Taxes

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin I have been having silly arguments with Fair Tax enthusiasts. The Fair Tax Act of 2023 would be a tremendous simplification of federal taxation. It does not, however, reduce 70,000 pages to 131 and it does not entirely eliminate the Internal Revenue Code. Also it does not abolish the IRS. It renames parts of it and has $10 billion or so, currently spent by the IRS to be spent by numerous state revenue agencies instead. Over my forty year career I have not found state employees to be easier to deal with than federal employees, so I don't see what we would be gaining there. And while much simpler than the current system, there is still some complexity. That is what I would like to tell you about, because some of that complexity is worrisome. All section references are to the Internal Revenue Code of 2023 as specified by the Fair Tax Act of 2023. The Variable Rate Discussions of the sales tax proposed in the … [Read more...] about Fair Tax Act Of 2023 Has Rate That Varies

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin As the COVID-19 pandemic recedes many medical testing services businesses have been diversifying and bringing to market new products aimed at the growing health and wellbeing market. For example, blood and DNA testing and screening services. The VAT status of these new offerings is not always clear and recent VAT case-law, and commentary issued by HMRC, leaves some grey areas for interpretation, with risks for tax compliance. One of the considerations when innovating and developing new products is the question of whether or not the contemplated supplies fall under the VAT exemption for medical care. As with all exceptions to standard rating, the medical care exemption is applied narrowly and has a series of conditions that all have to be met. There is also a ‘cliff-edge’ in the impact between having to account for VAT (at the standard rate of 20% in the UK) and exempt treatment; the possible addition of 20% VAT either makes … [Read more...] about Medical Testing Services – Tax Considerations Of New Activities

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin As of January 2023, the annual gift tax exclusion amount has increased to $17,000. That is the amount you can gift to any one person each year free of any tax implications. For years the amount was set at $10,000, but since 2002 it has been slowly increasing. Making annual exclusion gifts allows you to move money to family members and friends so that it is out of your taxable estate with no estate or gift tax consequences. If you make a gift in excess of $17,000, you will need to use up your lifetime exemption amount on the overage. The federal lifetime exemption amount is $12,920,000 as of 2023, but will be dropping to $5 million in 2026, adjusted for inflation. Given the changes ahead, it is a good time to start thinking about ways to increase the monies you can gift to the next generation free of taxes. Here is what you need to know to take advantage of these tax-free transfers: • You can gift $17,000 to any one … [Read more...] about 8 Tips For Tax-Free Gifting In 2023

Foreign portfolio investors will lose a preferential tax rate on interest from Indian government securities and corporate and foreign currency bonds, a senior tax official said on Saturday. Foreign portfolio investors have been enjoying a lower 5% tax on interest earned on bonds since 2013, making investments in the country more attractive. Ending this treatment would require them to pay a 20% tax on interest income from July 1. "It has not been extended," Central Board of Direct Taxes chairman Nitin Gupta told Reuters. "Our view point is that it was a revenue foregone by the government "We have certain tax treaty with any jurisdiction which permits the Indian government to deduct tax at a certain rate. We had foregone that right. It was helping the other government, and the other jurisdictions," Gupta said in an interview. Also Read | Economic Survey 2023: Total assets under FPIs grow despite huge outflows Read More The exemption does not benefit any … [Read more...] about Foreign portfolio investors in India to pay higher tax on debt securities: official

The scope for boosting GST tax base of the indirect tax system is high, with a huge gap in its tax filing system, the Chairman of the Central Board of Indirect Taxes & Customs, Vivek Johari has said. Even though, there is no baseline to check how many have been evading paying GST taxes the Chairman is sure that the gap is wide enough to tap into. “We can only make an intuitive comparison. If we compare GST tax base with direct taxes, there is clearly a huge gap,” he said at the CNBC-TV18 at a post-budget event on February 2. While the department of Direct Tax has over 8 crore registered taxpayers, the indirect tax department has only about 1.4 crore, said Johari. There are certain sectors including those dealing in B2C, import of services, that must register for GST but haven’t. “We are working on expanding taxpayer's base, we are trying to use technology to come at it,” adds Johari. Read More The department has also been working on compliances and has … [Read more...] about Indirect Tax body chairman says huge gap in filing, see scope for boosting GST tax base

FM Nirmala Sitharaman breaks Budget 2023 down in an exclusive interview with Network18. While giving a boost to the new income-tax regime, the government has set no time frame to phase out the older tax regime that offers popular exemptions and deductions under various sections, said Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, in an exclusive interview with Network18 Group Editor Rahul Joshi . Sitharaman stressed that the new tax regime offers reasonable tax rates and simpler compliance. The new tax regime, which offers lower tax rates but minimal exemptions, was introduced in Budget 202 0. “The Prime Minister was clear that the tax-payer should know how much they are paying actually and feel the comfort of not paying much and file tax returns from the comfort of their home,” she said. She expects around 50 percent of tax-payers in "certain layers" to switch to the new tax regime voluntarily. With the new income-tax regime having completed three years, and the FM making big … [Read more...] about FM Nirmala Sitharaman interview | New tax regime the future, old tax regime to stay

A shift to the new, voluntary income tax regime will not lead to lower savings in the country, Revenue Secretary Sanjay Malhotra has said. "The savings through tax exemptions is actually a very small portion of the total savings of our country, which is about Rs 25 lakh crore for households, of which savings through tax (saving) instruments are only Rs 4 lakh crore," Malhotra said on February 3 at a post-Budget industry interaction. Given the absence of exemptions and deductions from the new system introduced three years ago, there has been a reluctance to shift to it. However, the 2023 Union Budget presented on February 1 has tried to make it more attractive in several ways, including lower tax rates and greater simplicity. The government hopes that the incentives provided in Budget 2023 will see a majority of individuals shift to the new tax system, which has also been made the default one . This has led to some concerns over whether the forced savings done for tax … [Read more...] about Shift to exemption-free tax regime won’t hurt India’s savings: Revenue Secretary

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Name: Rebecca Glasgow Firm: UBS Private Wealth Management Location: Atlanta AUM: $4.6 billion Forbes Rankings: America’s Top Women Wealth Advisors, Top Women Wealth Advisors Best-in-State, Best-in-State Wealth Management Teams, Top Wealth Management Teams Private Wealth, Best-in-State Wealth Advisors Background: Originally from the Boston area, Rebecca Glasgow “always had an interest in numbers” and was planning to be a math major at Cornell University before switching to economics. She launched her career in wealth management shortly after graduation, doing municipal sales and institutional trading in Boston before moving to Washington, D.C., to join the financial planning arm of Lincoln Financial Group. Glasgow eventually moved to Atlanta and joined UBS in 2008, serving as a senior partner at the ESOP Group, one of just a handful of teams across the country that specializes in tax deferral … [Read more...] about A UBS Tax Deferral Specialist Who Manages Nearly $5 Billion

The budget managed to keep the focus intact on infrastructure, long-term capacity building, and much-needed tweaks to the taxation framework to optimise tax mobilisation. Given the needs of the Indian economy and the government’s previously outlined economic vision for the next 25 years, expectations were indeed high from Budget 2023. However, there were other realistic aspects like the lingering fiscal impact of COVID-19 relief measures, persisting global inflation in the last few quarters, rising interest rates and slowing economic growth, that kept the expectations in check. In such a situation, the Budget presented by the Finance Minister successfully tread the tightrope and checks all the right boxes. Most importantly, the Budget has affirmed the government’s resolve to stay on the fiscal consolidation course. Other than maintaining macroeconomic stability by operating within means, the budget managed to keep the focus intact on infrastructure, long-term capacity building, … [Read more...] about Tax changes in Budget 2023 to boost consumption & savings

The Budget 2023 has extended by a year the date of incorporation for startups to qualify for tax benefits, accepting a key demand of the industry. The Budget also proposes to extend the period for startups to carry forward losses by three years. "We have taken a number of measures for start-ups and they have borne results. India is now the third largest ecosystem for start-ups globally, and ranks second in innovation quality among middle-income countries," Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said while presenting the Budget on February 1. Only those startups incorporated before April 1, 2023, were eligible to get tax benefits. Now the date has been extended to April 1, 2024.  The National Association of Software and Service Companies (NASSCOM) had sought an extension of five years. The minister said startups would be allowed to carry forward losses under section 79 to 10 years from current seven years. Until now, eligible startups were allowed to carry forward and set off … [Read more...] about Budget 2023: In a fillip to startups, date of incorporation to qualify for tax benefits extended by a year