Q: Where are you located?
A: The ITL office is located in Ponchatoula, Louisiana at 155 N. 4th Street. Wanna see it on a Google Map?
Q: What areas do you service?
A: ITL services companies in various cities throughout Louisiana. A few of the cities are Ville Platte, Lafayette, Baton Rouge, Denham Springs, Hammond, Ponchatoula, Mandeville, Metairie, Kenner and New Orleans. The parishes range from Evangeline, Lafayette, East Baton Rouge, Livingston, Tangipahoa, St. Tammany, St. John, Jefferson and Orleans Parish. ITL has out of state clients as well from Arkansas, Alabama, Alaska, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Indiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Utah and Virginia.
ITL also offers local pick-up and delivery services available upon request.
Q: What are your office hours?
A: In order to best serve our clients we offer seasonal hours. To accomodate the tax preparation season, our January hours are Monday-Friday 9am-5pm. Our tax season extended hours begin February and extend through April 15th: Monday-Friday 9am-6pm. And our regular hours of operation in effect April 16th through December are Monday-Thursday 9am-5pm.
Q: What is an "Enrolled Agent" (EA)?
A: An Enrolled Agent (or EA) is a tax professional recognized by the United States federal government to represent taxpayers in dealings with the Internal Revenue Service. To become an enrolled agent an applicant must pass the Special Enrollment Examination or present evidence of qualifying experience as an IRS employee. Here at ITL we have a dedicated Enrolled Agent on staff and ready to assist you with your financials.
Q: What forms of payment do you accept?
A: We currently accept cash, check, Visa, Mastercard and Discover.
Q: Do you offer a referral bonus?
A: YES! For those of you who refer your friends & family to us, our Referral Program is in place for your benefit! We appreciate your business & your referrals. Over the years we have found our best source of new clients is through our satisfied customers. Therefore we established a Referral Program. When you refer a friend or family member, you will receive 10% off of your tax prep fee and your friend or family member will receive the same discount!
Q: What should I look for when choosing a tax preparer?
A: If you are paying someone to prepare your tax return, the IRS urges you to choose your preparer wisely. Taxpayers are legally responsible for what’s on their tax return even if it is prepared by someone else. So, it is important to choose carefully when hiring an individual or firm to prepare your return. Most return preparers are professional, honest and provide excellent service to their clients.
Here are a few points to keep in mind when someone else prepares your return:
Check the person's qualifications. Ask if the preparer is affiliated with a professional organization that provides its members with continuing education and resources and holds them to a code of ethics. New regulations effective in 2011 require all paid tax return preparers including attorneys, CPAs and enrolled agents to have a Preparer Tax Identification Number.
Check the preparer's history. Check to see if the preparer has a questionable history with the Better Business Bureau and check for any disciplinary actions and licensure status through the state boards of accountancy for certified public accountants; the state bar associations for attorneys; and the IRS Office of Professional Responsibility for enrolled agents.
Find out about their service fees. Avoid preparers who base their fee on a percentage of your refund or those who claim they can obtain larger refunds than other preparers.
Make sure the tax preparer is accessible. Make sure you will be able to contact the tax preparer after the return has been filed, even after the April due date, in case questions arise.
Provide all records and receipts needed to prepare your return. Most reputable preparers will request to see your records and receipts and will ask you multiple questions to determine your total income and your qualifications for expenses, deductions and other items.
Never sign a blank return. Avoid tax preparers that ask you to sign a blank tax form.
Review the entire return before signing it. Before you sign your tax return, review it and ask questions. Make sure you understand everything and are comfortable with the accuracy of the return before you sign it.
Make sure the preparer signs the form and includes their PTIN. A paid preparer must sign the return and include their PTIN as required by law. Although the preparer signs the return, you are responsible for the accuracy of every item on your return. The preparer must also give you a copy of the return.
Q: What do I need to bring to a tax return preparation appointment?
A: All year end reporting documents. Such as: W2’s, 1099’s for interest, dividends, rents, pensions and other income, 1098’s for mortgage interest paid and real estate taxes paid. If you itemize (long form), total out of pocket expenses such as medical, charitable and/or mileage. Any unreimbursed employee expenses including all receipts and detailed mileage logs.
Q: Is the organization of my receipts really important?
A: YES! You definitely want to send us all of your receipts. You can help us in a huge way by organizing and totaling your receipts! For example, medical, dental, prescription and any other receipts that are multiple receipts for the same category. If not, we may have to charge a recordkeeping/bookkeeping fee for the time we spend organizing and adding them for you.
Q: Do I need to keep all of my receipts that have already been turned in for a tax return? Why?
A: Save ALL receipts & documents pertaining to your tax return, as well as bank statements and of course the copy of your tax return for ten years. As your paid preparer, we are only required to maintain the records of our work for you for three years.
Q: How "detailed" does my mileage log need to be?
A: Mileage deductions are great. But you cannot take the deduction if you don’t keep accurate records. You will need to keep all of these notations in one place, ask us for one of our free calendars to help make this process easy for you! We don’t want you to miss out, so here is exactly what you need to record in order to comply with the substantiation requirements: 1. Beginning odometer reading, 2. Ending odometer reading, 3. Destination, 4. Purpose, 5. Date, 6. Total miles driven, 7. two or three invoices of repairs, maintenance, oil change etc. for the year which will reflect the vehicle description and odometer reading.
Q: Is there any limitation or time frame for the IRS to collect on assessed tax?
A: YES! The IRS has 10 years to collect assessed tax. Unless, the taxpayer agrees to extend this statute the balance due on this assessed tax will disappear 10 years from the date of assessment.
Q: How do I classify my worker? Should they be classified as an employee or independent contractor?
A: In the past, the main issue in determining a worker’s tax status is whether or not the employer can control the worker. In recent years, the IRS’s “20 factor test” was the key tool to deciding whether a worker qualified as an independent contractor or an employee, but gave way to revise standards in a new training manual issued in July 1996. IRS Revenue Ruling 87-41 sets forth a checklist of 20 factors. If unsure about your classification or that of an individual providing services to your business, please schedule your consultation with an ITL Account Representative soon!
Do the tax rates just totally confuse you?
Let’s see if we can simplify it for you. Our country uses marginal tax rates not a flat tax or consumption tax. See the simple chart below (as simple as we could make it!) to see how our tax structure works.
Taxtable Income
|
Formula |
Resulting Tax |
|
$0 - $17,000
|
X |
10% | = TAX |
$17,001 - $69,000
|
X |
15% +$1,700.00 | = TAX |
$69,001 - $139,350
|
X |
25% +$9,500.00 | = TAX |
$139,351 - $212,300
|
X |
28% +$27,087.50 | = TAX |
$212,301 - $379,150
|
X |
33% +$47,513.50 | = TAX |
$379,151+
|
X |
35% +$102,574.00 | = TAX |
Income
|
Formula |
Resulting Tax |
|
$0 - $25,000
|
X |
2% | = TAX |
$25,001 - $50,000
|
X |
4% | = TAX |
$50,001+
|
X |
6% | = TAX |
In reality, a family of four would have a ZERO tax liability on the first $26,200 and if they earned $43,200 they would only pay $1,700 in federal income taxes!
$26,200 - $11,600 (less standard deduction) - $14,000 (less personal exemption amount times 4) = $0 tax due!
The Louisiana Department of Revenue is reminding taxpayers of a deduction this year for expenses paid for your qualified dependent’s enrollment in a nonpublic elementary or secondary school or any public elementary or secondary laboratory school operated by a public college or university. The dependent must be claimed on your 2011 return, or must have been claimed on your 2010 return. This deduction is 100% of qualified tuition up to $5,000 per student. A separate deduction applies to expenses for uniforms, school supplies, and study materials for all elementary and secondary student expenses. This deduction is 50% of qualified expenses up to $5,000 per student. Home-schooling expenses are also eligible for this tax deduction! Of course, you will need to keep all receipts pertaining to this deduction.
You can receive a tax liability credit of up to $500 for the purchases of qualified energy-efficient items such as insulation, windows, doors, roofs & heating/cooling equipment. Visit www.energystar.gov to verify if your purchases qualify and keep all receipts and documentation to verify these deductions.
When you search for a new job in your current line of work, your search costs are deductible as an employee business expense. This is true whether or not you are currently employed, and whether or not your job search is successful. Deductible items include… * Employment agency and outplacement agency fees incurred to find a new job. * Resume costs, including expenditures for typing, printing, mailing, and distributing copies of your resume. * Travel expense when you travel in search of a job. You can deduct the cost of travel to a distant location if the primary purposes of the trip is to look for a new job, even if the trip has a secondary pleasure element. * Transportation expenses incurred in job-search-related travel in your local vicinity. Examples: Taxi cabs, buses, etc. * Meal and entertainment expenses incurred as part of the job search.
Identity theft is a serious threat. It is extremely important to take as many precautions to avoid it. Once it is no longer necessary to retain your tax records, financial statements, or any other documents with your personal information, dispose of your records by shredding them. If you simply throw them out with the trash you leave your self open to this quickly growing threat.
Do NOT Give Your Home to Your Child!
If you give your home to your child while you’re still living, the IRS will consider the child to have received it on a “carryover basis”, which is your original cost plus certain adjustments. When the house is later sold, the child will be taxed on the difference between the adjusted carryover basis and the sale price. On the other hand, if you will your home to your child, the tax consequences will be more favorable. The child will receive a “stepped up basis” which is the fair market value (FMV) of the property at the time of death. If your child sells the inherited house, the taxable gain will be based on the difference of the “stepped up basis” and the sale price – usually a very substantial savings!
How long should I save my tax records?
Federal law requires you to maintain copies of your tax returns and supporting documents for three years. This is called the "three-year law" which many people may think they're safe provided they keep their documents on file for this amount of time.
If the IRS believes you have underreported your income generally by 25% or more, or believes fraud has occurred, they may dig six years back in an audit. We suggest using the following guidelines to be safe:
Keep These Business Documents For One Year
Correspondence with Customers and Vendors
Duplicate Deposit Slips
Purchase Orders (other than Purchasing Department copy)
Receiving Sheets
Requisitions
Stenographer's Notebooks
Stockroom Withdrawal Forms
Keep These Business Documents For Three Years
Bank Statements and Reconciliations
Employee Personnel Records (after termination)
Employment Applications
Expired Insurance Policies
General Correspondence
Internal Audit Reports
Internal Reports
Petty Cash Vouchers
Physical Inventory Tags
Savings Bond Registration Records of Employees
Time Cards For Hourly Employees
Keep These Business Documents For Six Years
Accident Reports, Claims
Accounts Payable Ledgers and Schedules
Accounts Receivable Ledgers and Schedules
Cancelled Checks
Cancelled Stock and Bond Certificates
Employment Tax Records
Expense Analysis and Expense Distribution Schedules
Expired Contracts, Leases
Expired Option Records
Inventories of Products, Materials, Supplies
Invoices to Customers
Notes Receivable Ledgers, Schedules
Payroll Records and Summaries, including payment to pensioners
Plant Cost Ledgers
Purchasing Department Copies of Purchase Orders
Sales Records
Subsidiary Ledgers
Time Books
Travel and Entertainment Records
Vouchers for Payments to Vendors, Employees, etc.
Voucher Register, Schedules
Keep These Business Records Forever
While federal guidelines do not require you to keep tax records "forever," in many cases there will be other reasons you'll want to retain these documents indefinitely.
Audit Reports from CPAs/Accountants
Cancelled Checks for Important Payments (especially tax payments)
Cash Books, Charts of Accounts
Contracts, Leases Currently in Effect
Corporate Documents (incorporation, charter, by-laws, etc.)
Documents substantiating fixed asset additions
Deeds
Depreciation Schedules
Financial Statements (Year End)
General and Private Ledgers, Year End Trial Balances
Insurance Records, Current Accident Reports, Claims, Policies
Investment Trade Confirmations
IRS Revenue Agents' Reports
Journals
Legal Records, Correspondence and Other Important Matters
Minutes Books of Directors and Stockholders
Mortgages, Bills of Sale
Property Appraisals by Outside Appraisers
Property Records
Retirement and Pension Records
Tax Returns and Worksheets
Trademark and Patent Registrations
Keep These Personal Documents For One Year
While it's important to keep year-end mutual fund and IRA contribution statements forever, you don't have to save monthly and quarterly statements once the year-end statement has arrived.
Keep These Personal Documents For Three Years
Credit Card Statements
Medical Bills (in case of insurance disputes)
Utility Records
Expired Insurance Policies
Personal Documents To Keep For Six Years
Supporting Documents For Tax Returns
Accident Reports and Claims
Medical Bills (if tax-related)
Property Records / Improvement Receipts
Sales Receipts
Wage Garnishments
Other Tax-Related Bills
Keep These Personal Records Forever
CPA Audit Reports
Legal Records
Important Correspondence
Income Tax Returns
Income Tax Payment Checks
Investment Trade Confirmations
Retirement and Pension Records
Special Circumstances
Car Records (keep until the car is sold)
Credit Card Receipts (keep until verified on your statement)
Insurance Policies (keep for the life of the policy)
Mortgages / Deeds / Leases (keep 6 years beyond the agreement)
Pay Stubs (keep until reconciled with your W-2)
Property Records / improvement receipts (keep until property sold)
Sales Receipts (keep for life of the warranty)
Stock and Bond Records (keep for 6 years beyond selling)
Warranties and Instructions (keep for the life of the product)
Other Bills (keep until payment is verified on the next bill)
