Returning Value Blog

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) enhances some tax breaks for businesses while reducing or eliminating others. One break it enhances — temporarily — is bonus depreciation. While most TCJA provisions go into effect for the 2018 tax year, you might be able to benefit from the bonus depreciation enhancements when you file your 2017 tax return.

The tax reform bill approved by Congress will take effect January 1, 2018, and your paycheck will be affected, but at this point, you may have to wait until February to see the change.

On December 22, President Trump signed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act bill into law.  The bill will impact virtually every individual and business on a level not seen in over 30 years. We have attached a summary of the key provisions. 

Consider contributing your "Required Minimum Distribution" (RMD) to a charity. It’s called the charitable IRA rollover. It’s a tax planning strategy for donors giving anywhere from $100 to $100,000 that was made a permanent part of the tax law in 2016. Now, with the big changes in the tax cuts bill, it makes this strategy even more relevant as millions of Americans will take the increased standard deduction and lose the incentive to itemize their taxes, including charitable deductions. 

Many businesses are hosting holiday parties for employees this time of year. It’s a great way to reward your staff for their hard work and have a little fun. And you can probably deduct 100% of your 2017 party’s cost as a meal and entertainment (M&E) expense. Next year may be a different story.

One way to reduce your 2017 tax bill is to buy a business vehicle before year end. But don’t make a purchase without first looking at what your 2017 deduction would be and whether tax reform legislation could affect the tax benefit of a 2017 vs. 2018 purchase.

Volunteers can get a tax break for unreimbursed expenses.

It is almost 2018 … do you know where your business plan for the new year is?

Developing a business plan for the upcoming year is a laborious task, but it is often critical to the continued success of the operation. Although the details will vary from company to company, the best approach is to confront the challenges expected for the year and address the strengths and weaknesses within the organization. Conversely, if a business has a merely rudimentary plan—or even worse, no plan at all—the likelihood of real progress is diminished.

With the possibility that tax law changes could go into effect next year that would significantly reduce income tax rates for many businesses, 2017 may be an especially good year to accelerate deductible expenses. Why? Deductions save more tax when rates are higher.

Do you plan to relocate or expand your business in 2018?