#tax-credits
Tax Credits
Federal and state tax credits to reduce your tax bill dollar for dollar
Section 47 Historic Tax Credit: A 2026 Field Guide for Developers and Their CPAs
Section 47 of the Internal Revenue Code lets developers claim a 20 percent federal tax credit on qualified rehabilitation expenditures for certified historic structures, claimed ratably over five years since the TCJA. This guide walks through NPS three-part certification, the substantial rehabilitation test, what counts as a QRE, five-year recapture rules, and how syndication is structured under the Rev. Proc. 2014-12 safe harbor.
Section 6418: Selling Clean Energy Tax Credits to Cash Buyers
Section 6418 lets clean energy developers sell federal tax credits to unrelated corporate buyers for cash, typically at a 6 to 15 percent discount to face value. A practical guide to registration, pricing, recapture risk, the 20 percent excessive transfer penalty, and how the OBBBA preserved transferability through the rest of the decade.
Foreign Tax Credit vs. Foreign Earned Income Exclusion: Which Should Expats Pick in 2026?
A side-by-side guide to Form 1116 (Foreign Tax Credit) and Form 2555 (Foreign Earned Income Exclusion) for expats and cross-border workers in 2026 — the $132,900 FEIE cap, the five-year revocation lock-in, the FTC stacking rule, and a worked example showing when each one actually saves money.
Section 45S Paid Leave Credit: A 2026 Guide for Small Employers After OBBBA
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act made the Section 45S paid family and medical leave credit permanent, lowered the eligibility threshold to six months, and added a premium-based method that lets small employers claim 12.5%–25% of PFML insurance premiums even when no leave is taken.
Section 45B FICA Tip Credit: How Restaurants and Salons Recover Employer Payroll Tax with Form 8846
The Section 45B FICA Tip Credit returns 7.65% of employer payroll tax on reported tips above a frozen $5.15/hour floor for restaurants — and after OBBBA's 2025 expansion, salons, spas, and other personal-care employers can claim it on Form 8846 too.
Section 45Q Carbon Capture Credit: How Industrial and Direct Air Capture Projects Monetize Sequestration
Section 45Q pays $85 per ton for industrial carbon capture and $180 per ton for direct air capture, claimable for twelve years, transferable for cash, and exposed to recapture for up to seventeen years. This guide explains thresholds, disposal pathways, OBBBA changes, and the bookkeeping discipline that protects the credit.
Section 174A R&D Expensing Restored: A Small-Business Guide to Amending 2022-2024 Returns
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act's Section 174A restores immediate domestic R&D expensing starting in 2025, and small businesses under roughly $31 million in average gross receipts have until July 6, 2026 to amend 2022, 2023, and 2024 returns to recover taxes paid under the TCJA capitalization rules.
Section 45F in 2026: How OBBBA Quadrupled the Employer-Provided Child Care Credit
Starting in 2026, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act expands Section 45F's Employer-Provided Child Care Credit from 25% to 40% (50% for businesses under $32M in average gross receipts) and lifts the annual cap from $150,000 to $500,000 ($600,000 for small businesses), with new explicit rules for intermediaries, pooled arrangements, backup care, and reserved-seat contracts.
EITC for Self-Employed Workers: Claim Up to $8,046 in 2025
Self-employed filers can claim the federal Earned Income Tax Credit on Schedule C net earnings, with a 2025 maximum of $8,046 for families with three or more children. This guide covers eligibility thresholds, how to compute earned income (including the half-SE-tax adjustment), the documentation that survives an audit, and the pitfalls that disqualify otherwise valid claims.
PTET in 2026: The SALT Cap Workaround for S-Corps and Partnerships
A 2026 guide to the Pass-Through Entity Tax — how 36+ jurisdictions let S-corps and partnerships convert capped state income taxes into a fully deductible federal business expense, even after OBBBA raised the SALT cap to $40,400.
Section 25D Residential Clean Energy Credit: Final-Year Claim, Carryforward, and TPO Alternatives
Section 25D's 30% residential clean energy credit ends December 31, 2025 under the OBBBA. How to file the final-year claim on Form 5695, carry unused credit forward indefinitely, and use TPO leases or Section 48E to capture value in 2026.
Trump's 2026 Small Business Tax Changes: OBBBA Permanent QBI, Bonus Depreciation, and Tariff Impact
OBBBA made the 20% QBI deduction and 100% bonus depreciation permanent for 2026, while tariffs near 19% cost U.S. small businesses about $85 billion a year. Here is what changed, who benefits, and how to plan.