Are you helping your clients stay informed of the latest tax happenings? Newsworthy tax stories occur year-round, and the off-season is no exception. If you’re feeling out of the loop, we’ve got good news! We rounded up the biggest tax stories from the last month to help tax pros stay current and keep clients in-the-know.
Here are a few recent stories tax pros should know about.
Tax Refunds For Injured Veterans
Easily one of the biggest stories in tax this month – The IRS is issuing refunds for qualifying veterans who received disability severance payments after Jan. 17, 1991, and included that money as income when they filed their tax returns. The refund is due largely to the Combat-Injured Veterans Tax Fairness Act, which became law on Dec. 16, 2016. (Learn more)
IRS Tax Forums
There’s still time to attend an IRS Tax Forum 2018! Every year, the IRS puts on these incredibly informative and helpful seminars across the country. The Tax Forums are a great way for tax pros to network and keep up with the latest news and best practices. San Diego (August 7-9) is sold out, but there’s still time to register for Chicago (August 21-23) and Orlando (Sept 11-13). (Learn more)
IRS Working on New 1040
As part of a larger effort to help taxpayers, the Internal Revenue Service plans to streamline the Form 1040 into a shorter, simpler form for the 2019 tax season. The new 1040 – about half the size of the current version — would replace the current Form 1040 as well as the Form 1040A and the Form 1040EZ. According to the IRS, the new approach “will simplify the 1040 so that all 150 million taxpayers can use the same form.” (Learn more)
House Passes Repeal of Medical Device Tax
The House approved a repeal of the Affordable Care Act’s medical device tax, along with a bill that prohibits the IRS from rehiring any employee who was fired for misconduct. Implementation of the 2.3 percent excise tax has repeatedly been delayed by Congress ever since the passage of the ACA in 2010, in part thanks to lobbying by medical device manufacturers. (Learn more)
House Committee Introduces Tax Reform 2.0
With many of the provisions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) now in effect, Congress has begun pushing for further tax reform. While concrete details are currently “still scarce”, the current framework calls for discussions on permanent tax cuts, new retirement savings plans, expanded 529 education savings accounts, improvements affecting entrepreneurs, and more. (Learn more)
Know of an important tax story we missed? Let us know and we’ll include it in a future roundup!