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Volume 5, Issue 4, April 2007

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A Very Sincere Thank You to Our Clients!

For months now our partners and staff have been hunkered down at their desks, pounding away on their laptops, working long hours and preparing a myriad of 1099s, W-2 forms, partnership and individual tax returns, and much more. And we couldn’t be happier about that!

For without you, our clients, we would not be in the business of hunkering down over our desks for all these months. Without the valued friends, neighbors, and colleagues who seek out our services every day, we would not still be in business nearly fifty years after opening our doors.

Our success is truly a result of the success of all of our wonderful clients in Paducah, Champaign and Modesto, in Melbourne and Clinton, and all points in between!

So, thank you, very much, for your continued support of us. We hope to continue to return the favor for many years to come.

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Reporting Requirements for Foreign Financial
Accounts

The use of foreign financial accounts continues to increase, and while not all of these accounts generate taxable income, owners of such accounts may still be required to report these accounts to the government.

There are many valid reasons for owning a foreign financial account, but they are also abused and used

for economic crimes and tax evasion. Foreign financial institutions may not be subject to the reporting requirements that U.S. institutions are subject to, i.e., the requirement to file a Form 1099 to report interest paid to the account holder. Therefore, the Bank Secrecy Act requires some United States persons (defined as a citizen or resident of the U.S. or a domestic legal entity) who own a foreign financial account to file a Form TD F 90-22 1, Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Authority (FBAR).

Conditions that necessitate filing the FBAR include:

Having financial interest in, signature authority, or other authority over one or more financial accounts in a foreign country.

Having more than a total aggregate value of $10,000 for all foreign financial accounts at any time during the calendar year.

Additionally, consider the following:

The FBAR is not an income tax return.

FBAR forms should be mailed to the U.S. Department of the Treasury, P.O. Box 32621, Detroit, MI 48232-0621.

The deadline for mailing the FBAR is June 30.

Requests for extension of time to file the FBAR are not granted.

Persons who are required to file an FBAR, but do not comply, may be subject to civil or criminal penalties. For willful violations after October 22, 2004, civil penalties are equal to the greater of $100,000 or 50% of the balance in the account at the time of the violation. Non-willful violations can result in a $10,000 penalty for each violation. Criminal violations can result in a fine and/or imprisonment for up to 5 years.

Additional information about the FBAR is available on the IRS website , the Money Services Businesses’ website and the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network’s website. The certified public accountants and consultants at Kemper CPA Group LLP can help you complete the FBAR, provide you with further guidance regarding compliance issues, and address any questions or concerns you may have about reporting requirements. Contact us today.

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Retirement Rollovers

How many eggs are rolling around in your retirement nest? Do you have multiple retirement accounts left over from previous jobs? In some cases, you can consolidate by making a tax-deferred rollover – moving assets from one eligible retirement plan to another eligible plan.

To begin the process, check with the plan administrators from your existing plans to obtain the necessary paperwork to complete the rollover, and determine whether the plan into which you intend to make the rollover accepts rollovers.

Generally speaking, it may be a little less difficult to make a rollover from an IRA account, where you retain ownership of the assets. In the case of a 401(k), on the other hand, your employer sponsors the plan, and the assets are owned by the plan, not by you. Therefore, there is more paperwork involved with a 401(k) rollover, and it tends to take a little longer to accomplish the rollover.

It is important to note that a direct rollover, where the distribution check is made directly to the trustee of your new plan, can protect your investments from the penalties imposed when you make a standard rollover.

When you make a direct rollover,

The Rollover Chart provided by the IRS summarizes the rules regarding rollovers from one type of retirement account to another. It is, however, not intended to be relied upon as a replacement for tax advice provided by a tax professional. For the purposes of this chart, 401(k) plans and Roth 401(k) plans fall under the categories of “Qualified Plan” and “Designated Roth Account,” respectively.

Internal Revenue Code governs the tax treatment of rollovers, and the certified public accountants and consultants at Kemper CPA Group LLP can help you understand the tax implications of the various rollover options. Contact Kemper CPA Group LLP at an office near you today!

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Where's Your Refund?

The IRS is once again offering the “Where’s My Refund?” service on its website. The feature allows taxpayers to track the status of their refunds, regardless of the refund method selected. The feature even works for those who filed only to receive the telephone excise tax refund available this year.

To check the status of your refund, have the following information handy:

Taxpayers who still have not received their refund 28 days after the mailing date can utilize the refund trace option, and taxpayers whose refunds are undeliverable due to an incorrect mailing address will be prompted to change their addresses.

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Cost for Domain Name Registration/Renewals
Increasing

If you will be registering for a new “.com” or “.net” Internet domain address, or renewing an existing registration, be aware that the cost for those registrations and renewals will be increasing as of October 15, 2007, as follows:

The company which controls the Internet addresses, VeriSign Inc. charges these fees to the companies who sell the domain names on its behalf. Those companies in turn pass those fees on as part of the price to those purchasing or renewing domains.

This marks the first such price increase by VeriSign since 1999; however, you can secure the lower prices by obtaining your new domain or renewing your registration prior to October 15th. Additionally, many companies who sell domain names offer multi-year registrations, allowing you to secure your domain for a period of ten to even one hundred years. Your Internet Service Provider can also help you with information regarding your domain name registrations and renewals.

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How to Make Your Cash Registers Talk...

Capturing data at the point of sale can provide your business with a wealth of information regarding pricing, inventory, customer buying patterns, how your retail outlets are performing, and much more. There is much to be learned from your cash registers!

Some of the benefits of point-of-sale software include:

For large, multi-site retail operations, there is the powerful option of Sage Accpac ePOS software; if your business is on a smaller scale, QuickBooks POS software provides excellent inventory and customer data tracking.

The Sage Accpac and QuickBooks certified consultants at  Kemper Technology Consulting can assist you with choosing the correct point-of-sale software for your business, as well as installation and support. We can help – contact us today!

Kemper Technology Consulting
Robinson, IL
618-546-5633
www.kempertc.com

Evansville, IN  •  Indianapolis, IN  •  Paducah, KY  •  Effingham, IL

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Please be advised that, based upon current Internal Revenue Service (IRS) rules and standards, the advice herein is not intended to be used, nor can it be used, as the sole basis for decisions. Additional issues may exist that could affect the treatment of the individual transactions, and this narrative does not provide a conclusion with respect to all such issues.

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