#operations
Credential decides representation — CPA, EA, and attorney are unlimited before the IRS, AFSP is limited — verify PTIN and board standing and insist on a scoped engagement letter.
Ages 60–63 get $11,250 of catch-up for four years instead of $7,500 — and every 401(k)/403(b) established after 12/29/2022 must auto-enroll 3–10% and auto-escalate to at least 10% starting 2025.
By default an LLC is disregarded to Schedule C and pays SE tax on all profit — elect S-corp via 8832/2553, pay yourself reasonable W-2 wages, and distributions escape SE tax when the salary is defensible.
The IRS needs adequate records per position — ordinary items 6 years from filing, payroll 4, property until disposition plus 6 — and a digital image counts only when indexed, legible, and retrievable.
An employee is a registration before the first paycheck — EIN, state withholding and SUI, workers' comp bound, W-4 and I-9 in 3 days, new-hire report in 20 days, 941 deposits by EFTPS.
Qualified research wages, supplies, and 65% of contract research generate a 14% ASC — and qualified startups can elect up to $500K per year against employer payroll on Form 8974.
NEC is for services, MISC is for rent and royalties — both to recipients by Jan 31, but NEC also files to IRS by Jan 31. Miss it and the $60–$310 per-form ladder starts.
The March 2025 interim final rule exempted domestic reporting companies — foreign-registered entities must still report within 30 days, update within 30 of any change, at $591 per day for willful failure.
Staking, airdrops, and hard forks are ordinary income at fair value when you gain dominion and control — and every crypto-to-crypto swap is a sale with proceeds, basis, and gain.
280A(g) excludes 14 or fewer rental days — but the business deduction still needs business purpose and fair venue comps. Keep the agenda, sign-in, photos, and rate memo or the rent is recharacterized.
Restaurant meals are back to 50% after the 2022 100% boost expired — the real test is whether each meal has amount, time, place, purpose, and business relationship plus your presence.
Mileage bundles costs at 70 cents per mile but year-one actual unlocks Section 179 for heavy SUVs — pick the method before you place the vehicle in service and keep the daily log that makes either deduction survive.
