Bob Parrish CPA, P.C. Send email to pro1040@home.com (Hint: Any topic can be read in full screen by rt-click, then new window)
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Introduction
Objectives - Your Question
Analyses
Plain English Analysis - Your Answers
Increase Wealth
How To Do This
Tools
A few closely related topics & pages From Bob Parrish CPA PC:
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Client Letter - What this idea is about
Wages subject to Federal employment taxes include all pay you give an employee for services performed. The pay may be in cash or in other forms. It includes salaries, vacation allowances, bonuses, commissions, and fringe benefits. It does not matter how you measure or make the payments. Also, compensation paid to a former employee for services performed while still employed is wages subject to employment taxes.
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Engagement Status LetterYou have not engaged Bob Parrish CPA PC, Bob Parrish CPA, pro1040, Consulting on line, any related parties, or the ISP to perform any services for you or offer you advice. This entire site is for educational or informational purposes only. You are not to use the forms, concepts, strategies, or knowledge without assistance from a professional. The author, the corporation, the ISP, Bob Parrish CPA, Bob Parrish CPA, P.C. or other parties related to those or this site do not guarantee or warrantee in any manner the suitability, usefulness, accuracy, timeliness, or results of any portions of this site, nor the links contained in this site which link to other areas. At times, information is taken from other sources and is believed to be accurate, but no verification or confirmation is performed. Furthermore, if any federal or state law invalidates a portion of this disclaimer, the other portions still apply. In addition, any allegations or actions are restricted to arbitration only and must be arbitrated by the Better Business Bureau in Sarasota Florida. Reading of these pages constitutes complete acceptance and agreement with all disclaimer provisions on all pages of this site. ....... Thursday, February 22, 2007 11:45 AM
Learning Objectives (What You Asked)YOUR QUESTION(S) Objective one
What You Will Need
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Plain English Analysis What it does, Why it works - The Answer, Alternatives
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YOUR ANSWERS What it does, Explanation of this topic and how it may affect you: To be deductible, salaries or wages paid employees must meet all of the following tests:
Employee business expense reimbursements. A reimbursement or allowance arrangement is a system by which you substantiate and pay the advances, reimbursements, and charges for your employees' business expenses. How you report a reimbursement or allowance amount depends on whether it is an accountable or a nonaccountable plan. If a single payment includes both wages and an expense reimbursement, you must specify the amount of the reimbursement. These rules apply to all ordinary and necessary employee business expenses that would otherwise qualify for a deduction by the employee. Accountable plan. To be an accountable plan, your reimbursement or allowance arrangement must require your employees to meet all three of the following rules. (Refer to: Accountable plan and Accountable Plans)
Amounts paid under an accountable plan are not wages and are not subject to income tax withholding and payment of social security, Medicare, and Federal unemployment (FUTA) taxes. If the expenses covered by this arrangement are not substantiated or amounts in excess of expenses are not returned within a reasonable period of time, the amount is treated as paid under a nonaccountable plan. This amount is subject to income tax withholding and payment of social security, Medicare, and FUTA taxes for the first payroll period following the end of the reasonable period. A reasonable period of time depends on the facts and circumstances. Generally, it is considered reasonable if your employees receive the advance within 30 days of the time they incur the expense, adequately account for the expenses within 60 days after the expenses were paid or incurred, and they return any amounts in excess of expenses within 120 days after the expense was paid or incurred. Also, it is considered reasonable if you give your employees a periodic statement (at least quarterly) that asks them to either return or adequately account for outstanding amounts and they do so within 120 days. Nonaccountable plan. Payments to your employee for travel and other necessary expenses of your business under a nonaccountable plan are wages and subject to income tax withholding and payment of social security, Medicare, and FUTA taxes. Your payments are treated as paid under a nonaccountable plan if (Refer to: Accountable plan and Accountable Plans):
Per diem or other fixed allowance. You may reimburse your employees by travel days, or miles, or some other fixed allowance. In these cases, your employee is considered to have accounted to you if the payments do not exceed rates established by the Federal Government. The 1999 standard mileage rate for auto expenses was 32.5 cents per mile through March 31, 1999, and 31 cents per mile beginning April 1. The rate for all of 2000 is 32.5 cents per mile. See Pub. 553, Highlights of 1999 Tax Changes, for the 2000 standard mileage rate. The government per diem rates for meals and lodging in the continental United States are listed in Pub. 1542, Per Diem Rates. Other than the amount of these expenses, your employees' business expenses must be substantiated (for example, the business purpose of the travel or the number of business miles driven). If the per diem or allowance paid exceeds the amounts specified, you must report the excess amount as wages. This excess amount is subject to income tax withholding and payment of social security, Medicare, and FUTA taxes. Show the amount equal to the specified amount in box 13 of Form W-2, using code L. For more information, see chapter 16 in Pub. 535, Business Expenses. Wages not paid in money. If in the course of your trade or business you pay your employees in a medium that is neither cash nor a readily negotiable instrument, such as a check, you are said to pay them "in kind." Payments in kind may be in the form of goods, lodging, food, clothing, or services. Generally, the fair market value of such payments at the time they are provided is subject to income tax withholding and social security, Medicare, and FUTA taxes. However, noncash payments for household work, agricultural labor, and service not in the employer's trade or business are exempt from social security, Medicare, and FUTA taxes. Withhold income tax on these payments only if you and the employee agree to do so. However, noncash payments for agricultural labor, such as commodity wages, are treated as cash payments subject to employment taxes if the substance of the transaction is a cash payment. Moving expenses. Reimbursed and employer-paid qualified moving expenses (those that would otherwise be deductible by the employee) are not includible in an employee's income unless you have knowledge that the employee deducted the expenses in a prior year. Reimbursed and employer-paid nonqualified moving expenses are includible in income and are subject to employment taxes and income tax withholding. For more information on moving expenses, get Pub. 521, Moving Expenses. Meals and lodging. The value of meals is not taxable income and is not subject to income tax withholding and social security, Medicare, and FUTA taxes if the meals are furnished for the employer's convenience and on the employer's premises. The value of lodging is not subject to income tax withholding and social security, Medicare, and FUTA taxes if the lodging is furnished for the employer's convenience, on the employer's premises, and as a condition of employment. "For the convenience of the employer" means that you have a substantial business reason for providing the meals and lodging other than to provide additional compensation to the employee. For example, meals you provide at the place of work so an employee is available for emergencies during his or her lunch period are generally considered to be for your convenience. However, whether meals or lodging are provided for the convenience of the employer depends on all the facts and circumstances. A written statement that the meals or lodging are for your convenience is not sufficient. 50% test. If over 50% of the employees who are provided meals on an employer's business premises receive these meals for the convenience of the employer, all meals provided on the premises are treated as furnished for the convenience of the employer. If this 50% test is met, the value of the meals is excludable for all employees and is not subject to income tax withholding or employment taxes. For more information, see chapter 2 in Pub. 535. Health insurance plans. If you pay the cost of an accident or health insurance plan for your employees, which may include an employee's spouse and dependents, your payments are not wages and are not subject to social security, Medicare, and FUTA taxes, or income tax withholding. Generally, this exclusion applies to qualified long-term care insurance contracts. However, the cost of health insurance benefits must be included in the wages of S corporation employees who own more than 2% of the S corporation (2% shareholders). Medical savings accounts. Your contributions to an employee's medical savings account (MSA) are not subject to social security, Medicare, or FUTA taxes, or income tax withholding if it is reasonable to believe at the time of payment of the contributions that they will be excludable from the income of the employee. To the extent that it is not reasonable to believe they will be excludable, your contributions are subject to these taxes. Employee contributions to their MSA through a payroll deduction plan must be included in wages and are subject to social security, Medicare, and FUTA taxes, and income tax withholding. Medical care reimbursements. Medical care reimbursements paid for an employee under an employer's self-insured medical reimbursement plan are not wages and are not subject to social security, Medicare, and FUTA taxes, or income tax withholding. Fringe benefits. You generally must include fringe benefits in an employee's gross income (but see Nontaxable fringe benefits below). The benefits are subject to income tax withholding and employment taxes. Fringe benefits include cars you provide, flights on aircraft you provide, free or discounted commercial flights, vacations, discounts on property or services, memberships in country clubs or other social clubs, and tickets to entertainment or sporting events. In general, the amount you must include is the amount by which the fair market value of the benefits is more than the sum of what the employee paid for it plus any amount the law excludes. There are other special rules you and your employees may use to value certain fringe benefits. See Pub. 535 for more information. Nontaxable fringe benefits. Some fringe benefits are not taxable if certain conditions are met. See chapter 4 of Pub. 535 for details. Examples are:
However, do not exclude the following fringe benefits from the income of highly compensated employees unless the benefit is available to employees on a nondiscriminatory basis.
For more information, including the definition of a highly compensated employee, see Pub. 535. When fringe benefits are treated as paid. You may choose to treat certain noncash fringe benefits as paid by the pay period, or by the quarter, or on any other basis you choose as long as you treat the benefits as paid at least as often as once a year. You do not have to make a formal choice of payment dates or notify the IRS of the dates you choose. You do not have to make this choice for all employees. You may change methods as often as you like, as long as you treat all benefits provided in a calendar year as paid by December 31 of the calendar year. See Pub.15-A for more information, including a discussion of the special accounting rule for fringe benefits provided during November and December. Valuation of fringe benefits. Generally, you must determine the value of fringe benefits no later than January 31 of the next year. Prior to January 31, you may reasonably estimate the value of the fringe benefits for purposes of withholding and depositing on time. Withholding on fringe benefits. You may add the value of fringe benefits to regular wages for a payroll period and figure withholding taxes on the total, or you may withhold Federal income tax on the value of the fringe benefits at the flat 28% supplemental wage rate. You may choose not to withhold income tax on the value of an employee's personal use of a vehicle you provide. You must, however, withhold social security and Medicare taxes on the use of the vehicle. Get Pub. 15-A for more information on this election. Depositing taxes on fringe benefits. Once you choose payment dates for fringe benefits (discussed above), you must deposit taxes in the same deposit period you treat the fringe benefits as paid. To avoid a penalty, deposit the taxes following the general deposit rules for that deposit period. If you determine by January 31 that you overestimated the value of a fringe benefit at the time you withheld and deposited for it, you may claim a refund for the overpayment or have it applied to your next employment tax return (see Valuation of fringe benefits above). If you underestimated the value and deposited too little, you may be subject to the failure to deposit penalty. See section 11 for information on deposit penalties. If you deposited the required amount of taxes but withheld a lesser amount from the employee, you can recover from the employee the social security, Medicare, or income taxes you deposited on his or her behalf, and included in the employee's Form W-2. However, you must recover the income taxes before April 1 of the following year. Sick pay. In general, sick pay is any amount you pay, under a plan you take part in, to an employee who is unable to work because of sickness or injury. These amounts are sometimes paid by a third party, such as an insurance company or employees' trust. In either case, these payments are subject to social security, Medicare, and FUTA taxes. Sick pay becomes exempt from these taxes after the end of 6 calendar months after the calendar month the employee last worked for the employer. The payments are also subject to income tax. See Pub. 15-A for more information.
Start of Plain English Section Why or How it works - Both Sides of the Equation and Examples: Start of Plain English Section Start of Plain English Section Start of Plain English Section Other Start of Plain English Section Reserved
Start of Plain English Section
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Technical Analysis & Citations What It does, Why it works -
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CommentaryStart of Revenue Procedures Section Start of Private Letter Rulings
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Tax KillersThis is about Activity Based Taxplanning - maximizing deductions, minimizing cash outlay and maximizing the amount of cash retained and the net worth. Activity Based Taxplanning (ABT) is a methodology developed by Bob Parrish CPA, that assists people with the tax issues by focusing on the activity (or actions - events) that are being undertaken or contemplated (or have already taken place). The, research is compiled from the myriad of sources to help you complete the activity with the least tax cost, while maintaining compliance the tax laws, other laws and regulations and place yourself in a position to protect your objectives. Tax is a subject that many view in order to cut costs. Taxes are a cost just as any other cost. It happens this cost is somewhat intangible and is defined by legislation without a tangible item to view and control. The money is spent and the control of the expenditure is more appropriately administered by someone trained in the law.
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Cost Killers Management Info Sys, Cost Acctg, Activity Based Costing)This is about Activity Based Costing - methods to cut costs, management accounting, management information systems, decision support systems - in general about being a manager.
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Preparing for your CPA, attorney, or preparing to start your own What to gather -
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From Your Other Business, or Financial Records From Corporation Records or Organization Records (meetings, etc.) Start of Preparing For You CPA Section
Forms - checklists, time-line to do, etc. Assistance - What To Do -
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Financial Accounting: Bookkeeping & Financials
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Financial Statement Presentation Back to Start of Financial Accounting: Bookkeeping & Financials Back to Start of Financial Accounting: Bookkeeping & Financials Back to Start of Financial Accounting: Bookkeeping & Financials Back to Start of Financial Accounting: Bookkeeping & Financials Bookkeeping Methods - Cash, Accrual and Other Back to Start of Financial Accounting: Bookkeeping & Financials How the Business Entity Affects the Recording
Compliance - what is required for protection, defense, etc.Compliance Checklist Back to Start of What is required for protection, defense, etc.
Alerts & Dangers - Risks, Asset Protection, IRS DefenseClick on the title to expand or collapse the topics
Back to Start of Alerts & Dangers Back to Start of Alerts & Dangers Back to Start of Alerts & Dangers Back to Start of Alerts & Dangers
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Spreadsheets & Computations
Spreadsheet #1 Back to Start of Spreadsheets & Math
Contracts, Trusts, etc.Agreement #1 Back to Start of Contracts, Trusts, etc.
Reports RequiredReport #1 Back to Start of Reports Required
Checklists for DeploymentChecklist #1 Back to Start of Checklists - Deployment
Checklist for MonitoringChecklist #1 Back to Start of Checklist - Monitoring
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business_payroll_exp.htm
