Are you still open?
Yes, we are still open and doing business, but not accepting in person appointments. All but a few essential staff are working remotely.

Did the IRS extend the deadline for 2019 taxes?
Yes. On March 20, the IRS extended its filing and payment deadline to July 15.

What about 2020 estimated taxes?
Q1 2020 estimated taxes are now due on July 15, 2020.

Q2 2020 estimated taxes are still due on June 15, 2020.

What is the guidance on CA taxes?
California has extended the deadline to file and pay until July 15, 2020 for both 2019 taxes and Q1 and Q2 2020 estimated taxes.

What is the IRA and HSA contribution cutoff?
The IRA and HSA contribution deadline has been postponed to July 15, 2020.

FOR ALL APPLICATIONS, EXCLUDING NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION, THE FOLLOWING ITEMS MUST BE SUBMITTED.

• This application (SBA Form 5), completed and signed
• Tax Information Authorization (IRS Form 4506T), completed and signed by each applicant, each principal owning 20 percent or more of the applicant business, each general partner or managing member; and, for any owner who has greater than 50 percent ownership in an affiliate business.
• Personal Financial Statement (SBA Form 413) completed, signed, and dated by the applicant, each principal owning 20 percent or more of the applicant business, and each general partner or managing member
• Schedule of Liabilities listing all fixed debts (SBA Form 2202 may be used)

NON-PROFIT ORGANIZATION (including Houses of Worship, Association, etc), THE FOLLOWING ITEMS MUST BE SUBMITTED:

• This application (SBA Form 5), completed and signed
• A complete copy of the organization’s most recent tax return OR a copy of the organizations’s IRS tax-exempt certification and complete copies of the organization’s three most recent years’ “Statement of Activities”
• Schedule of Liabilities.
• Tax Information Authorization (IRS Form 4506-T), completed and signed for each applicant and for any affiliated entity. Affiliates include, but are not limited to, business parents, subsidiaries, and/or other businesses with common ownership or management

If you need assistance in the loan application process, we are here to help. Please call 408.252.1800 (San Jose) or 831.726.8500 (Watsonville).

Dear Clients:

As news of the COVID-19 virus has engulfed headlines over the last few weeks we have been preparing for the eventuality that we suspected may come. Fortunately we moved the majority of our critical infrastructure to the Cloud a few years ago and we can confidently say that we are ready. So ready in fact, beginning March 17, 2020 we have closed our offices to all but a small crew. Though we are an “Essential Business” under Santa Clara and Santa Cruz County’s Shelter In Place directives, we are closing our doors to implement safe and sound best practices and systems to serve you to meet mandated deadlines.

We appreciate that for some, this is a big departure from how you typically interact with us, especially at this time of year. For those of you who are accustomed to coming into our offices, we ask that you work with your Wheeler Accountants team members to enroll in our Client Portal where documents can be transmitted electronically; or to make alternate arrangements if needed. We’re here to help. And we look forward to a day, hopefully sooner than later, when we can again shake hands and catch-up in person. In the meantime we are conducting tax appointments via phone or video call and look forward to advising you as always.

On March 17, 2020, the Secretary of the Treasury announced guidance that the IRS will not assess penalties or interest for individuals owing less than $1,000,000 and small businesses owing less than $10,000,000 if payments are made by July 15^th. No official guidance from the Treasury Department or IRS has been issued and it is still unclear whether this means the filing deadline is also extended. California announced last week that individuals and businesses have received an extension of time to both file and pay to June 15^th for filings and payments due between March 15^th and June 15^th, 2020. As we received more detailed information we will send out additional updates.

Thank you for placing your trust in us for all of these years. We are resilient and we know that you are too. As always, we’re here if you need us. Please don’t hesitate to let us know how we can help.

If you are ready to file your taxes but are missing important tax forms here’s what you should do:

Form W-2

You should receive a Form W-2, Wage and Tax Statement, from each of your employers for use in preparing your federal tax return. Employers must furnish this record of 2019 earnings and withheld taxes no later than January 31, 2020 (allow several days for delivery if mailed).

If you do not receive your Form W-2, contact your employer to find out if and when the W-2 was mailed. If it was mailed, it may have been returned to your employer because of an incorrect address. After contacting your employer, allow a reasonable amount of time for your employer to resend or to issue the W-2.Continue reading

If you haven’t contributed funds to an Individual Retirement Account (IRA) for tax year 2019, or if you’ve put in less than the maximum allowed, you still have time to do so. You can contribute to either a traditional or Roth IRA until the April 15th due date, not including extensions.

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As part of final guidance issued that pertains to the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017, new rules and limitations are in effect for taxpayers who deduct depreciation for qualified property acquired and placed in service after September 27, 2017, and, as a business owner, they could affect your tax situation. Let’s take a closer look:

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The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), enacted in December 2017, limited the itemized deduction for state and local taxes to $5,000 for a married person filing a separate return and $10,000 for all other tax filers. The limit applies to tax years 2018 to 2025.

As in prior years, if a taxpayer chose the standard deduction then state and local tax refunds are not subject to tax. However, if a taxpayer itemizes deductions for that year on Schedule A, Itemized Deductions, part or all of the refund may be subject to tax – but only to the extent that the taxpayer received a tax benefit from the deduction.

Taxpayers who are impacted by the SALT limit may not be required to include the entire state or local tax refund in income in the following year. As a reminder, state or local tax refunds received in 2018 that were reported on 2018 tax returns are not affected.Continue reading

The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act has resulted in questions from taxpayers about many tax provisions including whether interest paid on home equity loans is still deductible. The good news is that despite newly enacted restrictions on home mortgages, taxpayers can often still deduct interest on a home equity loan, home equity line of credit (HELOC) or second mortgage, regardless of how the loan is labeled.Continue reading