Plain-text accounting insights, tutorials, and updates from the Beancount.io team.
A practical guide to surviving California FTB and New York residency audits after moving to Florida, Texas, or Nevada — the domicile and statutory residency tests, day-count documentation, equity compensation traps, and the convenience-of-the-employer rule.
A walkthrough of the Section 469 seven-day rule, the three realistic material participation tests, and how the One Big Beautiful Bill Act's permanent 100% bonus depreciation lets short-term rental owners offset W-2 income — plus the bookkeeping habits that survive an IRS audit.
A 2026 bookkeeping playbook for solo and small residential cleaning operators — ASC 606 deferred revenue on recurring plans, OBBBA tip deductions up to $25,000, W-2 vs 1099 ABC-test pitfalls, care/custody/control insurance, and the KPIs that predict retention.
A practical 2026 guide for independent crypto miners, Ethereum validators, and DeFi liquidity providers covering entity selection, Form 1099-DA basis reporting, Rev. Rul. 2023-14, OBBBA Section 174 R&D expensing, FBAR/Form 8938 thresholds, and KPI tracking.
Yacht brokerages recognize commissions at closing under ASC 606, segregate deposits in Chapter 326 trust accounts, and depreciate travel lifts with Section 179 — and the service yard runs on technician utilization, parts margin, and slip occupancy KPIs.
A configuration and compliance guide for payroll teams on the new 2026 W-2 Box 12 Code TT (qualified overtime premium) and Code TP (qualified tips), the Box 14b Treasury Tipped Occupation Code (TTOC), the redesigned Step 4(b) on Form W-4, and the OBBBA 2025–2028 sunset window for the No Tax on Tips and No Tax on Overtime federal income tax deductions.
Twenty US states have comprehensive consumer privacy laws in effect by 2026, twelve require Global Privacy Control recognition, and cure periods are sunsetting in Connecticut, Delaware, Kentucky, Minnesota, and Montana. Here is the minimum viable compliance program for SaaS, e-commerce, and professional service operators.
A small business field guide to staying TCPA-compliant in 2026 — A2P 10DLC brand and campaign registration, FCC consent rules after the one-to-one rule was vacated, STOP and HELP keyword automation, SHAFT content limits, carrier per-message fees, and the state mini-TCPA patchwork including Florida's FTSA, Texas SB 140, and Oklahoma's OTSA.
Twenty-one US states run sales tax holidays in 2026, with seven converging on August 7–9. Here is how Shopify, Amazon, Walmart, and Etsy sellers should configure product taxability, plan inventory, and avoid the per-item cap, bundled-sale, and excluded-venue mistakes that drive audit losses.
Six U.S. states now enforce Extended Producer Responsibility laws for packaging, with fee invoices arriving in 2025 and 2026. Here is how California SB 54, Oregon's Recycling Modernization Act, and Colorado's HB22-1355 reshape CPG brand P&L, plus the SKU-level bill of materials, ship-to-state allocation, and inventoriable vs. SG&A accounting treatment required for clean 2026 filings.
SECURE 2.0 requires new 401(k) and 403(b) plans established after December 29, 2022 to adopt an Eligible Automatic Contribution Arrangement with a 3% default deferral, 1% annual escalation up to a 10–15% cap, QDIA investment, and 90-day permissible withdrawal — with plan document amendments due by December 31, 2026.
Section 280F caps 2026 first-year passenger auto depreciation at $20,300 with bonus, while heavy SUVs over 6,000 lb GVWR can deduct the full purchase price via the $31,300 Section 179 cap plus 100% bonus depreciation restored under OBBBA. This guide covers the math, the listed-property substantiation rules, and the recapture trap that catches owners whose business use drops below 50%.
