Returning Value Blog

If you own a growing, unincorporated small business, you may be concerned about high self-employment (SE) tax bills. The SE tax is how Social Security and Medicare taxes are collected from self-employed individuals like you.

The following is not a comprehensive list of all changes but a summary of key adjustments that will affect a wide range of taxpayers.  

As a business owner, you may travel to visit customers, attend conferences, check on vendors, and for other purposes. Understanding which travel expenses are tax deductible can significantly affect your bottom line. Properly managing travel costs can help ensure compliance and maximize your tax savings.

How much can you and your employees contribute to your 401(k)s or other retirement plans next year? In Notice 2024-80, the IRS recently announced cost-of-living adjustments that apply to the dollar limitations for retirement plans, as well as other qualified plans, for 2025. With inflation easing, the amounts aren’t increasing as much as in recent years.

The SECURE 2.0 Act aims to expand the ease of saving for retirement, to simplify the management of retirement plans, and, in general to improve financial security for American workers and retirees. The updated law includes new options for 401(k) and 403(b) employer contributions, adjustments to the required minimum distribution age for IRAs, and increased catch-up contribution limits. The act also has incentives to encourage employee enrollment.

The U.S. tax code is complicated and often hard to understand, with many provisions, credits, and disallowances. Let's review a few credits that many people are interested in, as well as how to respond to the IRS if you get married — or get a taxes-due notice.

Running a closely held business is challenging. Owners usually prioritize core business operations — such as managing employees, serving customers, and bringing in new sales — over tedious bookkeeping tasks. Plus, the accounting rules can be overwhelming.

If you own a small business with no employees (other than your spouse) and want to set up a retirement plan, consider a solo 401(k) plan. This is also an option for self-employed individuals or business owners who wish to upgrade from a SIMPLE IRA or Simplified Employee Pension (SEP) plan.

As we approach 2025, changes are coming to the Social Security wage base. The Social Security Administration recently announced that the wage base for computing Social Security tax will increase to $176,100 for 2025 (up from $168,600 for 2024). Wages and self-employment income above this amount aren’t subject to Social Security tax.

There are many tax uncertainties to consider as we face the end of 2024. Chief among them is whether proposals from the presidential candidates will affect our taxes; new legislation may be enacted this year, or changes may occur that will be retroactive.