#tax-planning
Strategic tax planning to minimize liability and maximize savings
Section 170(e)(3) lets any business deduct donated food at cost plus half the markup, capped at twice cost — with a 15% net-income limit, a five-year carryover, and a Good Samaritan liability shield.
OBBBA doubled the annual 529 K-12 withdrawal cap to $20,000 per student for 2026 and made tutoring, test fees, and credential programs qualified — but nonconforming states like California still tax the earnings and can recapture prior deductions.
Canada cancelled the two-thirds capital gains inclusion rate on March 21, 2025, but kept the $1.25M lifetime exemption — roughly $1,275,000 indexed for 2026. Here are the QSBC tests, CCA recapture, and 45(2)/45(3) elections that decide your bill.
Section 45Z pays $0.20–$1.00 per gallon (pre-inflation) on fuel produced after 2025, but only if your Form 637 registration predates production, the feedstock is North American, and you use that year's emissions table.
Oil and gas lease bonuses, delay rentals, and royalties are all ordinary income reported on Schedule E — but royalties qualify for 15% percentage depletion that can continue after your basis hits zero. How each payment is taxed, where it goes on your return, and the state traps to avoid.
Missouri's SALT Parity Act lets partnerships and S corps pay tax at the 4.7% top individual rate on Form MO-PTE, moving the deduction past the federal SALT cap. Here are the 2026 rules, deadlines, and filing traps.
A 4.08% muni yield equals a 6.00% taxable yield in the 32% bracket. How to run the tax-equivalent yield math on business reserve cash, and where munis beat FDIC-insured savings.
A married couple co-owning an unincorporated business is taxed as a partnership by default, but the qualified joint venture election lets each spouse file a separate Schedule C and Schedule SE instead — no Form 1065, and both spouses earn Social Security credits. Both spouses must materially participate, and businesses held in an LLC or corporation cannot use it.
A life settlement payout splits into three slices — basis tax-free, gain up to cash surrender value as ordinary income, the rest as capital gain. Here is how a business reports it, plus Forms 1099-LS, 1099-SB, 8925 and Section 101(j).
Since 2018, trading in a business vehicle is a taxable sale, not a tax-free swap — the trade allowance minus your adjusted basis is gain, depreciation is recaptured as ordinary income on Form 4797, and the new vehicle's depreciable basis is its full cost.
Staying under 183 days in a country does not make you a non-resident anywhere. U.S. nomads still owe worldwide income tax, the 2026 Foreign Earned Income Exclusion caps at $132,900 and never covers the 15.3% self-employment tax, the tax-home test disqualifies perpetual travelers, and FBAR triggers at $10,000 aggregated across all foreign accounts.
Enrolling in Medicare Part A after age 65 backdates coverage up to six months, turning HSA contributions made during that window into excess contributions subject to a 6% yearly excise tax. This guide covers the 2026 prorated limits, the Form 5329 penalty, how to withdraw the excess before the filing deadline, and the six-months-ahead shutdown plan.
