It Is Never Too Early To Plan For Taxes
It is true that 2020 was a year that had a lot of personal challenges for small businesses. However, understanding your tax liability for the coming year is always a good idea and it is never too early to start. There is no reason that taxes need to be a mystery and you can forecast what you will owe in the coming year.
Become Proactive
Business taxes are determined by net income. This is when you subtract business expenses from gross revenues. Having an online accounting system automatically keeps track of your figures. If you use an online accounting system and you’ve entered all income and expenses, the system will automatically provide you with a gross profit figure. Those that use spreadsheets, please take the time to add up the numbers so you can forecast what you will need to owe in taxes for the following year.
Is Your Business a Pass-Through Entity?
A pass-through entity is when the tax liability of the business actually passes through to the owner.
Pass-through entities include:
- Sole Proprietorships
- Limited Liability Companies
- S Corporations
A business that has not filed any paperwork is automatically considered a sole proprietorship by the Internal Revenue Service.
If you are a pass-through entity then you could owe less in taxes. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act allows a 20 percent tax deduction on qualified business income from pass-through businesses. Generally, the deduction is available to eligible taxpayers whose taxable income is below $315,000 for joint returns and $157,500 for individual filers, according to the IRS. Some types of pass-through businesses may not qualify for this deduction: The IRS regulations detail the limitations.
If your business is a pass-through entity, then the taxable business income must be reported with your personal tax return. This means the amount you owe will be determined by your personal tax bracket. For 2020, personal tax brackets range from 10 percent (for individuals earning up to $9,875 and joint filers earning up to $19,750) to 37 percent for individuals earning more than $518,400 and joint filers earning more than $622,050.
If Your Business Is A C-Corporation
A business that is not a pass-through entity is a C-corporation. These are usually larger companies that do not qualify as small businesses. However, if your business is a c-corporations it will now be taxed at a flat rate of 21 percent. Remember that c-corporations are always taxed twice. That is because the c-corporation itself is looked upon as a separate entity. These entities are taxed at the business level and the shareholder level.
There Are Other Taxes Besides Income Taxes
Businesses pay more than just income taxes. They include the following:
- Employment taxes on wages paid to employees and to the owner (you).
- Social Security
- Medicare tax
- Federal unemployment tax (FUTA)
Social Security tax is 12.4 percent of all wages paid up to $137,700, with half paid by the employee and half paid by the employer. Medicare is equal to 2.9 percent of wages paid (3.8% on wages in excess of $200,000 ($250,000 for joint returns, $125,000 for married taxpayers filing a separate return), half paid by the employee, and half paid by the employer. FUTA is generally equal to 6 percent of the first $7,000 of each employee’s wages and is paid by the employer. Self Employed owners will have to pay a total amount of Social Security taxes and Medicare taxes since there is not a separate employer to pay it for you.
Remember The Deductions
Read our helpful article on deductions that your small business can not afford to miss. It includes the following:
- Travel by airplane, train, bus, or car between your home and your business destination. (If you’re provided with a ticket or you’re riding free as a result of a frequent traveler or similar program, your cost is zero.)
- Fares for taxis or other types of transportation between the airport or train station and your hotel, the hotel, and the work location, and from one customer to another, or from one place of business to another.
- Shipping of baggage, and sample or display material between your regular and temporary work locations.
- Using your car while at your business destination. You can deduct actual expenses or the standard mileage rate, as well as business-related tolls and parking fees. If you rent a car, you can deduct only the business-use portion for the expenses.
- Meals and lodging.
- Dry cleaning and laundry.
- Business calls while on your business trip. (This includes business communications by fax machine or other communication devices.)
- Tips you pay for services related to any of these expenses.
- Other similar ordinary and necessary expenses related to your business travel. (These expenses might include transportation to and from a business meal, public stenographer’s fees, computer rental fees, and operating and maintaining a house trailer.)
- Many apps have come on the market that makes it exceptionally easy to scan and track receipts for travel-related expenses. Some of these apps also automatically categorize expenses which is very nice for accurate bookkeeping.
Getting A Tax Resale Certification Is One Of The Best Things You Can Do As An Entrepreneur
If you decide to start a business, a tax resale certificate can really save you money on taxes.
In short, a tax retail certificate allows you not to pay sales tax on items that you plan to resell. This can also apply to supplies that are going to be used in products that you will resell, such as wood for a cabinet.
However, the process can be difficult and the rules are different for each state. That is why TaxResaleCertificate should do all the hard work for you. We can make sure that you get all the advantages of a tax resale certificate without having to deal with the hassle of government red tape. Let us handle the hard stuff so you can proceed to run your business with confidence. Make sure you check out our second blog in this series so you can learn even more valuable information about tax resale certificates.