The Attributed Tip Income Program, introduced through Revenue Procedure 2006-30 and extended an additional two years under Revenue Procedure 2009-53, will be discontinued Dec. 31, 2011. The pilot program attracted only a small number of participants. Employers who elected to participate in ATIP for calendar year 2011, along with their participating employees, will continue to benefit from the program through the end of the year. Since ATIP will not be available for calendar year 2012, employers may want to consider other IRS voluntary tip reporting programs, such as the Tip Reporting Determination Agreement or the Tip Reporting Alternative Commitment, if [...]

IR-2011-87, Sept. 1, 2011 WASHINGTON –– The Internal Revenue Service is providing tax relief to individual and business taxpayers impacted by Hurricane Irene. The IRS announced today that certain taxpayers in North Carolina, New Jersey, New York and Puerto Rico will receive tax relief, and other locations are expected to be added in coming days following additional damage assessments by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The tax relief postpones certain tax filing and payment deadlines to Oct. 31, 2011. It includes corporations and businesses that previously obtained an extension until Sept. 15, 2011, to file their 2010 returns and [...]

RS Summertime Tax Tip 2011-21, August 22, 2011 If you make a donation to a charity this year, you may be able to take a deduction for it on your 2011 tax return. Here are the top nine things the IRS wants every taxpayer to know before deducting charitable donations. Make sure the organization qualifies Charitable contributions must be made to qualified organizations to be deductible. You can ask any organization whether it is a qualified organization or check IRS Publication 78, Cumulative List of Organizations. It is available at www.IRS.gov. You must itemize Charitable contributions are deductible only if [...]

ADI Time Clocks NEW! ADI Time announces a complete product line of IP based real-time “Push” terminals designed for adiTime Software solutions coming this summer. These new ADI Time terminals seamlessly interface with our powerful labor management subscription services and on-premise software, helping organizations of all sizes automate their time and attendance, in order to reduce expenses and errors related to payroll processing. Models are available with Biometric Authentication or Badge Authentication. The complete product line provides an ideal solution for businesses of all sizes. Capable of collecting, storing and transmitting employee time punches, it provides real time data collection [...]

IRS YouTube Videos Preparing for Disasters: English | Spanish | ASL How to Request a Copy of Your Tax Return: English | Spanish | ASL Podcast Disaster Assistance: English | Spanish The 2011 hurricane season has started. Are your personal or your business’ financial and tax records and valuables protected in the event of a disaster? Here are some tips that can help: Create a Backup Set of Records Electronically Keep a set of backup records in a safe place. The backup should be stored away from the original set. Keeping a backup set of records –– including, for example, [...]

What is phishing? Phishing is a scam typically carried out by unsolicited e-mail and/or websites that pose as legitimate sites and lure unsuspecting victims to provide personal and financial information. All unsolicited e-mail claiming to be from either the IRS or any other IRS-related components such as EFTPS, should be reported to phishing@irs.gov. However, if you have experienced monetary losses due to an IRS-related incident please file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission through their Complaint Assistant to make that information available to investigators. What to do if you receive a suspicious IRS-related communication If Then You receive an [...]

The Social Security Administration’s Office of the Chief Actuary (OCA) is projecting that the Social Security wage base will increase from the current wage base of $106,800 to $110,700 for 2012. This would be the first increase in wage base since 2009. The Social Security administration projects increases through the year 2020. • 2012 — $110,700 • 2013 — $114,900 • 2014 — $120,000 • 2015 — $125,400 • 2016 — $130,800 • 2017 — $135,900 • 2018 — $141,300 • 2019 — $146,700 • 2020 — $153,300 The full report is on the SSA’s website at: http://www.ssa.gov/oact/tr/2011/tr2011.pdf

The North Carolina Department of Revenue is currently mailing notification that they will be discontinuing their PC Software payment method for state withholding taxes. DirectPay Payroll Services has already been informed and implementation of the new submittal process is already in place. If you receive a notice from the North Carolina Department of Revenue, please feel free to send a copy to your Account Manager. As always, please be sure to fax, mail, or email all IRS or state tax related correspondence you receive. Thank you!  

A worker who was fired after admitting to his employer that he filed Form SS-8 with the IRS to determine his status as an independent contractor or employee can continue his lawsuit for unpaid overtime, a federal trial court has ruled. (Coats v. Nashville Limo Bus, LLC, U.S.D.C., M.D. Tenn, No. 3:10-0759, 2010) It’s independent contractor status or nothing A corporation treated its drivers as independent contractors. One driver filed an SS-8 form with the IRS to determine his status as an independent contractor or employee. The IRS concluded that he was an employee. The employee admitted to a manager [...]

South Carolina is adjusting SUI rates mid-year. All SC clients should have received the following correspondence from South Carolina Department of Employment and Workforce. Additional correspondence with your updated SUI rate will follow. It is imperative that you forward your adjusted rate to your Account Manager. SOUTH CAROLINA DEPARTMENT OF EMPLOYMENT AND WORKFORCE 1550 Gadsden Street PO Box 995 Columbia, SC 29202 NOTICE: Revised 2011 tax rates shown below are preliminary estimates based on recently legislated $146 million in state appropriations along with other changes in benefits (H.3700, Proviso 90.18 and H.3762). You will receive additional correspondence informing you of [...]