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Mike Thrift

Marketing Manager

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11 min read

No Tax on Tips Final Regulations: The W-2 Box 14b Occupation-Code Checklist for Tipped Employers

The IRS finalized the No Tax on Tips regulations in April 2026 with a closed list of 71 qualifying occupations, a new W-2 Box 14b for up to two three-digit occupation codes, Box 12 code TP for qualified tips, and a voluntariness test that disqualifies automatic gratuities and POS flows with no zero option. Here is what tipped employers must change in payroll, point-of-sale and bookkeeping before 2026 forms go out.

Mike Thrift

taxpayrolltax-compliance
11 min read

Phantom Interest Income: Why Original Issue Discount Taxes You on Money You Haven't Received Yet

Original issue discount makes you report interest income each year on bonds that pay no cash until maturity. This guide covers where OID hides — zero-coupon bonds, T-bills, TIPS, seller-financed notes — the 0.25%-per-year de minimis threshold, how to read Boxes 1, 2, 6 and 8 of Form 1099-OID, and the basis and state-tax mistakes that make investors overpay.

Mike Thrift

taxinterestpersonal-finance
11 min read

Quick Lube Shop Bookkeeping: The Per-Car Numbers That Separate Profitable Bays From Break-Even Ones

A quick lube earns its margin per car, not per markup. This guide shows how to cost bulk oil by the quart on every delivery, reconcile each tank book-against-stick weekly, book shrinkage and used-oil hauling as separate accounts, and review the five daily KPIs (car count, average ticket, add-ons per 100 cars, bay time, gross profit per car) against industry benchmarks such as 0.95 cars per labor hour, 80 percent gross profit on labor and 50 percent on parts.

Mike Thrift

bookkeepingauto-repairsmall-business
11 min read

The Small-Business Retirement Wave: How to Build an Exit Buyers Will Actually Pay For

A March 2026 survey of about 1,000 U.S. small business owners found 40% expect to retire within a decade while 70% have no formal succession plan. Buyers price a small business on seller's discretionary earnings times a 2x–4x multiple, discounted for owner dependency, customer concentration and unreliable books. This guide lays out a six-part, three-to-five-year plan — two target numbers, three years of clean financials, operational replaceability, risk de-concentration, a deliberate exit path (third-party sale, family succession, management buyout or ESOP), and a reverse-built timeline with a CPA and attorney — plus the three mistakes that shrink exits.

Mike Thrift

succession-planningbusiness-exitbusiness-valuation
10 min read

Small-Group Health Insurance Premiums Could Rise 14% in 2027: A Budget Playbook for Employers

Insurers have filed a median 14% small-group premium increase for 2027, following an 11% rise for 2026, while Mercer projects employer health costs up 8.2% per employee even after cost controls. This guide explains what is driving the increases, how to model the renewal in per-employee-per-month terms, and five levers (competitive bids, level-funded and ICHRA/CHOICE comparisons, plan redesign, defined contributions, and early communication) that can shrink the hit before open enrollment.

Mike Thrift

health-insuranceemployee-benefitssmall-business
8 min read

Is Your State Tax Refund Taxable? The Tax Benefit Rule, Explained

A state income tax refund is federally taxable only to the extent last year's deduction actually reduced your tax. Standard-deduction filers report nothing; itemizers run the Schedule 1 worksheet, where the SALT cap ($40,000 for 2025, $40,400 for 2026), the margin by which itemizing beat the standard deduction, and the income-tax-versus-sales-tax election each cut the taxable amount below the Form 1099-G figure.

Mike Thrift

taxtax-preparationtax-filing
8 min read

Switzerland Now Lets Small Businesses File VAT Once a Year: Should You Switch?

Since January 2025, Swiss businesses with taxable turnover up to CHF 5,005,000 and three clean filing periods can elect one annual VAT return through the SFTA ePortal instead of quarterly returns, but still pay advance installments on May 30, August 30 and November 30. Here is who qualifies, why the end-of-February election deadline matters, when quarterly filing is the better cash-flow choice, and the monthly bookkeeping habits that make annual filing safe.

Mike Thrift

vattax-compliancesmall-business
10 min read

Tax Refund Seized? How the Treasury Offset Program Works and How Injured Spouses Get Their Share Back

The Treasury Offset Program lets the Bureau of the Fiscal Service withhold a federal tax refund to pay past-due child support, defaulted federal student and SBA loans, state income tax, and unemployment debts, in that priority order. Creditor agencies must mail a Notice of Intent to Offset at least 60 days before referral, giving you time to pay, sign a repayment agreement, or dispute the debt. When the debt belongs only to your spouse, Form 8379 Injured Spouse Allocation recovers your share of a joint refund in roughly 8 to 14 weeks.

Mike Thrift

taxtax-filingtax-compliance
12 min read

Un-Electing S Corporation Status: How to Revoke Your S Election and What It Costs

Revoking an S election takes a signed statement from shareholders holding more than 50% of shares, received by March 15 for a January 1 effective date, and it bars re-election for five tax years. This guide covers the required statement contents, mid-year short-year splits, the Section 1374 built-in gains tax on appreciated assets, and the post-termination window for tax-free AAA distributions.

Mike Thrift

s-corporationc-corporationentity-conversion
12 min read

Your Employee Just Got Deployment Orders: What USERRA Requires of You, Even If They're Your Only Employee

USERRA covers every US employer with no headcount minimum. When an employee is called to military service, you must reemploy them promptly at the "escalator" position they would have reached, continue health coverage for up to 24 months, credit seniority and pension benefits as if they never left, and honor return deadlines of 14 or 90 days depending on service length. This guide lays out the five reemployment conditions, the anti-discrimination rules, what federal law does not require, and a before-during-after bookkeeping checklist for small employers.

Mike Thrift

compliancepayrollemployee-benefits
11 min read

Washington's Homeowner Recovery Program Is Now Paying Claims: A Contractor Bookkeeping and Registration Survival Guide

Since July 1, 2026, a Washington homeowner holding an unsatisfied court judgment against a registered contractor can collect up to $25,000 per parcel from L&I's Homeowner Recovery Program, and the state then pursues the contractor for reimbursement. This guide covers the eligibility rules, the $30,000 general and $15,000 specialty bond requirements, and the job-costing, change-order, retention and sales-tax bookkeeping habits that keep a dispute from ending in a judgment.

Mike Thrift

constructionbookkeepingjob-costing
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