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Ken Berry, JD

CPA Practice Advisor Tax Correspondent

Ken Berry, Esq., is a nationally-known writer and editor specializing in tax and financial planning matters. During a career of more than 35 years, he has served as managing editor of a publisher of content-based marketing tools and vice president of an online continuing education company in the financial services industry. As a freelance writer, Ken has authored thousands of articles for a wide variety of newsletters, magazines and other periodicals, emphasizing a sense of wit and clarity.

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Accounting

Summertime Tax Tip #5: Hot Dog! Get a Tax Break for Having a Company Picnic

Summer is the time for grilling burgers and hot dogs, escaping to the beach or woods or just relaxing and enjoying the warm weather. Of course, there’s nothing to prevent you from mixing in a little business with the pleasure. If your clients handle things the right way, and keep detailed records, they can write off a portion of their business entertainment expenses.

Income Tax

Summertime Tax Tip #4: Harvest a Bumper Crop of Tax Breaks

For many farmers, harvest time comes at the end of the summer. The same thing is true for your clients who are active traders in the stock market. But you must caution them that the tax landscape has changed in recent years.

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Income Tax

Summertime Tax Tip #3: Tax Credits for Summer Camp

Are your clients making plans to send their kids off to camp this summer? Depending on the arrangements, they may be entitled to claim a healthy tax credit – the dependent care credit (also known as the “child care credit” ) – for the daily expenses. However, there are no tax benefits available for overnight camps or other personal expenses.

IRS

Bitcoin Users: IRS Throws Monkey Wrench Into the Works

After several years of head-scratching, the IRS has finally offered guidance on the tax treatment for virtual currencies like Bitcoin (IRS Notice 2014-21). In brief, taxpayers have been advised to treat Bitcoin as property for U.S. tax purposes. But accountants, particularly those with small business clients, are still struggling to get a better handle on how this will work in real-life situations.

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Income Tax

Is An MBA Degree Tax Deductible? It Depends

Suppose one of your clients has his or her sights set on obtaining an MBA or another advanced degree. Usually, it takes significant time and effort to achieve this goal, especially if the degree candidate is currently working on a full-time or part-time basis. But earning the degree could be well worth the “blood, sweat and tears” from a monetary standpoint.

Accounting

Summertime Tax Tip #1: Mix In A Little Pleasure on Business Trips

Due to recent advances in technology, you can now talk face to face with someone halfway across the country without even budging from your desk. Yet it’s still important at times for business people to “press the flesh” or meet in person with an associate to conduct meetings or consummate a deal. At least, a business traveler may be entitled to generous tax deductions for his or her expenses.

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Accounting

College Athletes Could Be Sacked with High Taxes on Scholarships

Before student athletes begin celebrating the recent decision by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) that college football players should be classified as university employees, they might consider this extra point: Players could be hit with an unexpected tax bill on their scholarships.

Benefits

7 Reasons People Haven't Paid For Obamacare

The White House now says without equivocation that 7.1 million individuals signed up for Obamacare by March 31, the deadline for open enrollment in 2014. But how many of those people actually paid for health insurance coverage acquired through the marketplace? That’s where the “counting” gets a little trickier.

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Income Tax

Congress Considers Extension of Dozens of "Temporary" Tax Breaks

What will happen to the “tax extenders” that have been virtually ignored by Congress the last few months? At long last, there seems to be some movement on several fronts concerning these tax law provisions that are traditionally extended for just one or two years.

Benefits

IRS May Lack Resources to Enforce ObamaCare Insurance Mandate

The IRS has been struggling in its efforts to close an estimated $385 billion “tax gap” between the amount that taxpayers owe and the amount they’ve actually paid. Now, to add another crushing weight, it has to ramp up Obamacare activities despite recent budget cutbacks.

Benefits

10 Ways to Still Beat the Obamacare Insurance Deadline

Despite reports of a formal extension circulating in the media, March 31 was the last day that individuals could sign up for health insurance coverage for 2014 under the Obamacare mandate without risking a hefty financial penalty. Or was it?

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Income Tax

Deductible Medical Expenses - From A to Z

It’s even more difficult than before for most taxpayers to qualify for medical expense deductions now that the “floor” has been raised to 10 percent of adjusted gross income (AGI) from 7.5 percent of AGI.