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Upcoming events & IRS news releases     7/25/2016

Announcements & Upcoming Events:

Save the Date! Biz Fair 2016 - Saturday, September 24

www.bizfair.org

One day, one place - learn from the experts how to form and run a successful business at the 20th annual Washington Small Business Fair.  Biz Fair 2016 happens Saturday, September 24, 8:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. at Renton Technical College, 3000 NE 4th Street, in Renton. Sharpen your skills - attend seminars that cover important, up-to-date topics for all stages of business ownership. Savvy business experts share their knowledge and real-life experiences with you.  Save valuable time - connect with 30 federal, state and local government agencies, and business and trade associations to get the information you need. The fair is free, with plenty of free parking and no advance registration.

Visit www.bizfair.org for more information.

Find us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/bizfair.

SBA Webinar | What the Healthcare Law Means for Your Small Business

Thursday, July 21 - 11am - 12pm PT

Register here: https://cc.readytalk.com/registration/#/?meeting=56h8ymfxla1&campaign=e6hrpx6xxuoz

Find out how to navigate the opportunities in health care through the Affordable Care Act 101 webinar series. Registration is free, but required. For more information on what the health care law means for small businesses, check out www.sba.gov/healthcare

 

SBA Webinar | Protecting Your Business Data in Todays Inter-Connected World

Register | Thursday, July 28 | 8:30am - 9:30am PST

The threat landscape in cyber-space keeps evolving. Cloud technologies are designed to continuously identify and mitigate risks, and can help small businesses leverage the best of breed security and privacy capabilities, while focusing on their core competencies. Join this webinar to learn more about how cybersecurity threats are evolving, what risks they pose, and best practices to protect your business information in the digital age.

                      

Small Business Administration Workshops

https://www.sba.gov/offices/district/wa/seattle

SBA offers a variety of workshops, some online and others in person.

Seattle - Free Workshop Thursdays – July 28

Online Free Workshop Thursdays – July 28

 

SCORE Workshops

SCORE offers workshops designed to give you the skills necessary to start your own successful business. 

Seattle: http://seattle.score.org/localworkshops

Aug 3, Sept 7 -- Starting a New Business

July 21, Aug 16 – Understanding Financial Statements

There are also a number of online workshops available: https://seattle.score.org/onlineworkshops/tab-a  

IRS Updates & News Releases:

Did you know? One of the best ways to get information is by visiting the IRS Small Business Tax Center where you can learn everything from how to get an Employer Identification Number (EIN) online to how to best navigate an audit.

 

National Taxpayer Advocate Reviews Filing Season and Identifies Priority Areas and Challenges in Mid-Year Report to Congress

https://www.irs.gov/uac/newsroom/national-taxpayer-advocate-reviews-filing-season-and-identifies-priority-areas-and-challenges-in-mid-year-report-to-congress-2016

National Taxpayer Advocate Nina E. Olson has released her statutorily mandated mid-year report to Congress that contains extended excerpts from her ongoing Public Forums on Taxpayer Needs and Preferences, presents a review of the 2016 filing season, and identifies the priority issues the Taxpayer Advocate Service (TAS) will address during the upcoming fiscal year.

 

IRS, Partners Warn Tax Preparers of Data Theft Risks; Launch New Campaign to Increase Awareness

https://www.irs.gov/uac/irs-and-partners-warn-tax-preparers-of-data-theft-risks-and-launch-new-campaign-to-increase-awareness

Leaders from the Internal Revenue Service, state tax agencies and tax preparation community warned tax preparers that they increasingly are targets of cybercriminals and should take appropriate steps to protect clients from data theft. IRS also posted new information to help tax professionals get started with safeguards to protect clients’ data. It’s the first in a series of fact sheets and tips on security, scams and identity theft prevention measures aimed at tax professionals. The Protect Your Clients; Protect Yourself campaign will run through the start of the 2017 filing season. Recognizing the risk to tax preparers, this new effort is an expansion of the Security Summit’s 2015 “Taxes. Security. Together.” campaign aimed at increasing public awareness for using security software, creating stronger passwords and avoiding phishing emails.

 

Security Summit Reviews 2016 Accomplishments, Announces 2017 Initiatives

https://www.irs.gov/uac/newsroom/security-summit-reviews-2016-accomplishments-announces-2017-initiatives

Leaders from the IRS and state tax agencies along with executives from the private-sector tax industry marked the first year of their ground-breaking Security Summit partnership to combat identity theft tax fraud by recapping 2016 accomplishments and turning toward 2017 efforts.

 

The Electronic Tax Administration Advisory Committee Issued Its 2016 Annual Report

https://www.irs.gov/uac/the-electronic-tax-administration-advisory-committee-issued-its-2016-annual-report

The Electronic Tax Administration Advisory Committee (ETAAC) held its annual public meeting today and released its annual report to Congress, which features recommendations on a wide range of electronic tax administration issues. Based on its findings and discussions, ETAAC has made several recommendations on a broad range of issues and concerns including the IRS Future State Initiative, changes needed to the tax landscape to better combat fraud and bolster compliance, and IRS electronic capabilities to help taxpayers before, during and after filing. 

 

IRS Takes Steps to Strengthen IVES Program; Works with Industry to Quickly Implement New Safeguards

https://www.irs.gov/uac/irs-takes-steps-to-strengthen-ives-program-and-works-with-industry-to-quickly-implement-new-safeguards

As part of a wider effort to protect taxpayer information and strengthen authentication standards, the Internal Revenue Service is putting in place new requirements for participants using the Income Verification Express Service (IVES), a service supporting the lending industry to verify loan applicant’s incomes. The new requirements will help further ensure IVES participants verify and validate their clients using the system. The IVES service is used by pre-screened companies who, in turn, are hired by clients such as mortgage firms and loan companies who need to verify applicants’ income.

 

IRS Statement on the Electronic Filing PIN

https://www.irs.gov/uac/irs-statement-on-the-electronic-filing-pin

As a precautionary step to protect taxpayers, the Internal Revenue Service today announced that the electronic filing PIN tool is no longer available on IRS.gov or by toll-free phone following additional questionable activity.

 

IRS Makes Electronically Filed Form 990 Data Available in New Format

https://www.irs.gov/uac/newsroom/irs-makes-electronically-filed-form-990-data-available-in-new-format

The IRS announced that the publicly available data on electronically filed Forms 990 will now be available for the first time in a machine-readable format through Amazon Web Services (AWS).

 

IRS Provides Guidelines on How to Claim New Wrongful-Incarceration Exclusion; Use Special Address for All Back-Year Refund Claims; Dec. 19 Deadline for Older Claims

https://www.irs.gov/uac/newsroom/irs-provides-guidelines-on-how-to-claim-new-wrongful-incarceration-exclusion-use-special-address-for-all-back-year-refund-claims-dec-19-deadline-for-older-claims

The Internal Revenue Service released guidelines on how wrongfully-incarcerated taxpayers can take advantage of the new retroactive exclusion from income for any civil damages, restitution or other monetary award received in connection with their incarceration.

 

Empowerment Zone Designations Continue Through the End of 2016

https://www.irs.gov/uac/empowerment-zone-designations-continue-through-the-end-of-2016

The Internal Revenue Service announced that all empowerment zone designations remain in effect through the end of 2016. Empowerment zones are certain urban and rural areas where employers and other taxpayers qualify for special tax incentives. The announcement primarily affects businesses that would benefit from claiming the tax incentives for empowerment zones on their 2015 returns, either original or amended, and 2016 returns.

 

Sign Up for IRS Summertime Tax Tips

https://www.irs.gov/uac/newsroom/sign-up-for-irs-summertime-tax-tips-2016

The Internal Revenue Service encourages taxpayers interested in receiving helpful consumer tips this summer to get a jump-start on this year’s taxes by subscribing to the IRS Tax Tips email service. Beginning July 1, the IRS will begin offering its Summertime Tax Tip series, which includes useful information in English and Spanish. Tax Tip subscribers will receive a new Tip via email three times a week during July and August. Below are the most recent tax tips.

Tax Help in Spanish and Other Languages is Just a Click Away
Tax Breaks for the Military
About Your IRS Notice or Letter
Click on Over to IRS.gov this Summer
Owe Taxes? These Tips Can Help
IRS Offers Tips on Filing an Amended Tax Return
IRS Says be Alert for Tax Scams

Health Care Tax Tips

https://www.irs.gov/affordable-care-act/health-care-tax-tips2

Check out the tax tips for your health care questions on this page.

Employers: Here’s a Mid-Year Affordable Care Act Refresher

It’s Time for a PTC Checkup for your 2016 Health Insurance Marketplace Coverage

Small Business Health Options Program (SHOP) Marketplace

https://www.healthcare.gov/small-businesses/

The Small Business Health Options Program (SHOP) Marketplace helps small businesses provide health coverage to their employees. The SHOP Marketplace is open to employers with 50 or fewer full-time equivalent employees (FTEs). This includes non-profit organizations. You can enroll in SHOP any time of year - there’s no restricted enrollment period. For more information, visit HealthCare.gov.

The Affordable Care Act and Employers
Information on Key Tax Provisions Affecting Employers 

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