YouTube Video Winners Announced!—

Congratulations to the winner of the Carter Tax Incorporated YouTube (R) video contest!

Tim Sessions of South Weber, UT for his submission, “Trusty Tim’s Tax Season”.  
View it here:

We wish to thank all the entrants for their participation in the first annual Carter Tax YouTube® Video Commercial Competition!  Although there was only one grand prize winner, we think all the submissions were creative and entertaining, and want to share them with you here.

Follow the links to see the video submissions – did we pick the right one? 

“Cartexrapad”

“Taxcom” 

“Ericadvert”

“Ericadvert2″ 

“Davidadvert”

“Cube Puzzle”

Finding a Tax Preparer—

Most Americans will get assistance from a professional tax preparer or tax software when filing their taxes this year. Better Business Bureau encourages taxpayers to use caution when selecting tax preparation help or they may get hit with headaches and mounting fines and fees if the return isn’t correct or filed late.

According to the IRS, 80 percent of Americans enlist the help of a tax preparer or tax software when filing their taxes. Unfortunately, every year BBB receives thousands of complaints from consumers against tax preparers. Commonly, complainants state that the tax preparer made errors in their return which resulted in fines and fees.

“Even though the tax preparer completes the return, it’s the taxpayer who is ultimately responsible for the return’s accuracy and whether or not it’s filed on time,” said Alison Southwick, BBB spokesperson. “The fines, fees and hassles can mount if you choose an unreliable tax preparer and that’s why it’s important to do your research.”

BBB offers the following advice to find a trustworthy tax preparer:

• Ask around. Get referrals from friends and family on who they use and check the BBB Reliability Report on tax preparation services at www.bbb.org.
• Look for credentials. Ideally, your tax preparer should either be a certified public accountant, a tax attorney or an enrolled agent. All three can represent you before the IRS in all matters, including an audit. Also, find out if the preparer is affiliated with a professional organization that holds its members to a code of ethics.
• Don’t fall for the promise of a big refund. Be wary of any tax preparation service that promises larger refunds than the competition, and avoid any tax preparers who base their fee on a percentage of the refund.
• Think about accessibility. Many tax preparation services only set up shop for the months leading up to April 15. In case the IRS finds errors, or in case of an audit, you might need to be able to contact your tax preparer throughout the year.
• Read the contract carefully. Read tax preparation service contracts closely to ensure you understand issues such as how much it is going to cost for the service, how the cost will be affected if preparation is more complicated and time consuming than expected and whether the tax preparer will represent you in case of an audit.

~ Better Business Bureau

Four Steps to Follow If You Are Missing a W-2—

Getting ready to file your tax return?  Make sure you have all your documents before you start. You should receive a Form W-2, Wage and Tax Statement from each of your employers.  Employers have until February 1, 2010 to send you a 2009 Form W-2 earnings statement. If you haven’t received your W-2, follow these four steps:

1. Contact your employer If you have not received your W-2, contact your employer to inquire if and when the W-2 was mailed.  If it was mailed, it may have been returned to the employer because of an incorrect or incomplete address.  After contacting the employer, allow a reasonable amount of time for them to resend or to issue the W-2.

2. Contact the IRS If you do not receive your W-2 by February 16th, contact the IRS for assistance at 800-829-1040. When you call, you must provide your name, address, city and state, including zip code, Social Security number, phone number and have the following information:

• Employer’s name, address, city and state, including zip code and phone   number
• Dates of employment
• An estimate of the wages you earned, the federal income tax withheld, and when you worked for that employer during 2009. The estimate should be based on year-to-date information from your final pay stub or leave-and-earnings statement, if possible.

3. File your return You still must file your tax return or request an extension to file by April 15, even if you do not receive your Form W-2. If you have not received your Form W-2 by April 15th, and have completed steps 1 and 2, you may use Form 4852, Substitute for Form W-2, Wage and Tax Statement. Attach Form 4852 to the return, estimating income and withholding taxes as accurately as possible.  There may be a delay in any refund due while the information is verified.

4. File a Form 1040X On occasion, you may receive your missing W-2 after you filed your return using Form 4852, and the information may be different from what you reported on your return. If this happens, you must amend your return by filing a Form 1040X, Amended U.S. Individual Income Tax Return.

For additional information, or assistance, contact us at 907.569.3873 or, visit the IRS Web site, IRS.gov, or call them directly at  800-TAX-FORM (800-829-3676).

Carter’s Top 10: Facts about Taking Early Distributions from Retirement Plans—

Some taxpayers may have needed to take an early distribution from their retirement plan last year. We want individuals who took an early distribution to know that there can be a tax impact to tapping your retirement fund.  Here are ten facts about early distributions.

1. Payments you receive from your Individual Retirement Arrangement before you reach age 59 ½ are generally considered early or premature distributions.
2. Early distributions are usually subject to an additional 10 percent tax.
3. Early distributions must also be reported to the IRS.
4. Distributions you rollover to another IRA or qualified retirement plan are not subject to the additional 10 percent tax. You must complete the rollover within 60 days after the day you received the distribution.
5. The amount you roll over is generally taxed when the new plan makes a distribution to you or your beneficiary.
6. If you made nondeductible contributions to an IRA and later take early distributions from your IRA, the portion of the distribution attributable to those nondeductible contributions is not taxed.
7. If you received an early distribution from a Roth IRA, the distribution attributable to your prior contributions is not taxed.
8. If you received a distribution from any other qualified retirement plan, generally the entire distribution is taxable unless you made after-tax employee contributions to the plan.
9. There are several exceptions to the additional 10 percent early distribution tax, such as when the distributions are used for the purchase of a first home, for certain medical or educational expenses, or if you are disabled.
10. For more information about early distributions from retirement plans, the additional 10 percent tax and all the exceptions see call Carter Tax Incorporated and speak to a Tax Specialist at 907-569-3873.

LLC Business Formation Workshop—

Carter Financial Group, LLC invites you to attend our ONE-DAY WORKSHOP in Anchorage, AK. 

Designed for individuals that are considering starting a new business or expanding a current one, our business professionals, Yvonne Rowland and Paul Johnson, will be discussing the “ins and outs” of Business Formations. If you’re unsure which business formation is right for you to ensure you have the appropriate legal protections, and want to maximize your capitalization options and tax deductions, then this workshop is for you!

During the full day LLC Business Formation Workshop, topics covered include:

• Business Triangulation
• Business Structure Analysis
• Types of Business Structures
• LLC Formation Procedures
• LLC Taxation Options

These are just a few of the topics covered during this in-depth workshop.
*Registration and payment must be received 72hrs prior to scheduled class date.

$295.00

 

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