There’s an App for That: Taxes from Your Phone

We do pretty much everything from our phones these days, turns out, taxes are no different. Accountants and techies are combining forces as new ways develop for those who choose to file from their phone. From an easier way to track and report expenses to hand-held glossaries and customer service, exploring ways to file from your phone will change the way taxes get done.

Tracking Expenses

Deducting expenses is essential for businesses owners or the self-employed. Keeping track of those expenses however can be incredibly cumbersome. Travel, meals, supplies, and mileage really add up and the ability to immediately input … Read more at 2009 Tax.

A Candidate’s Offshore Tax Havens

Stories of offshore tax havens belonging to Mitt Romney have been causing a stir in the news media. Several sources such as Reuters and the Washington Post have unearthed troublesome material in the candidate’s most recent tax returns. Reuters journalist Sam Youngman reports that Romney may have sheltered offshore bank accounts as a result of his business dealings with Bain Capital. Youngman’s published findings do imply this information, though his actual wording is somewhat vague.

Romney has amassed a large fortune due to investments in several dozen funds with ties to this private equity firm that he helped start … Read more at 2009 Tax.

Top Tax Reduction Methods

Borrowing Against Shares

This method of borrowing allows share holders to realize the value of their stock market positions as cash, without incurring capital gains tax. It works very simply; rather than selling their shares, the holder can get a cash loan for their equivalent value, using them as collateral. By buying ‘puts’ and ‘calls’ for the shares they can ensure that they can be bought or sold later at a set price, offering protection against any depreciation that may occur.

The holder then has the cash available to do with what they will. If they don’t repay it, … Read more at 2009 Tax.

Tax Carnival Ecstasy – October 11, 2011

Welcome to the October 11, 2011 edition of Tax Carnival Ecstasy. In this issue we have three top stories for this edition of the Tax Carnival. Gregory Stokes takes a look at the Child Tax Credit with a basic guide. Gemma Flannery has a nice post on Tax Codes and your Personal Allowance. Finally Jessica Bird writes about why the UK is the world’s third most expensive place to purchase petrol. Hope you enjoy the stories, bookmark, share, tweet, like on Facebook and come back soon.

credits

Gregory Stokes presents Your Basic Guide to Child Tax Credit posted at Tax

… Read more at 2009 Tax.

How to Choose an Accountant

Due to the necessity for accurate book-keeping, many businesses outsource their accounting needs to a proven and successful chartered accountant. Many businesses choose to employ an in-house accountant, which is also a successful strategy, depending on the size of the business. There are several key points to consider when choosing an accountant, four of which are detailed below.

Credentials: It is important that your chosen accountant is suitable educated in their field. They must be appropriately qualified to do the job you employ them for; you don’t want an accountant that is daunted by your books or intimidated by … Read more at 2009 Tax.

Pros and Cons of IRA Conversions

IRA conversions are basically where you change the classification of your account from an IRA classification as a Traditional Individual Retirement Account over to a Roth IRA. Back in 2010 the government changed the rules to allow investors to move over to Roth IRA’s from their Traditional IRA’s irrespective of the amount of money that they earned. Before 2010 people were only able to invest in Roth IRA’s if their MAGI (modified adjusted gross income) went below a certain level. One example was married couples whose combined income exceeded $179,000 – previously they would not have been allowed to … Read more at 2009 Tax.