IRS

IRS Direct Pay – Federal Payments

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IRS Direct Pay is a convenient way to pay your federal taxes online directly from your checking account. The IRS uses the latest encryption technology making electronic payments safe and secure. When paying electronically, you can schedule your payment in advance, you will receive instant confirmation after you submit the payment, and you can opt in to receive email notifications about your payments. It is quick, easy, and much faster than mailing in a check.

Here are some detailed instructions and screenshots to help you get started:

In the first step, you will choose the reason for payment.

  • If you are paying an amount owed, you will select the “Balance Due” option. You will apply payment to “Income Tax – Form 1040” and select the tax year in which you have a balance due. For example, if you are making a payment in April 2023 for your 2022 tax return, you will select 2022.
  • If you are making an estimated payment, you will select the “Estimated Tax” option. You will apply payment to “1040ES (for 1040, 1040A, 1040EZ) and select the tax year in which you would like to apply the estimated payment. For example, the estimates paid on 4/15/23, 6/15/23, 9/15/23, and 1/15/24 should be applied to the 2023 tax period.

You will hit continue. It will ask you to confirm, and you will hit continue again. Then, you will go on to verify your identity.

It may be easiest to select the previous year and enter your information from your previous year tax return. It can verify your tax information as far back as 5 to 6 years. If the information does not match, look at your last filed return, especially if you moved recently.

Then you will enter payment information and continue the prompts on the website to complete the payment process.

The IRS has several other great options to help with your online payments. If you plan to make payments regularly, you can set up an online account. In addition, they have several FAQs related to Direct Pay. Lastly, if you prefer to pay via credit card, there are options for that as well, although they do come with a fee.

How to get the most out of deductible meals

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In this month’s video, I explained what types of business meals are deductible.  Since meals can be frequent and for small dollar amounts, I get more questions about tracking these receipts than any other expense.  In the case of travel meals, an IRS rule allows you to throw those receipts all away.  Instead of tracking and deducting each specific expense, you can deduct a per diem rate for your travel meals. Continue reading →

199(A) Case Study #3 – Side Gig Effect

~ FoxCPA ~ 2 Comments

[This post is part of a multi-part series on the new 199(A) deduction.  Be sure and check out our blog during the second week of each month to see the next case study. If you are looking for the basics of what this deduction is, please check out this post.]

 Today’s case study is going to look at how the 199(A) deduction varies depending on the type of business being operated. Continue reading →

How to Calculate Proper Paycheck Withholding

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In this month’s video, I explained a couple of the goals when we complete a tax projection for clients.  For some taxpayers, a tax projection can have many moving parts making the assistance of a tax advisor essential.  For others, this process can be completed without outside help.  The main category of people that this would apply for is those with W-2 jobs.  To help those folks out, here is a step-by-step guide to calculating whether you have the proper paycheck withholding.  This is a good basic plan for anyone and can be tweaked for more complicated circumstances. Continue reading →

199(A) Case Study #2 – Dual vs. Single-income family

~ FoxCPA ~ 5 Comments

[This post is part of a multi-part series on the new 199(A) deduction.  Be sure and check out our blog during the second week of each month to see the next case study. If you are looking for the basics of what this deduction is, please check out this post.]

 Today’s case study is going to look at how the 199(A) deduction is different for a dual-physician couple than a single-income family. Continue reading →

199(A) Case Study #1 – Marital Status Impact

~ FoxCPA ~ 3 Comments

[This post starts a multi-part series on the new 199(A) deduction.  Be sure and check out our blog during the second week of each month to see the next case study. If you are looking for the basics of what this deduction is, please check out this post.]

 Today’s case study is going to look at how marital status impacts the 199(A) deduction for physicians who earn their income as 1099 contractors. Continue reading →