The passive activity loss (PAL) rules may limit your ability to deduct losses from a business structured as a limited liability partnership (LLP) or limited liability company (LLC). Depending on how your ownership interest is treated under these rules, you may have more or less flexibility to claim losses in the current year. Here’s a closer look.
Large stock market gains in recent years, coupled with some significant volatility in 2026, have left many investors with portfolios that are out of balance with their desired asset allocation. If you haven’t rebalanced recently, it may be time to do so. But you also must consider the tax implications. Careful planning can minimize the tax cost of rebalancing.
So you’ve decided to start your own business — congratulations! Many new owners open a business to be their own boss and chart their own course. However, along with those benefits come some complications compared to being someone else’s employee. Planning and budgeting are critical, and you’ll have plenty of new tax compliance responsibilities.
Many small businesses don’t have enough employees to worry about the play-or-pay provisions of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). However, as your business grows, these rules can apply sooner than expected. This issue also may not be on your radar because there’s a common misconception that the repeal of ACA penalties under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act applied to both individuals and businesses. While the individual mandate penalty was eliminated beginning in 2019, the employer shared responsibility rules are still in effect.
Yes, the April 15 tax deadline is now behind us. But there are also deadlines during the rest of the year that are important to be aware of. To help you not miss any, here’s when some key tax-related forms, payments and other actions are due. Keep in mind that this list isn’t all-inclusive. There may be additional deadlines that apply to you.
It’s every business owner’s least-favorite task: laying off staff. But sometimes, layoffs are unavoidable. Labor costs are a significant line item on most companies’ income statements, and reducing your workforce can potentially help restore stability if your business hits choppy waters.
After you’ve filed your 2025 tax return, what’s next? It’s easy to move on to other things, but taking a little time to address some tax-related items now can help you stay organized and avoid issues later. Here are a few to-dos.
With caregiving costs rising faster than inflation, it’s harder than ever to juggle parenting young children or caring for elderly relatives while also working nine to five. Your business can help support caregiving employees and boost productivity by offering dependent care flexible spending accounts (FSAs). This benefit provides a tax-advantaged method to pay for eligible caregiving expenses using pretax dollars.
Companies that engage in research and development activities may qualify for a federal tax credit for some of those expenses. The credit is complicated to calculate, and not all research activities are eligible — but the tax savings can be significant. Here are answers to questions you might have about this potentially lucrative tax break.
If you operate your business as a C corporation, how you put money into your company — and how you take it back out — can have a major impact on your tax bill. Payments from shareholders to fund the business can either be classified as capital contributions (equity) or shareholder loans (debt). That might sound like an accounting technicality, but it has real tax consequences because our federal income tax system treats corporate debt more favorably than corporate equity. Put simply, equity can lead to double taxation; loans can help you avoid it.