Holly C. Roundtree CPA, PLLC

Business owners may travel to visit customers, attend conferences, check on vendors and for other purposes. Managing tax-deductible travel costs can help ensure compliance and maximize tax savings. Assuming you meet the tax law requirements, there are a number of deductible business travel expenses. They include: air, train or bus fare to the destination; baggage fees; car rental expenses or the cost of using your vehicle; tolls; parking; transportation at the destination (such as taxis); lodging; tips and dry cleaning. Meal expenses are generally 50% deductible. The business travel deduction rules can be complicated. If you’re uncertain about the tax treatment of your expenses, contact us.

Did you or someone you know miss filing a 2021 tax return? If so, and if you were expecting a refund, time’s running out. The deadline to file and claim a 2021 tax year refund is April 15, 2025. The IRS estimates that refunds worth more than $1 billion are still unclaimed by taxpayers who haven’t filed 2021 federal tax returns. The median refund is expected to be $781. Taxpayers generally have three years to file and claim refunds. If they miss the deadline, the refunds become property of the U.S. Treasury. Taxpayers seeking 2021 refunds may have their refunds held if they haven’t filed tax returns for 2022 and 2023 or applied to amounts they owe the IRS or state tax agencies. We can help.

If you inherited a traditional IRA account after 2019 from someone other than a spouse, you may need to start taking required minimum distributions (RMDs), even if you’re nowhere near age 73. Some IRA inheritors, such as minor children and the chronically ill, may have other options. But most people in this situation are considered “designated beneficiaries” and must withdraw the inherited IRA’s assets annually under an IRS formula and generally empty the account by the end of the tenth year after the original owner’s death. However, strategies may be available to minimize taxes and avoid penalties on your inherited IRA. Contact us for information.

If your employer offers tax-favored transportation fringe benefits, you should probably take advantage of them. For 2025, employer-provided mass transit passes for train, subway and bus systems are tax-free to an employee, up to $325 a month. Your company can’t deduct the cost of this benefit. However, your company can offer a salary-reduction arrangement that allows you to set aside up to $325 per month from your salary to pay for transit passes. That way, you pay with before-tax dollars. For 2025, employer-provided parking allowances are also tax-free up to $325 per month. You can be given this fringe on top of the tax-free $325 a month for transit passes. Contact us with questions.

U.S. taxpayers working in foreign countries generally can claim the foreign earned income exclusion (or deduct housing costs) on their tax returns. However, war and civil unrest can disrupt local business and prevent some taxpayers from meeting the IRS’s requirements to claim the exclusion. In Rev. Proc. 2025-17, the IRS announced an eligibility waiver for individuals who have worked or are working in Ukraine, Iraq, Haiti and Bangladesh. For the waiver to apply, taxpayers must be able to establish they were residents of one of these countries during the applicable time period and that they’d have met the requirements if not for adverse conditions. For more details: https://bit.ly/3Fk24QU

Did you know that the IRS has information and tax forms translated into seven languages other than English on its website? Taxpayers can select their preferred language at the top of this page: https://bit.ly/3ICUO0V. The seven languages include Spanish, Vietnamese, Russian, Korean, Haitian Creole, Traditional Chinese and Simplified Chinese. In addition, the tax agency has a dedicated “Languages” page that provides general tax information in 20 languages, including Italian, Portuguese, Punjabi and French. Visit: https://bit.ly/3Fb6Lw7. If you need help preparing your tax return or have a tax-related question, contact us.

Are you starting a business with partners and considering the best entity to form? An S corporation might be the ideal choice. One significant advantage of an S corp over a partnership is that, as an S corp shareholder, you won’t be personally liable for corporate debts. If you anticipate early losses, an S corp is more favorable than a C corp from a tax perspective. C corp shareholders typically don’t benefit from such losses, but S corp shareholders can deduct their share of the losses on their personal tax returns, up to their basis in the stock and any loans made to the entity. Contact us for more information.