#tax-planning
Tax Planning
Strategic tax planning to minimize liability and maximize savings
Trump Account Gift Tax Rules: The IRS Safe Harbor That Spares Most Families From Form 709
IRS Revenue Procedure 2026-25 (June 29, 2026) creates a gift tax safe harbor for Trump Account contributions: individual donors whose total gifts to a child stay under the $19,000 annual exclusion owe no Form 709 filing, resolving the future-interest question raised by the accounts' lock-up until age 18.
Alta Wind v. United States: Why You Can't Use a Tax Credit to Inflate Its Own Basis
On July 8, 2026, the Court of Federal Claims ruled in Alta Wind v. United States that Section 1603 renewable-energy grant basis must come from actual documented costs plus a 15–20% developer markup — not a DCF valuation where 98% of the value came from the anticipated grant itself. The circularity principle governs every investment tax credit basis calculation, from a $1B wind farm to a small business's rooftop solar array.
Autónomo Taxes in Spain: Cuotas by Real Income, IRPF Withholding, and the €80 Flat Rate Explained for 2026
Spain's autónomo cuota is income-based across 15 tiers (roughly €205 to €1,606/month at a 31.5% rate), reconciled after your annual tax return via regularización. New freelancers can pay a flat €80/month for 12 months and withhold IRPF at a reduced 7% instead of 15% — but choosing 15% once forfeits the reduced rate. Here's how the 2026 rules fit together.
California Competes Tax Credit Extended Through 2033: What SB 180 Means for Small Businesses
SB 180, signed July 13, 2026, extends the California Competes Tax Credit through fiscal year 2032-33. Small businesses can apply in three annual windows for a share of $180 million+ in credits — no minimum size, no fee — but awards come with binding job and investment milestones that demand clean books.
When a Deficit Restoration Obligation Isn't One: What CCA 202628009 Means for Partnership Loss and Liability Allocations
IRS Chief Counsel Advice CCA 202628009 (July 10, 2026) held that a demand-based deficit restoration obligation enforceable only by withholding future distributions is not unconditional, failing both the §1.704-1(b) economic-effect safe harbor and the §1.752-2(b) recourse-liability test — a fact pattern common in family LP boilerplate that can reallocate recourse debt and suspend previously deducted losses.
Estate of Fields: Why a Deathbed Family Limited Partnership Failed the Section 2036 Test
In June 2026 the Fifth Circuit affirmed that an FLP formed one month before Anne Fields's death failed IRC Section 2036's bona fide sale exception, pulling $17 million back into her taxable estate, erasing a 36.25% valuation discount, and adding a 20% penalty — a blueprint of what sinks last-minute succession plans.
Georgia Cut Its Income Tax to 4.99% — But HB 463 Left the PTET Rate at 5.75%
Georgia's HB 463 cuts the flat income tax rate from 5.19% to 4.99% for tax years starting January 1, 2026, with conditional annual cuts toward 3.99% — but the pass-through entity tax (PTET) rate stays at 5.75%, so S-corp and partnership owners who made the election should rerun the math against their SALT cap savings.
A Tax Court Judge Just Told Treasury Its Own Regulation Doesn't Count
In Siemens Medical Solutions USA, Inc. v. Commissioner (167 T.C. No. 5, 2026), the Tax Court struck down Treasury's Extraordinary Disposition Rule, restoring a full $315 million Section 245A dividends-received deduction because the regulation added conditions absent from the statute's plain text. What the ruling, decided under the post-Loper Bright standard, means for any business relying on regulatory limits that outrun the underlying law.
Sirius Solutions v. Commissioner: The Fifth Circuit Just Rewrote Self-Employment Tax for Limited Partners
On January 16, 2026, the Fifth Circuit held in Sirius Solutions v. Commissioner that "limited partner" under IRC Section 1402(a)(13) means state-law limited partner status — rejecting the IRS's functional test and exempting limited partners' distributive shares from the 15.3% SECA tax. The ruling excludes LLC members and binds only Texas, Louisiana, and Mississippi, so refund claims and clean bookkeeping both hinge on the details.
The Deferred Sales Trust: How Business Owners Defer Capital Gains on an Exit Without a 1031 Exchange
A deferred sales trust lets a business owner spread capital gains tax from a sale over 10-20 years under IRC Section 453 with no like-kind reinvestment requirement, but setup and management fees commonly total $100,000-$300,000+ over a decade and the IRS has never issued formal guidance approving the structure.
Disability Buy-Out Insurance: The Buy-Sell Agreement Gap Most Co-Owners Miss
A 35-year-old is six times more likely to become disabled than to die before 65, yet most buy-sell agreements only plan for death. How disability buy-out (DBO) insurance funds a co-owner buyout — elimination periods, cross-purchase vs. entity redemption, and why premiums are nondeductible but proceeds are tax-free.
The Free Lunch Is Officially Over: What OBBBA's 0% Meal Deduction Means for Your Business in 2026
Starting January 1, 2026, OBBBA's new IRC §274(o) cuts the employer deduction for on-site cafeterias, office snacks, and "convenience of the employer" meals from 50% (or 100%) to zero, while client meals, travel meals, and restaurant employee meals keep their old treatment. Here's the math on what the change costs and how small businesses should restructure their books.