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Back To Basics Part VI – Schedule B
Filed under: Back to Basics | Tags: 1099-INT, address, amortizable bond premiums, dividends, FinCen 114, foreign assets, Form 3520, Form 8938, interest, muni bonds, municipal bonds, nominee distributions, ordinary dividends, original issue discount, private activity bond interest, qualified dividends, Schedule B, seller-financed mortgage, Social Security Number, tax-exempt, U.S. Treasury Bonds, W-9
Leave a comment Originally published in the Cedar Street Times
December 26, 2014
In this issue, we are discussing Schedule B – Interest and Ordinary Dividends. Prior articles are republished on my website at www.tlongcpa.com/blog if you would like to catch up on our Back to Basics series on personal tax returns.
Interest you earn from the use of your money by others is reported in detail in Part I of Schedule B and then summarized on Line 8a of Form 1040. Interest is taxed as ordinary income depending on your tax bracket. The most common form is interest earned from your banks or investment companies. You will generally receive a Form 1099-INT telling you the amount you paid if the amount is over $10. If it is under $10, there is no requirement for the payor to go through the hassle to report it to you and the IRS; technically that does not alleviate your responsibility to report it on your tax returns, however. This holds true for all IRS reportings. Some people think if no tax document is received, they are somehow relieved from the responsibility to report. This is an incorrect notion.
Other forms of interest to report on Schedule B could be interest earned from personal loans made to friends or family, or loans made to a business. In practice, you often will not receive a 1099-INT from individuals you loan money to, but they actually have the same requirements as a bank to file a 1099-INT for interest they pay to you, and they could be penalized for not doing so.
Another form of interest you need to report on Schedule B is interest earned from a seller-financed mortgage. If you sold your home and carried back a note on the house from the buyer, the interest they pay you is reportable interest on Schedule B. You are required to track the interest and report it properly. You and the buyer are both required to provide your names, Social Security numbers, and addresses to each other for proper tax reporting and matching. You list the buyer’s information in Part I of Schedule B next to the amount they paid you. A buyer will do the same for reporting the mortgage interest on Schedule A. A Form W-9 is the best document to request and provide Social Security Numbers. Buyers and sellers could each be penalized if they fail to provide their Social Security numbers for this purpose or if they simply get it verbally, and it is incorrect. A W-9 signed by the other party is a protection to you.
Be careful to not include any tax-exempt interest such as from U.S. Treasury Bonds or tax-free municipal bonds on Schedule B. These would be reported on Line 8b of Form 1040 and are generally not taxable unless there are other adjustments such as those made for Alternative Minimum Tax on Form 6251. Another source of interest to avoid reporting on your Schedule B is interest earned from investments in your retirement plan (I have see people make this mistake!).
There are other forms of interest or adjustments such as original issue discounts, private activity bond interest, amortizable bond premiums, and nominee distributions which are beyond the scope of this article.
Dividends are reported in detail in Part II of Schedule B and summarized on Line 9a of Form 1040. Dividends are essentially a return of part of the profits of the business to the owners. When you own shares of stock in a company, for instance, they may pay out a certain amount per share if the company is doing well. You can reinvest the dividends and buy more shares or take the cash. Either way, the dividends get reported on Schedule B.
Dividends are taxed at your ordinary income tax bracket rate unless they qualify for special capital gains rate treatment. Then they are called qualified dividends. To qualify for special treatment the dividends must be from U.S. corporations, corporations set up in U.S. Possessions, or in foreign countries with certain tax treaty benefits, or if readily tradable on U.S. stock exchanges. If you have held the stock for less than a year, there are also some specific holding period requirements that could still allow the stock to qualify.
The portion of ordinary dividends that are considered qualified are reported on Line 9b of Form 1040, and don’t actually show up on the Schedule B. This is a large advantage as people in the 10 percent or 15 percent income tax bracket pay no tax on capital gains and qualified dividends! People in the top 39.6 percent bracket pay a 20 percent rate on qualified dividends and everyone in between pays 15 percent.
Part III of Schedule B consists of questions about any foreign accounts or trusts you own or have signature authority over. These questions are EXTREMELY important to answer correctly. If you have a foreign account you will also need to file FinCen Form 114 with the Treasury Department. There are potentially massive penalties for failure to properly report on FinCen Form 114, even if unintentional, and possible jail time if you willfully do not report. You may also need to file a Form 8938, a 3520 or other forms related to foreign assets. If you have foreign assets, you should seek professional support that has experience in this area. Getting caught is much worse than coming forward.
In two weeks we will continue our Back to Basics series with Schedule C – Profit or Loss from Business
Travis H. Long, CPA is located at 706-B Forest Avenue, PG, 93950 and focuses on trust, estate, individual, and business taxation. He can be reached at 831-333-1041.
Back to Basics Part V – Schedule A Wrap-Up
Filed under: Back to Basics | Tags: 2%, amortizable bond premiums, business miles, casualty and theft, casualty loss, education expenses, employment agreement, Federal estate tax, gambling losses, home office, income in respect of decedent, investment expenses, IRA fee, itemized deductions, job search expenses, legal expenses, meals and entertainment, miscellaneous itemized deductions, not subject to two percent, other miscellaneous deductions, phase-out, Ponzi schemes, reimbursement plan, Schedule A, tax preparation fees, theft loss, two percent limit, union dues, unrecovered investments in annuities, unreimbursed employee business expenses
Leave a comment Originally published in the Cedar Street Times
December 12, 2014
In this issue, we are finishing our discussion on Schedule A – Itemized Deductions. Prior articles are republished on my website at www.tlongcpa.com/blog if you would like to catch up on our Back to Basics series on personal tax returns.
The fifth section of Schedule A is for personal casualty and theft losses. This is designed to help people with major losses. The deduction on schedule A is calculated by taking the amount of the loss, subtracting $100, then subtracting 10 percent of your adjusted gross income. Any amount left over will be an itemized deduction (if any). There are several ways to calculate the amount of the loss but it is generally limited to the lesser of your adjusted cost basis or the decrease in the fair market value. Sometimes appraisals are necessary to establish the decrease, but in all cases, the amount of any insurance proceeds received would reduce the loss. Another salient point is that the loss generally has to be sudden, unexpected, and permanent in nature; it is not the result of degrading over time. For instance, a car accident or theft would qualify; termite damage would not qualify. Losing something does not qualify either. Business casualty losses are not reported on Schedule A.
The next section deals with miscellaneous itemized deductions subject to two percent. This means you take all the deductions in this section, subtract two percent of your adjusted gross income, and the left over amount is your itemized deduction for this section (if any). Some of the deductions here include unreimbursed employee business expenses, union dues, investment expenses, income tax consultations and preparation, legal expenses related to your job or to the extent they deal with tax issues or the protection of future taxable income, job search or education expenses (if they relate to your current field), etc.
Unreimbursed employee business expenses are those which are ordinary and necessary and the employer expects the employee to pay for the expenses. If the employer has a reimbursement plan, but the employee simply fails to request reimbursement, the expense will not qualify. It is best if the employer has a written policy, or as part of the employment agreement, spells out what things the employee is expected to cover. Sales people can often have high deductions in this area through business miles on their vehicles and meals and entertainment for clients. If a company provides no office space for an employee and the person has an office in his or her home, deductions can be taken for that as well.
Investment expenses paid to financial advisors or even IRA fees can be deductible. Financial advisor fees must be prorated if you have taxable investment income and tax free investment income such as municipal bond interest. Only the portion allocated to taxable income is deductible. For IRA fees to be deductible, they must be paid with funds outside the retirement plan. This is preferred anyway so as not to deplete your retirement account by using IRA funds to pay the fees.
The last section of deductions on Schedule A is called “Other Miscellaneous Deductions.” These are NOT subject to the two percent of adjusted gross income floor, and the full amount become itemized deductions. These are less frequently encountered and include things like Federal estate tax on income in respect of decedent, gambling losses up to the amount of winnings, losses from Ponzi schemes, casualty and theft losses on income-producing assets, amortizable bond premiums, unrecovered investments in annuities and other items.
The final part of Schedule A is one more “gotcha.” If your income is over $305,050 for Married Filing Joint or $254,200 Single, part of your deductions begin to phase out. Medical expenses, investment interest, casualty, theft, and gambling losses are not subject to the phase out. The rest of the deductions can be reduced by as much as 80 percent! The amount is determined by taking your adjusted gross income, subtracting the above figure based on your filing status, and multiplying the result by three percent. That is your adjustment capped at the 80 percent maximum.
In two weeks we will continue our Back to Basics series with Schedule B – Interest and Ordinary Dividends.
Travis H. Long, CPA is located at 706-B Forest Avenue, PG, 93950 and focuses on trust, estate, individual, and business taxation. He can be reached at 831-333-1041.
Travis H. Long, CPA, Inc. Blog 