Last Minute Spending Bill Reinstates OSLT for 2018 The Oil Spill Liability Tax (OSLT) is an excise tax on crude oil products, like natural gasoline used as denaturant for fuel ethanol. The tax had expired at the end of 2017. However, the spending bill passed on February 9 to end the temporary shutdown of the federal government included a provision to reinstate the oil spill tax. Section 40416 of HR 1892 reinstates the OSLT effective March 1, 2018. It sets a new expiration date of December 31, 2018. The OSLT is now in effect from 3/1/18-12/31/18. This bill did not include a change to the rate at which the excise tax is imposed. The rate had increased in 2017 to $0.09 per barrel, which is equivalent to $0.00214 per gallon of Read More...
New Withholding Tables – An Increase in Take-Home Pay!
EXCITING NEWS - You May See an Increase in Your Take Home Pay! 90% of people will see an increase in take home pay as early as next month! How Will I Know if I am One of the 90%? The U.S Treasury Department has recently released new withholding tables based on the tax reform bill. The withholding tables are used by employers to determine how much to withhold from employee paychecks. The new withholding tables have been updated to reflect changes in tax rates and brackets, the increased standard deduction and the repeal of personal exemptions. Most people should see increases to their take home pay as a result of the new withholding tables by mid-February. The IRS is currently working on a new form W4 that will more fully reflect Read More...
Minnesota Education Tax Updates
At Christianson, our experts are actively keeping on top of all of the changes that have occurred. The emphasis of this post today is going to be around education tax changes in Minnesota. There are several important credits and subtractions to be aware of this year that may impact you, as a student or as a parent of a student. Master's Degree in Teacher's Licensure Field Credit Who Qualifies Taxpayers qualify to receive this credit if you enroll in a Master's Degree program in Minnesota after June 30th, 2017. The program in which you are receiving your Master's Degree must be English or Language Arts, Math, Science, Foreign Languages, Civics and Government, Arts, History, or Geography. This credit may not be claimed until the year Read More...
TAX TIME – Keeping Records
At Christianson, making sure you're prepared and never at risk is one of our top priorities. One of the most commonly asked questions is: "how long do I have to keep my tax records?". This is important for both individuals and for businesses. Here's what you need to know: How Long Should I Keep Records? The general recommendation is to keep tax records for 3 years from the date you filed your tax return. So for 2016 tax returns filed by April 15, 2017, the 3 year period expires on April 15, 2020. This is the timeframe that you have to amend a tax return or the IRS has to audit you. There are certain circumstances when the IRS can initiate an audit after the 3 year period, such as if a tax return was never filed, or if a Read More...
Duty Drawback Refunds – Could This Benefit You?
At Christianson we want you to be aware of industry-related legislative changes that may impact your biofuels business. There has been a change to drawback regulations that may qualify your exports for a refund of similar product import tariffs. Here’s how it may impact you: Duty Drawback Simplification Are you currently importing and/or exporting goods as a regular part of business? If so, you could be eligible for a reimbursement of certain duties, internal revenue taxes, and fees collected on the importation of goods. These refunds are allowed upon the subsequent exportation or destruction of goods. The Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015 recently underwent an expansion and simplification that allows for increased Read More...
Minnesota Credit for School Supplies
Back-to-school sales are in full swing! At Christianson PLLP, we want to remind parents about tax benefits for their 2017 MN tax return for many school expenses. MN has both a credit and a subtraction for education-related expenses. The Minnesota Department of Revenue reminds families interested in claiming these tax benefits to save all receipts related to school supplies. You can keep these receipts with your other tax documents that you traditionally bring to your tax preparer. Most required K-12 school supplies qualify for the credit or subtraction, including writing utensils, textbooks, calculators, tutors, academic programs and camps, and musical instrument lessons (including purchases or rentals). Common items that do not Read More...
2015 Minnesota Refunds
Here at Christianson PLLP, we have been notified that some of our clients are receiving 2015 refund checks from the MN Department of Revenue. Do not throw these checks away, they are real! These refunds relate back to retroactive legislation signed into law in early January 2017. The MN Department of Revenue reviewed 2015 Minnesota income tax returns to determine those that were affected by the changes made to the 2015 tax code and are in the process of mailing out refunds to affected individuals. If you receive a letter and/or refund related to this, please keep the information with your 2017 tax papers and bring in to your tax preparer when you come in for your tax appointment. If you have additional questions or are still Read More...
Tax day is quickly approaching. Are you ready?
Time for Taxes! Tax time has arrived. The final day to file without extension on income earned in 2016 and pay your taxes is April 18th. If you haven’t filed yet, forgot to file, or simply haven’t had time, you can file an extension without penalty on or before April 18th. This extension allows you to extend your filing (not the estimated payment) to October 16th, 2017. Note that this option extends the time to file your tax return, but does not extend the requirement to pay the taxes. If you don’t pay an estimate of your tax owed, you will owe penalty and interest. Tax Extension Filing Process There are three ways to request an automatic extension of time to file a U.S. individual income tax return. You can pay all or part of Read More...
MNsure Announces One-Week Special Enrollment Period to Help Minnesotans Take Advantage of Recently Enacted Premium Relief
MNsure is allowing a one-week special enrollment period (SEP) to allow Minnesotans additional time to purchase health insurance. This period runs February 1st and ends February 8th. This extension period will also allow enrollees to benefit from the state’s new law providing a 25 percent reduction in health insurance premiums. This 25 percent discount applies automatically; enrollees do not need to take additional action to receive the discount. Individuals who already receive advanced premium tax credits are not eligible for the 25 percent discount. You can get more news on this and other MN Health Coverage information by going to the MNsure website, https://www.mnsure.org/. Contact us today toll-free at 888-852-5937 or 320-235-5937 Read More...
MN State Tax Changes: Governor Dayton Signs Federal Tax Conformity Legislation
Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton signed a "tax conformity" bill last week in order to align MN tax law with changes in federal tax law. The legislation was approved January 13, 2017 retroactively conforming the state’s corporate franchise and personal income tax to most federal changes enacted since December 31, 2014, for tax year 2015 and following years. No changes were made to bonus and Sec 179 expensing amounts. Will these changes affect you? Here are the most notable changes: Deduction for up to $4,000 of qualified tuition and related expenses. Exclusion for discharge of indebtedness income on principal residence. Itemized deduction for mortgage insurance premiums on a principal residence. Deduction in adjusted gross Read More...