In the blogs: Frightful stuff

Your employees’ well-being; statutory residency; new blog in town; and other highlights from our favorite tax bloggers.

Frightful stuff

• National Association of Tax Professionals (https://blog.natptax.com/): Free e-filing, technology, the DIY movement: With all these looming, this webinar looks at future-proofing your practice.
• Vertex (https://www.vertexinc.com/resources/resource-library/filter/field_asset_type/blog?page=0): Research shows that employees with fair or poor mental health take almost 12 days of unplanned absences annually, compared with 2.5 days for all other workers. Four questions on employee well-being that tax leaders should consider.
• Marcum (https://www.marcumllp.com/insights): Favorite opening of the week: “Once state auditors come knocking on their door, taxpayers often become all too familiar with the notion of ‘statutory residency.'” 
• Parametric (https://www.parametricportfolio.com/blog): Two terms may set off more alarm with investors than any others: “taxes” and “tracking error.” Investors in separately managed accounts find themselves hearing those hot-button words from their advisors regularly, but the relationship between the two terms is often misunderstood. 
• Solutions For CPA Firm Leaders (https://ritakeller.com/wordpress/): Why to keep your firm’s promises — and occasionally beat them.
• Sovos (https://sovos.com/blog/): Another tax information reporting season is just around the corner, and now’s when to start preparing your teams handling forms such as Series 1099, 1098, 1042-S, 3921, 5498, W-2, W-2G and more. Conducting a pilot process now might ease the season’s crunch.
• Tax Pro Center https://proconnect.intuit.com/taxprocenter/): A tech trifecta: your virtual meeting options, going paperless and what to do PDQ after a data breach.
• Canopy (https://www.getcanopy.com/blog): We once talked to a CPA who as a kid dressed up on Halloween in a short-sleeve button-down shirt, a pen protector and a green eyeshade. When asked what he was supposed to be, he replied, “An IRS auditor. Give me a third of your candy.” Here are other spooky costume ideas for accountants.

Lose with levies?

• Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (https://itep.org/category/blog/): Should the IRS be lawmakers’ sacrificial lamb? Despite initial emotional answers, heck no, and here’s why.
• TaxProf Blog (http://taxprof.typepad.com/taxprof_blog/): Hunter Biden’s potentially looming tax bill.
• The Tax Times (https://www.thetaxtimes.com): Their Bad Dept.: The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration has found that the IRS doesn’t always color within legal lines when issuing levies.
• Taxbuzz (https://www.taxbuzz.com/blog): A FAQ on the recent IRS brake-slam on Employee Retention Credits.
• Tax Foundation (https://taxfoundation.org/blog): In recent years, European countries have undertaken reforms designed to maintain tax revenue levels while protecting households and businesses from high inflation. How’s it been going?

Just proposin’

• Mauled Again (http://mauledagain.blogspot.com/): Sen. Deb Fischer, R-Nebraska, has introduced the “Stop EV Freeloading Act.” The justification for the proposal makes sense, as do all the other attempts to deal with fuel taxes not being collected with respect to electric vehicles. But, the blogger says, “The proposed solution is unfair and burdensome in terms of compliance and paperwork.”
• Current Federal Tax Developments (https://www.currentfederaltaxdevelopments.com/): FinCEN has issued a proposed rule extending the deadline for covered entities formed in 2024 to file their initial beneficial ownership information reports under the Corporate Transparency Act. 
• University of Illinois Tax School (https://taxschool.illinois.edu/blog/): Last summer the IRS issued Notice 2023-55, allowing taxpayers temporary relief from the new provisions to the Foreign Tax Credit issued under Treasury Decision 9959, which changed provisions of the Tax Code pertaining to the Foreign Tax Credit.

Looking ahead

New to us

• The Buzz About Taxes (http://thebuzzabouttaxes.com/): Enrolled Agent Manasa Nadig’s blog is back in full swing and these days a must-click for those dealing with international taxpayers. Recent topics include FBARs and green cards, big three recent decisions on cross-border tax obligations, FAFT, OECD, the Corporate Transparency Act and more. Welcome!