenses p. 75 --
Timing Methods of Accounting: Cash and Accrual p. 75 --
Accounting Periods: Calendar Year or Fiscal Year p. 78 --
5 Business Losses and Failures p. 81 --
Unincorporated Business Losses p. 82 --
Incorporated Business Losses p. 85 --
6 Tax Concerns of Employers p. 87 --
Employer Identification Numbers p. 88 --
What Are Payroll Taxes? p. 89 --
Reporting and Depositing Payroll Taxes p. 90 --
Classifying Workers: Employee or Independent Contractor? p. 98 --
Misclassifying Employees as Independent Contractors p. 100 --
IRS Filing and Payment Requirements for Employers p. 103 --
Record Keeping for Your Workers p. 104 --
7 Sole Proprietorships-Solos, Freelancers, and Independent Contractors p. 107 --
What It Means to Be a Solo-From a Tax Perspective p. 108 --
To Be or Not to Be-A Solo p. 108 --
Solo Income and Expenses p. 109 --
Solos' Tax Forms: Schedule C Is Your Friend p. 111 --
What If My Solo Biz Loses Money? p. 116 --
How Solos Are Taxed p. 117 --
Record Keeping for Solos p. 122 --
When a Solo Closes Up Shop p. 123 --
Death of a Solo p. 123 --
Outgrowing the Solo p. 124 --
8 C Corporations p. 125 --
Types of Corporations p. 126 --
How C Corporations Are Taxed p. 128 --
Tax Benefits of C Corporations p. 132 --
Incorporating Your Business p. 133 --
Importance of Issuing Section 1244 Stock p. 136 --
Taking Money Out of a C Corporation p. 138 --
Tax Pitfalls of C Corporations p. 142 --
Dissolving a C Corporation p. 142 --
9 S Corporations p. 145 --
An Overview of S Corporations p. 146 --
Should You Choose S Corporation Status? p. 146 --
Tax Reporting for S Corporations p. 150 --
How S Corporation Shareholders Are Taxed p. 152 --
Social Security and Medicare Taxes p. 155 --
Electing S Corporation Status p. 156 --
Revoking S Corporation Status p. 156 --
Dissolving an S Corporation p. 157 --
10 Partnership Tax Status p. 160 --
Tax Obligations of Partners p. 162 --
Partnership Losses p. 167 --
Partnership Contributions p. 167 --
Getting Money Out of a Partnership p. 170 --
Partnership Expenses p. 171 --
Selling or Transferring a Partnership Interest p. 171 --
Ending a Partnership p. 172 --
11 Limited Liability Companies p. 175 --
Comparing LLCs With Other Entities p. 177 --
Operating Your LLC p. 178 --
Terminating an LLC p. 180 --
12 Qualified Personal Service Corporations p. 181 --
Qualified Personal Service Corporations p. 182 --
QPSCs and Taxes p. 183 --
Fringe Benefits p. 184 --
Transferring Shares p. 184 --
Dissolving a QPSC p. 185 --
13 Family Businesses p. 187 --
Legal Structure of a Family Business p. 188 --
Income Splitting Lowers Taxes p. 188 --
A Spouse in the Business p. 191 --
Preserving a Family Business After Death p. 192 --
14 Home-Based Businesses p. 199 --
Business Expenses Incurred at Home p. 200 --
Home Office Deduction p. 200 --
Calculating Your Home Office Deduction p. 204 --
Safe Harbor Rule for the Home Office Deduction p. 208 --
Tax When Selling the Home Office p. 209 --
A Home Business as a Tax Shelter p. 209 --
15 Fringe Benefits p. 213 --
How Fringe Benefits Save Taxes p. 215 --
Retirement Benefits p. 216 --
Travel and Lodging p. 216 --
Health Benefits p. 219 --
Dependent Care Assistance Plan p. 222 --
Long-Term Care Insurance p. 222 --
Group Term Life Insurance p. 223 --
Education Benefits p. 223 --
Dues and Subscriptions p. 224 --
Driver and Bodyguard Services p. 224 --
Retirement Planning Services p. 224 --
Gifts, Awards, Discounts, and Free Services p. 224 --
Commuter Transportation and Parking p. 225 --
Working Condition Fringes p. 225 --
De Minimis Benefits p. 225 --
Adoption Assistance p. 226 --
Job Placement Assistance p. 226 --
Cafeteria Plans p. 226 --
Disaster Relief Payments to Employees p. 226 --
Special Benefits for C Corporation Employees Only p. 227 --
16 Retirement Plans p. 229 --
Advantages of Retirement Plans p. 230 --
Overview of Retirement Plan Types p. 231 --
Details About Each Type of Retirement Plan p. 232 --
Where to Go for a Retirement Plan p. 240 --
Potential Tax Problems With Retirement Plans p. 241 --
Withdrawing Money From Retirement Plans p. 242 --
Closing Your Business or Leaving Your Employer p. 244 --
17 Buying a Business p. 247 --
Buying the Assets of a Business p. 248 --
Buying Shares of Stock p. 249 --
Assigning a Price to Business Assets p. 252 --
State and Local Transfer Taxes p. 255 --
18 Selling or Closing a Sole Proprietorship p. 257 --
Reporting the Sale of a Sole Proprietorship p. 258 --
Importance of an Arm's-Length Deal p. 259 --
How to Protect Yourself From IRS Challenges p. 260 --
19 When You Can't Pay Your Taxes p. 263 --
Low IRS Priority-Less Than $50,000 p. 264 --
Getting More Time to Pay p. 264 --
Paying in Installments p. 265 --
What to Expect When the IRS Gets Serious p. 267 --
Dealing With a Monster Tax Bill p. 269 --
When the IRS Can Take Your Assets p. 270 --
Who Gets Audited? p. 277 --
How Long Do You Have to Worry About an Audit? p. 279 --
How the IRS Audits Small Businesses p. 280 --
Auditor's Powers p. 281 --
Should You Get Audit Help? p. 282 --
Preparing for Your Audit p. 283 --
What to Bring to an Audit p. 283 --
Don't Rush a Field Audit p. 285 --
What an Auditor Looks for When Examining a Business p. 286 --
How to Behave at an Audit p. 289 --
How to Negotiate With an Auditor p. 291 --
Your Options After Getting an Audit Report p. 293 --
When Your Audit Is Final p. 294 --
21 Appealing IRS Audits p. 295 --
Contesting an Audit in Court p. 298 --
22 Penalties and Interest p. 303 --
Common Reasons for Penalties p. 304 --
Interest on Tax Bills p. 305 --
Understanding Penalty and Interest Notices p. 305 --
How to Gee Penalties Reduced or Eliminated p. 306 --
How to Get Interest Charges Removed p. 309 --
Designating Payments on Delinquent Tax Bills p. 309 --
Finding Answers to Tax Questions p. 312 --
Finding and Using a Tax Pro p. 317 --
24 Answers to Frequently Asked Tax Questions p. 321.
