Edition 11

Question: Can I still deduct self-employed health insurance if my spouse has insurance through their employment? Answer: You may potentially qualify for the deduction even if your spouse has insurance through their employment. Healthcare costs seem to be always on the rise, and if you’re self-employed if can be tough to find an affordable option for a single participant plan. The good news is, the Self-Employed Health Insurance deduction provides an “above the line” write-off helping you not only save tax through a lower taxable income, but it also helps to slash your Adjusted Gross Income (AGI). Lowering your AGI also helps mitigate the disadvantages of AGI based tax laws. For example, some itemized like medical expenses and charitable contributions can be hampered by the amount of your AGI. In other words, AGI determines how much of certain deductions and tax credits you can take. There are three steps to qualifying for this deduction including some special provisions that let you sweeten the deal. Did you know you can even write off dental and long-term care insurance as self-employed medical expense? You can! Here’s how to get even more write-offs if you’re self-employed.

One bright side to losing money in your business is your ability to at least use those losses as a tax deduction against other income you may have. Unfortunately due to tax reform it shredded your ability to claim NOLs after 2017 to 80% of taxable income - it all eliminated the opportunity to carry back these losses to get refunds. We’ve still been reeling from both of these changes. The CARES Act changed net operating losses (NOLs) in a major way to make usage of an NOL more taxpayer friendly … for a limited time. Because the changes are retroactive to 2018, this gives you the opportunity for 3 years of losses to provide much needed relief. The Treasury even provided a fast track to cash - keep reading to find out how.

Planning for your future generations often means being real about how much (or how little) will be left behind for your heirs. If you’re like most, it is difficult to imagine telling your grandchildren they may be forced to sell the family home to pay off the IRS in estate tax. One solution is to look for a legal way to move assets and money to your children (or others) while minimizing your tax. A Family Limited Partnerships (FLP) might be the perfect mechanism for you to accomplish this. These special types of partnerships provide solutions to two main issues: asset protection and estate tax reduction. Not only will this help you create a legacy of giving, but it will also ensure that the family business or home actually stays, “in the family.” Asset protection is important as it limits your risk exposure and liability to lawsuits, bankruptcy, and other claims. FLP’s are used to move assets during your life leaving the amount of your taxable estate smaller, and helping you gift much more than the law typically allows. But if you’re thinking this means giving a seat to Jr. at the board room table, think again. You can optimally set up this arrangement to ensure you maintain control until you are ready to step down. All is not rosy in the world of FLPs however. These types of arrangements can be viewed by the IRS as abusive tax shelters to transfer wealth tax free. Keep reading for an in-depth look at FLP’s.