Returning Value Blog

If you have employees who travel for business, you know how frustrating it can be to manage reimbursements and the accompanying receipts for meals, hotels, and incidentals. To make this process easier, consider using the “high-low” per diem method. Instead of tracking every receipt, your business can reimburse employees using daily rates that are predetermined by the IRS based on whether the destination is a high-cost or low-cost location. This saves time and reduces paperwork while still ensuring compliance. In Notice 2025-54, the IRS announced the high-low per diem rates that became effective October 1, 2025, and apply through September 30, 2026.

Small business owners might be tempted to rush through setting up customer profiles in QuickBooks® just to get invoices out quickly. But the extra data fields aren’t just busy work. Complete, accurate customer records help you generate more insightful reports, communicate with customers more effectively, and save time on bookkeeping tasks later. Here are answers to some common questions to help ensure your files are set up properly in your accounting software.

If you’re considering guaranteeing, or are asked to guarantee, a loan to your closely held corporation, it’s important to understand the potential tax consequences. Acting as a guarantor, endorser, or indemnitor means that if the corporation defaults, you could be responsible for repaying the loan. Without planning ahead, you may face unexpected tax implications.

On March 25, 2025, the White House issued Executive Order 14247, “Modernizing Payments To and From America’s Bank Account."

This order establishes that, effective September 30, 2025, the U.S. Treasury will cease issuing paper checks for all federal disbursements—including tax refunds—where permitted by law.

Running a successful business requires more than delivering great products or services. Behind the scenes, meticulous recordkeeping plays a crucial role in financial health, compliance, and tax savings. Good records can mean the difference between successfully defending a deduction and losing valuable tax breaks. A recent U.S. Tax Court decision underscores just how important this is.

A major tax change is here for businesses with research and experimental (R&E) expenses. On July 4, 2025, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA) reinstated the immediate deduction for U.S.-based R&E expenses, reversing rules under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) that required businesses to capitalize and amortize these costs over five years (15 years for research performed outside the United States).

Does your business receive large amounts of cash or cash equivalents? If so, you’re generally required to report these transactions to the IRS — and not just on your tax return. Here are some answers to questions you may have.

Changes in federal tax provisions and funding stemming from the recently passed reconciliation tax bill, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), are expected to significantly impact the healthcare industry. Going forward, organizations need to consider the near- and long-term effects of the OBBBA, including Medicaid funding cuts that impact patient populations and reimbursement, altered tax provisions that could influence financial planning, and increased compliance needs stemming from heightened regulatory scrutiny of fraud and abuse.

You shouldn’t rely on gut instinct when making major business decisions, such as launching a new product line, investing in new equipment, or changing your pricing structure. Projecting the financial implications of your decision (or among competing alternatives) can help you determine the right course of action — and potentially persuade investors or lenders to finance your plans. One intuitive tool to consider for these applications is breakeven analysis.

Do you and your spouse together operate a profitable unincorporated small business? If so, you face some challenging tax issues.