Thursday, December 18, 2014
Senate Passes Tax Extenders
As expected, a last minute passage of certain tax deductions and credits was approved and signed into law this week.
The IRS will be evaluating the impact of this legislation to forms, instructions, and the start of tax season. There is no published start date for e-file yet.
Our software publisher has posted a small newsletter detailing the legislation.
Please click on this link to read more.
Wednesday, November 5, 2014
The filing season is going to be the worst filing season since I’ve been the National Taxpayer Advocate {in 2001}; I’d love to be proved wrong, but I think it will rival the 1985 filing season when returns disappeared.”
From Forbes.com:
Internal Revenue Service Commissioner John Koskinen warned that close to half the people trying to reach the IRS by phone might not get through during the upcoming 2015 tax filing season. “Phone service could plummet to 53%,” he told an audience of tax practitioners at the AICPA National Tax Conference in Washington, D.C. today. That would be down from an already unacceptable 72% during the 2014 filing season. The average hold time projection: 34 minutes! What’s to blame? Budget woes. “All we can do is try to maximize our services as well as we can; as well as we can is still going to be miserable. You really do get what you pay for,” he said.
Koskinen’s remarks followed National Taxpayer Advocate Nina Olson who was even gloomier:“The filing season is going to be the worst filing season since I’ve been the National Taxpayer Advocate {in 2001}; I’d love to be proved wrong, but I think it will rival the 1985 filing season when returns disappeared.”
There are five key factors at play – complicating the upcoming filing season (that’s when you file your 2014 tax return). The IRS agency budget is the number one challenge, Koskinen said. The House has voted to cut the IRS budget for 2015 by $341 million, and the Senate has proposed to increase it by $240 million—that would still be 7% below 2010 funding levels.
In the meantime, Congress keeps passing laws that the IRS has to implement, namely the Affordable Care Act (“ACA”) and the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (“FACTA”). For example, Koskinen said the IRS requested $430 million in 2014 from Congress to implement the ACA but got zero, forcing it to take money out of enforcement and taxpayer services budgets.
This will be the first filing season with two major provisions from the Affordable Care Act –the premium tax credit and the individual shared responsibility payment–on Form 1040. National Taxpayer Advocate Olson said she’s very concerned about the IRS receiving accurate information from the health exchanges. It won’t be the IRS’s fault, but taxpayers will likely put the blame on the IRS. Koskinen touted the web pages that the IRS has created to help explain the ACA tax provisions.
Read more by clicking on this link.
Internal Revenue Service Commissioner John Koskinen warned that close to half the people trying to reach the IRS by phone might not get through during the upcoming 2015 tax filing season. “Phone service could plummet to 53%,” he told an audience of tax practitioners at the AICPA National Tax Conference in Washington, D.C. today. That would be down from an already unacceptable 72% during the 2014 filing season. The average hold time projection: 34 minutes! What’s to blame? Budget woes. “All we can do is try to maximize our services as well as we can; as well as we can is still going to be miserable. You really do get what you pay for,” he said.
Koskinen’s remarks followed National Taxpayer Advocate Nina Olson who was even gloomier:“The filing season is going to be the worst filing season since I’ve been the National Taxpayer Advocate {in 2001}; I’d love to be proved wrong, but I think it will rival the 1985 filing season when returns disappeared.”
There are five key factors at play – complicating the upcoming filing season (that’s when you file your 2014 tax return). The IRS agency budget is the number one challenge, Koskinen said. The House has voted to cut the IRS budget for 2015 by $341 million, and the Senate has proposed to increase it by $240 million—that would still be 7% below 2010 funding levels.
In the meantime, Congress keeps passing laws that the IRS has to implement, namely the Affordable Care Act (“ACA”) and the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (“FACTA”). For example, Koskinen said the IRS requested $430 million in 2014 from Congress to implement the ACA but got zero, forcing it to take money out of enforcement and taxpayer services budgets.
This will be the first filing season with two major provisions from the Affordable Care Act –the premium tax credit and the individual shared responsibility payment–on Form 1040. National Taxpayer Advocate Olson said she’s very concerned about the IRS receiving accurate information from the health exchanges. It won’t be the IRS’s fault, but taxpayers will likely put the blame on the IRS. Koskinen touted the web pages that the IRS has created to help explain the ACA tax provisions.
Read more by clicking on this link.
Thursday, October 30, 2014
October 2014 Client Newsletter
I spent a whole day in income tax school a couple of weeks ago focusing on two areas; The Affordable Care Act, a subject we continue to write about because it changes every tax return we will prepare next year, and new rules concerning the deductibility of repairs or improvements. The instructor started the presentation with this comment. “We are not here to have a political discussion today about Obamacare. With that said, as you will find, Obamacare is a law that is overly complex and overly burdensome.” For example, consider the calculation of whether a taxpayer is not covered by an approved health insurance policy in 2014. It is not $95.00 as many people believe including me until recently. . When a tax return is filed for the 2014 calendar year, the filer must show proof of medical insurance or a tax penalty is imposed, calculated as follows:
For 2014:
If one or more individuals in the household do not have health insurance, calculate the penalty as the greater of the following two tests:
- Flat Dollar Amount: $95 for each adult family member (kids 18 and younger are $47.50), not to exceed a household total of $285.
- Percent of Income Amount: 1 percent of annual household income (you may subtract exemptions and standard deductions). The law has a provision that the penalty amount calculated under this “Percent of Income” test will not exceed the actual cost of a “bronze level” plan in the state insurance marketplace. If 1 percent of a very high income (say $1 million) is $10,000, but the cost of a bronze level plan inside the exchange is $5,000 per year, the “Percent of Income” penalty would be capped at the $5,000.
An Example:
James works for Acme Construction. His wife works for a dental office. They each take their employer-provided medical plan for themselves. However, they choose not to cover their two children on the medical insurance since they feel the premium cost is too expensive. Their combined household income is $65,000 after subtracting standard exemptions and deductions. For 2014, this family would owe $95 under the flat dollar amount ($47.50 for each child) or $650 under the percent of income amount. Since the penalty is the greater of these two tests, they owe a $650 penalty for not having all family members covered by a health insurance plan. Calculation from affordable insurance.com.
What is interesting is the penalty, or as defined by the Supreme Court ruling an excise tax, for not having health insurance is somewhat a toothless tiger. The IRS cannot use any of their usual collection tactics to collect the penalty. No interest. No liens. No levies. They can only collect from future refunds. However, if you have received governmental assistance (credit) to reduce the amount of healthcare premiums due through the healthcare marketplace, and make a mistake, things are much different. If you understated your income on your application and received too much credit for your health insurance payments, you now have a tax liability due and payable with your tax return. IRS is allowed to use their full powers to collect this deficiency. That means liens, interest and levies. It appears at this point that the form used to reconcile the credit obtained through the health care, 1095A, to taxpayers that received assistance will more than likely not be distributed by the January 31, 2015 due date. This form is mandatory in order to prepare those taxpayer’s tax return. In fact, it may be not be available until April 2015. I hope the experts are wrong. IRS is planning on sending notices this fall to those taxpayers it believes may have misstated their income on their healthcare marketplace application. The hope is to avoid the issues involved with assessment of additional taxes and the more than likely bad press that will follow with the enforced collection of that tax.
And even more IRS issues continue to be front page news. 60 Minutes on September 21, featured a story about the proliferation of identity theft and fraudulent tax return refunds. Apparently Florida is the nation’s leader in fraudulently filed tax returns. Stolen identities are easily available in the “Sunshine State.” IRS can’t detect if it is sending multiple refunds to the same address, whether the W2 information is correct, or whether the preloaded debit card scheduled to receive the tax refund really belongs to the real life taxpayer. Fraudulent tax refunds based on identity theft are estimated to grow to $21 billion dollars in the next two years. Almost immediately after the story was televised the IRS responded with some proposed solutions. Essentially the IRS is looking to require employers to file their previous years W2 forms electronically by January 31 of the next year. It appears to be a reasonable solution. In order to file a fraudulent tax return you need two pieces of information, the stolen Social Security Number and a valid taxpayer identification number in order to enter fraudulent W2 information. If the IRS can check the W2 information in real time you eliminate the ability of the crook to file a fraudulent return. Social Security number and employee’s W2 forms have to match. If they don’t match, no refund. Seems to be a simple solution since we are required to furnish our employees their W2 forms by January 31.
Illinois is a Horrendus State. It's Like Doing Business In A Third-World Country
Consider these comments concerning Illinois being the 48th worst state to do business in according to CEO Magazine before you vote next week.
“Corruption and union pensions have made Illinois a poor alternative for business. Continually avoiding to address and fix the problems have only exacerbated the situation. More conservative states are easier to work in and with.”
“Illinois is rated in the worst category; their taxing scheme is deleterious toward small business.The Illinois Dept of Revenue seems most adversarial with respect to small business support and promotion. The Illinois House assembly is inept in addressing the hard issues associated with putting the state’s financial condition in order; they are a taxing and spending machine with little regard to the consequences and impacts to its citizens and businesses.”
“Illinois is a horrendous state in which to do business. It is governed by a class of incompetent, corrupt politicians. It’s like doing business in a third-world country.”
“Corruption and union pensions have made Illinois a poor alternative for business. Continually avoiding to address and fix the problems have only exacerbated the situation. More conservative states are easier to work in and with.”
“Illinois is rated in the worst category; their taxing scheme is deleterious toward small business.The Illinois Dept of Revenue seems most adversarial with respect to small business support and promotion. The Illinois House assembly is inept in addressing the hard issues associated with putting the state’s financial condition in order; they are a taxing and spending machine with little regard to the consequences and impacts to its citizens and businesses.”
“Illinois is a horrendous state in which to do business. It is governed by a class of incompetent, corrupt politicians. It’s like doing business in a third-world country.”
Tuesday, October 14, 2014
Before you even think about doing business with Intuit and Quickbooks read my transcript of a conversation with their Phillipine based customer service
The transcript of my two hour chat with the Intuit Customer Support.
info: Thanks for chatting with us today. Please wait for your Intuit Online Payroll support specialist to join this chat. The average wait time to chat with a specialist is 0 minute(s).
info: You are now chatting with 'Sheena'
Sheena: Hello Don! My name is Sheena and I'm a payroll specialist. Please give me a moment to pull up your account and review your question.
Sheena: No worries! I can definitely help you with that. I want to make sure that you have a great payroll experience with Intuit.
Sheena: I can see that we have not received the auth form for Federal E-services yet.
Sheena: Is it possible for you to send the auth form now?
DON FUENER: WE HAVE FAXED THEM NUMEROUS TIMES. THE 650-745-0651 FAX NUMBER DOESN'T WORK.
Sheena: Is it alright to email it to me? To make sure that I will receive it.
DON FUENER: THE ALTERNATIVE 800-663-7971. HAS GONE THROUGH. IN FACT WE FAXED THE AUTHORIZATION FORMS JUST AN HOUR AGO. YOU GOT THEM.
DON FUENER: HOW DO YOU WANT ME TO EMAIL IT TO YOU?
DON FUENER: WHAT IS YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS?
DON FUENER: AND WHAT HAS INTUIT DONE TO ADDRESS THE FAX ISSUE?
Sheena: Please send it to onlinepayrollattach@intuit.com and in the subject line, enter ATTN Sheena.
DON FUENER: WILL DO.
DON FUENER: WHY HAS THIS BECOME AN ISSUE?
Sheena: Sometimes, we have issues with the auth forms being sent through fax that's why we suggest for the forms to be submitted through email.
DON FUENER: WHY IS INTUIT CHARGING ME SALES TAX?
DON FUENER: IT APPEARS THAT THE ISSUE HAS NOT BEEN FIXED FOR SEVERAL MONTHS?
DON FUENER: WHO IT THE CONTACT PERSON FOR THE SALES TAX ISSUES?
DON FUENER: WHO IS THE CONTACT PERSON FOR THE FAX ISSUES?
Sheena: Have you sent us a sales tax exempt notice?
DON FUENER: WE ARE EXEMPT BASED ON THE FACT THAT WE DO NOT PURHASE ANYTHING FROM ITUIT? YOU A CLOUD BASED SERICE. ILLINOIS DOESN'T TAX SERVICES.
Sheena: The State of IL charged sales tax on Intuit Online payroll as of April ****.
Sheena: Your company or organization may be exempt from sales tax on your Intuit Payroll service fee if one of the following applies:
Sheena: •Your organization is a nonprofit with a sales tax exemption certificate.
Sheena: •Your company has multiple work locations, with most of the business conducted in a state that is exempt from sales tax.
DON FUENER: NO INTUIT MADE THAT DECISION AFTER BUYING THE PAYCYLE COMPANY THAT WAS BASED IN ILLINOIS. BEFORE THAT THE PAYCYLE COMPANY DID NOT CHARGE ME SALES TAX. WHO IS THE CONTACT PERSON THAT MADE THAT DECISION?
DON FUENER: SO WE QUALIFY UNDER THE THIRD EXEMPTION.
Sheena: That was before April **** and after that, we already charge some other States which includes the State of IL.
DON FUENER: Did you receive my email?
DON FUENER: Why can't you give me a contact person? Why the dance?
Sheena: Let me further check on it real quick.
Sheena: For the contact person, I am still checking with my supervisor on that.
DON FUENER: thanks
Sheena: You're welcome. It's my pleasure to help you.
DON FUENER: And the name is?
Sheena: One moment please. I am still checking on it.
DON FUENER: Did you get my email?
Sheena: Hi Don. Thanks so much for waiting,
Sheena: I have received the auth form, verified, and sent it to our back-end team for review.
DON FUENER: Good.
Sheena: Intuit will work with the government agencies to make your E-Services available (2 days for Federal E-Services).
DON FUENER: Contact names concerning the fax number and the sales tax issues?
DON FUENER: For 30 years, it's been all about saving you time. For three decades, we've dedicated ourselves to making the business of accounting more efficient for you and your clients. You've been part of this journey of innovation, so explore our interactive timeline and see where we've been—before we reveal the next big thing!
DON FUENER: That is an email I received from your company this morning.
Sheena: For the contact person, it would be our back-end team who handles the billing, Don.
DON FUENER: Any luck finding a contact within Intuit that is more than a third party customer service person?
Sheena: Do you have a sales tax exempt certificate?
DON FUENER: I do not need one.
Sheena: The State changes it's rule as of April **** and that is the reason why you were charged with Sales tax.
DON FUENER: What is the authority for that statement?
DON FUENER: My conversation with the State of Illinois is exactly the opposite.
DON FUENER: Why did Intuit charge me sales tax prior to April ****?
DON FUENER: Can you give me another person to talk to or not. If you can't let me know.
Sheena: Our back-end team would need the Sales tax exempt statement to verify if we should exempt you from it.
DON FUENER: And the name is?
Sheena: Let me connect you over to my supervisor.
info: Please wait while I transfer the chat to 'Rei'.
info: You are now chatting with 'Rei'
DON FUENER: And have you reviewed this conversation?
Rei: Hi Don! My name Rei and I will assist you. How are you doing today?
DON FUENER: And have you reviewed our conversation?
Rei: Let me check the previous conversation so I can deal with this accordingly.
DON FUENER: Good idea?
Rei: It looks like you have inquiries on the sales tax.
DON FUENER: And the non working fax number.
DON FUENER: And need contact that is beyond a third party customer service agent.
DON FUENER: Are you Phillipine based?
Rei: Looking at the records and the state guidelines, you will be charged with the sales tax not unless you have a sales tax exempt certificate. Are you a non-profit organization or company?
Rei: Yes, I am.
DON FUENER: So who is your US contact?
DON FUENER: Realistically you cannot answer my question. Right?
Rei: We have the knowledge base in our system and we also have a view on your account. Our agents in the Philippines are well trained for US taxation and with the payroll system. Don, I want to make sure that we cover all the issues that you are contacting us with.
Rei: As an Intuit employee, we value your time and your business.
DON FUENER: You haven't provided me with a contact person. Why the dance:
DON FUENER: Why can't you provide me a answer?
Rei: We do not have any specific name from US if you prefer to speak with an American rep.
DON FUENER: Does Intuit not allow you to disclose this information?
DON FUENER: No who is the contact person?
DON FUENER: I want to know who made this decision in the US that they can't fix the fax issues and the sales tax issues?
DON FUENER: I cannot believe that Intuit doesn't have a U.S. based contact.
Rei: What fax number are you using to send us a document?
Rei: So I can check on it.
DON FUENER: 650-745-0651
DON FUENER: 800-663-7901
DON FUENER: And the contact person's name is?
Rei: This fax 800-663-7901 is working.
Rei: What document have you tried sending us if I may ask?
DON FUENER: We have faxed numerous time to this number. e services enrollment.
DON FUENER: And the name of the contact person is?
DON FUENER: Oh my I just checked the Intuit facebook page. It seems you guys have a lot of unhappy customers.
Rei: I can check the fax for you and would make sure that our back end (eservices) will get it.
DON FUENER: The other customer service agent, Sheena I believe, said she got my email.
DON FUENER: Why do you not answer my questions.
DON FUENER: Why would Intuit send me an email that says>>>>>
DON FUENER: For 30 years, it's been all about saving you time. For three decades, we've dedicated ourselves to making the business of accounting more efficient for you and your clients. You've been part of this journey of innovation, so explore our interactive timeline and see where we've been—before we reveal the next big thing!
DON FUENER: And the name of the contact is?
Rei: Don, I wish I can give a name but unfortunately we do not have a specific contact person. Once you get a chat agent, that agent would be able to assist you with your concern.
Rei: I can check that fax for you.
DON FUENER: So fix the problem. Or if you can't. Please say so. You don't have a contact person. Is that right? Or you are not allowed to give us the name of the contact person? Please answer my question specifically.
DON FUENER: Please note that after waiting 10 minutes for a response from Rei. I didn't receive any answer. Had to move on to other things.
Rei: Hi Don. As I checked the email/fax about your eservices enrollment, Sheena have taken care of it and she is currently working with our back end to activate your eservices enrollment.
Rei: Once the review is done, the eservices will be active in 2-3 business days.
DON FUENER: And the answer to my question is?
Rei: What question, Don?
Rei: I am really sorry, Don, but there are couple of questions that you asked and I have answered as well. If you don't mind me asking, what specific question were you asking few minutes ago?
DON FUENER: What is the contact name of the person that handles the sales tax charges in the USA?
DON FUENER: What authority to you base your statement the law changed in the State of Illinois for sales tax in April ****?
DON FUENER: Who is the contact name of the person that handles fax number issues in the United States? The fax number is based in the US, I can only assume, and it hasn't worked for months, so that would mean that we need a non foreign person?
DON FUENER: You really can't answer any of my questions. Right?
Rei: Unfortunately, we do not have a contact person for our fax. However, when you are sending us a document please contact us right away so we can check on it and retrieve those documents form our fax.
DON FUENER: Why would Intuit send me a solicitation email about dedicating ourselves to making the business of accouting more efficient for me and my clients.
DON FUENER: You haven't done either.
DON FUENER: Right?
Rei: I am sorry if you feel that way but we do not send solicitation email. Can you please send the email back to us so I can check on it.
DON FUENER: And your email is?
Rei: You may send it to onlinepayrollattach@intuit.com
DON FUENER: Did you get my email?
Rei: I am still checking on it, Don.
DON FUENER: Please email when you get a chance.
Rei: Yes, definitely.
Rei: I got your email. Let me read it really quick.
info: Your chat transcript will be sent to taxpartner@gmail.com at the end of your chat.
Rei: I apologize for this. This is actually a advertisement from Intuit. As much as possible, Intuit wants to involve you in any company activities. However, if you don't wish to participate on these nor want to receive any of these, you may unsubscribe by clicking the click here next to "To unsubscribe or change your email preferences."
DON FUENER: I guess you are missing the point. I don't want to unsubscribe. I want you to live up to the adverstisement promises. But by your own admission, you do not have the information, the authority, or to help me as a customer become more efficient. You do work for Intuit right?
DON FUENER: You are not dedicating your self to helping me as the email says you are dedicating your self to.
DON FUENER: I can't imagine you are paid enough to dedicate yourself in such fashion?
DON FUENER: Correct?
Rei: Don, I really want to help you with what you are contacting us for. Please let me know how I can assist you and I will be very glad to do so.
Rei: Your time and your business is important to us and we wish to give you the service that you need.
DON FUENER: Let me try it again.
DON FUENER: DON FUENER: What is the contact name of the person that handles the sales tax charges in the USA? DON FUENER: What authority to you base your statement the law changed in the State of Illinois for sales tax in April ****? DON FUENER: Who is the contact name of the person that handles fax number issues in the United States? The fax number is based in the US, I can only assume, and it hasn't worked for months, so that would mean that we need a non foreign person? DON FUENER: You really can't answer any of my questions. Right?
DON FUENER: Can you answer any of these questions?
Rei: We have the back end team who takes care of the sales tax charges but those people are not frontline agents. What we do is send them the sales tax exempt certificate that you are required to send us through the email address that I have sent you earlier.
DON FUENER: Let me try it again.
DON FUENER: DON FUENER: DON FUENER: What is the contact name of the person that handles the sales tax charges in the USA? DON FUENER: What authority to you base your statement the law changed in the State of Illinois for sales tax in April ****? DON FUENER: Who is the contact name of the person that handles fax number issues in the United States? The fax number is based in the US, I can only assume, and it hasn't worked for months, so that would mean that we need a non foreign person? DON FUENER: You really can't answer any of my questions. Right? DON FUENER: Can you answer any of these questions?
Rei: 1. I cannot provide you the name since we do not have a specific contact person who handles sales tax. They are a team.
Rei: 2. We were not the ones who change the taxability on the state. It was the state of IL. You may contact them directly if you have questions on that.
DON FUENER: Who is the team leader?
Rei: I am one of the team leaders who is handling the chat group.
Rei: 3. I cannot provide you the name since we do not have a specific contact person who handles sales tax. Each document sent will be handled by each rep who you spoke with.
Rei: 4. The fax is working fine.
DON FUENER: The assumption is Intuit is correct. I am a licensed tax preparer. Who do you contact if you cannot answer a question?
DON FUENER: The fax is not working fine.
Rei: The fax that I am referring to is 8006337901.
Rei: We have a group of people in the US that we contact to assist customers like you.
DON FUENER: Will you please forward my questions to the group of people that you refuse to name?
Rei: If you could send us your sales tax exempt certificate then we can move forward.
Rei: I am so sorry but I cannot do that.
DON FUENER: I do not have a sales tax exemption receipt.
DON FUENER: So you cannot answer my questions and you refuse to forward it to the group of people you refuse to name.
Rei: You need to get the sales tax exempt certificate if you do not wish to pay the sales tax. This is something that the state require.
DON FUENER: Sorry you are wrong.
DON FUENER: Please forward my question to the group of people that you refuse to name.
DON FUENER: 650-745-0651 is not working by the way.
Rei: I would suggest that you use the 8006637901.
DON FUENER: Oh my. We did and no one processed the various faxes.
DON FUENER: Why would Intuit include a fax number that doesn't work correct and have their customer servie people tell their customers to use another fax number?
DON FUENER: Please forward my questions to the group of people in the United States that you refuse to name. Why is not disclosing the peoples names an issue?
DON FUENER: Why do we have to have this prolonged chat, when in fact, you have told me you can't answer any of my questions?
DON FUENER: What is the procedure to handle questions that your call center can't answer?
DON FUENER: Don't you understand that this chat is going to publised on the internet?
Rei: As I validated with our back end team, the fax number 650-745-0651 is working fine.
DON FUENER: Sorry it is not working we just verified it.
DON FUENER: How do we get a hold of the "back end team" and where are they located?
Rei: Don, I know that I may sound like I am repeating myself over and over again. I really don't know how to tell you again that the back end team can not be contacted directly by customers. If you have questions on your account and would need further assistance, our frontline agents would be glad to assist you. I really wish I can give name, Don. If you only know, I really would. I don't want to waste your time and would only aim to give you an excellent service.
Rei: From the bottom of my heart, I really want to assist you with what you deserve. You are very important to us.
DON FUENER: So from what you are telling me Intuit is not going to let you answer my questions, or forward my questions to another person, and despite your assurances to the customer, we don't really feel that important. So my only solution is to go viral with this amazing customer service conversation. Right?
DON FUENER: I find it difficult to believe that Intuit has handcuffed its foreign based customer service agents in such a manner that it puts you in such a difficult position/awarkward crazy position.
DON FUENER: So really the problem is with Intuit? They will not let you do your job. Right?
Rei: I couldn't stop you on that, Don. If that's something that pleases your heart then so be it. Know that here at Intuit, we only aim for providing you a good customer service experience. If you would let me help you with any of your concerns then I will be very glad to do so.
DON FUENER: But you can't.
DON FUENER: I am emailing our conversation to Mr. Smith I guess. Thanks for your time.
info: Your chat transcript will be sent to taxpartner@gmail.com at the end of your chat.
info: Thanks for chatting with us today. Please wait for your Intuit Online Payroll support specialist to join this chat. The average wait time to chat with a specialist is 0 minute(s).
info: You are now chatting with 'Sheena'
Sheena: Hello Don! My name is Sheena and I'm a payroll specialist. Please give me a moment to pull up your account and review your question.
Sheena: No worries! I can definitely help you with that. I want to make sure that you have a great payroll experience with Intuit.
Sheena: I can see that we have not received the auth form for Federal E-services yet.
Sheena: Is it possible for you to send the auth form now?
DON FUENER: WE HAVE FAXED THEM NUMEROUS TIMES. THE 650-745-0651 FAX NUMBER DOESN'T WORK.
Sheena: Is it alright to email it to me? To make sure that I will receive it.
DON FUENER: THE ALTERNATIVE 800-663-7971. HAS GONE THROUGH. IN FACT WE FAXED THE AUTHORIZATION FORMS JUST AN HOUR AGO. YOU GOT THEM.
DON FUENER: HOW DO YOU WANT ME TO EMAIL IT TO YOU?
DON FUENER: WHAT IS YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS?
DON FUENER: AND WHAT HAS INTUIT DONE TO ADDRESS THE FAX ISSUE?
Sheena: Please send it to onlinepayrollattach@intuit.com and in the subject line, enter ATTN Sheena.
DON FUENER: WILL DO.
DON FUENER: WHY HAS THIS BECOME AN ISSUE?
Sheena: Sometimes, we have issues with the auth forms being sent through fax that's why we suggest for the forms to be submitted through email.
DON FUENER: WHY IS INTUIT CHARGING ME SALES TAX?
DON FUENER: IT APPEARS THAT THE ISSUE HAS NOT BEEN FIXED FOR SEVERAL MONTHS?
DON FUENER: WHO IT THE CONTACT PERSON FOR THE SALES TAX ISSUES?
DON FUENER: WHO IS THE CONTACT PERSON FOR THE FAX ISSUES?
Sheena: Have you sent us a sales tax exempt notice?
DON FUENER: WE ARE EXEMPT BASED ON THE FACT THAT WE DO NOT PURHASE ANYTHING FROM ITUIT? YOU A CLOUD BASED SERICE. ILLINOIS DOESN'T TAX SERVICES.
Sheena: The State of IL charged sales tax on Intuit Online payroll as of April ****.
Sheena: Your company or organization may be exempt from sales tax on your Intuit Payroll service fee if one of the following applies:
Sheena: •Your organization is a nonprofit with a sales tax exemption certificate.
Sheena: •Your company has multiple work locations, with most of the business conducted in a state that is exempt from sales tax.
DON FUENER: NO INTUIT MADE THAT DECISION AFTER BUYING THE PAYCYLE COMPANY THAT WAS BASED IN ILLINOIS. BEFORE THAT THE PAYCYLE COMPANY DID NOT CHARGE ME SALES TAX. WHO IS THE CONTACT PERSON THAT MADE THAT DECISION?
DON FUENER: SO WE QUALIFY UNDER THE THIRD EXEMPTION.
Sheena: That was before April **** and after that, we already charge some other States which includes the State of IL.
DON FUENER: Did you receive my email?
DON FUENER: Why can't you give me a contact person? Why the dance?
Sheena: Let me further check on it real quick.
Sheena: For the contact person, I am still checking with my supervisor on that.
DON FUENER: thanks
Sheena: You're welcome. It's my pleasure to help you.
DON FUENER: And the name is?
Sheena: One moment please. I am still checking on it.
DON FUENER: Did you get my email?
Sheena: Hi Don. Thanks so much for waiting,
Sheena: I have received the auth form, verified, and sent it to our back-end team for review.
DON FUENER: Good.
Sheena: Intuit will work with the government agencies to make your E-Services available (2 days for Federal E-Services).
DON FUENER: Contact names concerning the fax number and the sales tax issues?
DON FUENER: For 30 years, it's been all about saving you time. For three decades, we've dedicated ourselves to making the business of accounting more efficient for you and your clients. You've been part of this journey of innovation, so explore our interactive timeline and see where we've been—before we reveal the next big thing!
DON FUENER: That is an email I received from your company this morning.
Sheena: For the contact person, it would be our back-end team who handles the billing, Don.
DON FUENER: Any luck finding a contact within Intuit that is more than a third party customer service person?
Sheena: Do you have a sales tax exempt certificate?
DON FUENER: I do not need one.
Sheena: The State changes it's rule as of April **** and that is the reason why you were charged with Sales tax.
DON FUENER: What is the authority for that statement?
DON FUENER: My conversation with the State of Illinois is exactly the opposite.
DON FUENER: Why did Intuit charge me sales tax prior to April ****?
DON FUENER: Can you give me another person to talk to or not. If you can't let me know.
Sheena: Our back-end team would need the Sales tax exempt statement to verify if we should exempt you from it.
DON FUENER: And the name is?
Sheena: Let me connect you over to my supervisor.
info: Please wait while I transfer the chat to 'Rei'.
info: You are now chatting with 'Rei'
DON FUENER: And have you reviewed this conversation?
Rei: Hi Don! My name Rei and I will assist you. How are you doing today?
DON FUENER: And have you reviewed our conversation?
Rei: Let me check the previous conversation so I can deal with this accordingly.
DON FUENER: Good idea?
Rei: It looks like you have inquiries on the sales tax.
DON FUENER: And the non working fax number.
DON FUENER: And need contact that is beyond a third party customer service agent.
DON FUENER: Are you Phillipine based?
Rei: Looking at the records and the state guidelines, you will be charged with the sales tax not unless you have a sales tax exempt certificate. Are you a non-profit organization or company?
Rei: Yes, I am.
DON FUENER: So who is your US contact?
DON FUENER: Realistically you cannot answer my question. Right?
Rei: We have the knowledge base in our system and we also have a view on your account. Our agents in the Philippines are well trained for US taxation and with the payroll system. Don, I want to make sure that we cover all the issues that you are contacting us with.
Rei: As an Intuit employee, we value your time and your business.
DON FUENER: You haven't provided me with a contact person. Why the dance:
DON FUENER: Why can't you provide me a answer?
Rei: We do not have any specific name from US if you prefer to speak with an American rep.
DON FUENER: Does Intuit not allow you to disclose this information?
DON FUENER: No who is the contact person?
DON FUENER: I want to know who made this decision in the US that they can't fix the fax issues and the sales tax issues?
DON FUENER: I cannot believe that Intuit doesn't have a U.S. based contact.
Rei: What fax number are you using to send us a document?
Rei: So I can check on it.
DON FUENER: 650-745-0651
DON FUENER: 800-663-7901
DON FUENER: And the contact person's name is?
Rei: This fax 800-663-7901 is working.
Rei: What document have you tried sending us if I may ask?
DON FUENER: We have faxed numerous time to this number. e services enrollment.
DON FUENER: And the name of the contact person is?
DON FUENER: Oh my I just checked the Intuit facebook page. It seems you guys have a lot of unhappy customers.
Rei: I can check the fax for you and would make sure that our back end (eservices) will get it.
DON FUENER: The other customer service agent, Sheena I believe, said she got my email.
DON FUENER: Why do you not answer my questions.
DON FUENER: Why would Intuit send me an email that says>>>>>
DON FUENER: For 30 years, it's been all about saving you time. For three decades, we've dedicated ourselves to making the business of accounting more efficient for you and your clients. You've been part of this journey of innovation, so explore our interactive timeline and see where we've been—before we reveal the next big thing!
DON FUENER: And the name of the contact is?
Rei: Don, I wish I can give a name but unfortunately we do not have a specific contact person. Once you get a chat agent, that agent would be able to assist you with your concern.
Rei: I can check that fax for you.
DON FUENER: So fix the problem. Or if you can't. Please say so. You don't have a contact person. Is that right? Or you are not allowed to give us the name of the contact person? Please answer my question specifically.
DON FUENER: Please note that after waiting 10 minutes for a response from Rei. I didn't receive any answer. Had to move on to other things.
Rei: Hi Don. As I checked the email/fax about your eservices enrollment, Sheena have taken care of it and she is currently working with our back end to activate your eservices enrollment.
Rei: Once the review is done, the eservices will be active in 2-3 business days.
DON FUENER: And the answer to my question is?
Rei: What question, Don?
Rei: I am really sorry, Don, but there are couple of questions that you asked and I have answered as well. If you don't mind me asking, what specific question were you asking few minutes ago?
DON FUENER: What is the contact name of the person that handles the sales tax charges in the USA?
DON FUENER: What authority to you base your statement the law changed in the State of Illinois for sales tax in April ****?
DON FUENER: Who is the contact name of the person that handles fax number issues in the United States? The fax number is based in the US, I can only assume, and it hasn't worked for months, so that would mean that we need a non foreign person?
DON FUENER: You really can't answer any of my questions. Right?
Rei: Unfortunately, we do not have a contact person for our fax. However, when you are sending us a document please contact us right away so we can check on it and retrieve those documents form our fax.
DON FUENER: Why would Intuit send me a solicitation email about dedicating ourselves to making the business of accouting more efficient for me and my clients.
DON FUENER: You haven't done either.
DON FUENER: Right?
Rei: I am sorry if you feel that way but we do not send solicitation email. Can you please send the email back to us so I can check on it.
DON FUENER: And your email is?
Rei: You may send it to onlinepayrollattach@intuit.com
DON FUENER: Did you get my email?
Rei: I am still checking on it, Don.
DON FUENER: Please email when you get a chance.
Rei: Yes, definitely.
Rei: I got your email. Let me read it really quick.
info: Your chat transcript will be sent to taxpartner@gmail.com at the end of your chat.
Rei: I apologize for this. This is actually a advertisement from Intuit. As much as possible, Intuit wants to involve you in any company activities. However, if you don't wish to participate on these nor want to receive any of these, you may unsubscribe by clicking the click here next to "To unsubscribe or change your email preferences."
DON FUENER: I guess you are missing the point. I don't want to unsubscribe. I want you to live up to the adverstisement promises. But by your own admission, you do not have the information, the authority, or to help me as a customer become more efficient. You do work for Intuit right?
DON FUENER: You are not dedicating your self to helping me as the email says you are dedicating your self to.
DON FUENER: I can't imagine you are paid enough to dedicate yourself in such fashion?
DON FUENER: Correct?
Rei: Don, I really want to help you with what you are contacting us for. Please let me know how I can assist you and I will be very glad to do so.
Rei: Your time and your business is important to us and we wish to give you the service that you need.
DON FUENER: Let me try it again.
DON FUENER: DON FUENER: What is the contact name of the person that handles the sales tax charges in the USA? DON FUENER: What authority to you base your statement the law changed in the State of Illinois for sales tax in April ****? DON FUENER: Who is the contact name of the person that handles fax number issues in the United States? The fax number is based in the US, I can only assume, and it hasn't worked for months, so that would mean that we need a non foreign person? DON FUENER: You really can't answer any of my questions. Right?
DON FUENER: Can you answer any of these questions?
Rei: We have the back end team who takes care of the sales tax charges but those people are not frontline agents. What we do is send them the sales tax exempt certificate that you are required to send us through the email address that I have sent you earlier.
DON FUENER: Let me try it again.
DON FUENER: DON FUENER: DON FUENER: What is the contact name of the person that handles the sales tax charges in the USA? DON FUENER: What authority to you base your statement the law changed in the State of Illinois for sales tax in April ****? DON FUENER: Who is the contact name of the person that handles fax number issues in the United States? The fax number is based in the US, I can only assume, and it hasn't worked for months, so that would mean that we need a non foreign person? DON FUENER: You really can't answer any of my questions. Right? DON FUENER: Can you answer any of these questions?
Rei: 1. I cannot provide you the name since we do not have a specific contact person who handles sales tax. They are a team.
Rei: 2. We were not the ones who change the taxability on the state. It was the state of IL. You may contact them directly if you have questions on that.
DON FUENER: Who is the team leader?
Rei: I am one of the team leaders who is handling the chat group.
Rei: 3. I cannot provide you the name since we do not have a specific contact person who handles sales tax. Each document sent will be handled by each rep who you spoke with.
Rei: 4. The fax is working fine.
DON FUENER: The assumption is Intuit is correct. I am a licensed tax preparer. Who do you contact if you cannot answer a question?
DON FUENER: The fax is not working fine.
Rei: The fax that I am referring to is 8006337901.
Rei: We have a group of people in the US that we contact to assist customers like you.
DON FUENER: Will you please forward my questions to the group of people that you refuse to name?
Rei: If you could send us your sales tax exempt certificate then we can move forward.
Rei: I am so sorry but I cannot do that.
DON FUENER: I do not have a sales tax exemption receipt.
DON FUENER: So you cannot answer my questions and you refuse to forward it to the group of people you refuse to name.
Rei: You need to get the sales tax exempt certificate if you do not wish to pay the sales tax. This is something that the state require.
DON FUENER: Sorry you are wrong.
DON FUENER: Please forward my question to the group of people that you refuse to name.
DON FUENER: 650-745-0651 is not working by the way.
Rei: I would suggest that you use the 8006637901.
DON FUENER: Oh my. We did and no one processed the various faxes.
DON FUENER: Why would Intuit include a fax number that doesn't work correct and have their customer servie people tell their customers to use another fax number?
DON FUENER: Please forward my questions to the group of people in the United States that you refuse to name. Why is not disclosing the peoples names an issue?
DON FUENER: Why do we have to have this prolonged chat, when in fact, you have told me you can't answer any of my questions?
DON FUENER: What is the procedure to handle questions that your call center can't answer?
DON FUENER: Don't you understand that this chat is going to publised on the internet?
Rei: As I validated with our back end team, the fax number 650-745-0651 is working fine.
DON FUENER: Sorry it is not working we just verified it.
DON FUENER: How do we get a hold of the "back end team" and where are they located?
Rei: Don, I know that I may sound like I am repeating myself over and over again. I really don't know how to tell you again that the back end team can not be contacted directly by customers. If you have questions on your account and would need further assistance, our frontline agents would be glad to assist you. I really wish I can give name, Don. If you only know, I really would. I don't want to waste your time and would only aim to give you an excellent service.
Rei: From the bottom of my heart, I really want to assist you with what you deserve. You are very important to us.
DON FUENER: So from what you are telling me Intuit is not going to let you answer my questions, or forward my questions to another person, and despite your assurances to the customer, we don't really feel that important. So my only solution is to go viral with this amazing customer service conversation. Right?
DON FUENER: I find it difficult to believe that Intuit has handcuffed its foreign based customer service agents in such a manner that it puts you in such a difficult position/awarkward crazy position.
DON FUENER: So really the problem is with Intuit? They will not let you do your job. Right?
Rei: I couldn't stop you on that, Don. If that's something that pleases your heart then so be it. Know that here at Intuit, we only aim for providing you a good customer service experience. If you would let me help you with any of your concerns then I will be very glad to do so.
DON FUENER: But you can't.
DON FUENER: I am emailing our conversation to Mr. Smith I guess. Thanks for your time.
info: Your chat transcript will be sent to taxpartner@gmail.com at the end of your chat.
Sunday, September 21, 2014
September 2014 Client Newsletter
“You can have results or excuses. Not both.” – Anonymous
I ran across a great little book a couple of weeks ago by author George Cloutier, “Profits Aren’t Everything, They’re the Only Thing.” In the introduction Cloutier asks some very powerful questions. Do you take responsibility for every aspect of your business? You better. You are the boss. Are your blaming employees when they don’t do something right? Do you work on Sundays? Do your workers respect you, not like you? Are you aware of all your customers and their needs? Do you pay for performance? Do you pay yourself well? Are you satisfied?
Although I am still in the middle of the book, not quite done, I thought I would pass on some rather radical ideas not found elsewhere from Cloutier:
"Entrepreneurs are people that start a business thinking they can do it better than their boss did and to make more money and enjoy life more. But if you don't have the controls and processes in place, far from gaining control over your life, you lose it, and become a slave to the employees and vendors you have to pay to keep the business alive.”
The only solution to this and the only way to regain control: put profits first. When budgeting, the first thing to budget are profits. Assume a profit percentage rate equal to that of the industry top quartile, leaving an expense budget remaining for all remaining costs. No cost in business is truly fixed. There's plenty you can live without. Profits first budgeting is like the family that says "Okay, we are going to save $1000 a month and go without until we can put that $1000 into a savings account."
Cut ruthlessly to earn.
You must micromanage. Expect someone else to do something and 90% of the time it won't get done. You should wear the badge of control freak with pride. Always circle back and follow up to make sure every task was in fact done. With a small business you have to know everything that is going on at all times.
In a small business, you don't have the time or money to correct bad mistakes or to constantly be making the same mistakes. Small businesses fail too fast. Doling out extra responsibility and praise, and hoping that workers will just somehow magically rise to the occasion is wishful thinking.
Small business owners have an unlimited capacity for deluding themselves until they are broke.
Implement required changes without mercy. When needing to confront people, you can ease the process by asking permission to be confrontational at the onset of the conversation.
Remember, you can always hire someone better for less.
This is a great book to get the entrepreneur's juices flowing and remind him or her of the basics over and over again. If you are in business and you have not figured out that profit is the only thing that is worth working for then, as Cloutier says at some point 'you'd better go out and kill yourself'.
One last thing from Cloutier’s chapter about ending denial, question nine from his denial pop quiz.
What do you consider to be the most accurate barometer of your businesses success?
A: Profits and cash
B: Profits and cash
C: Profits and cash
D: Profits and cash
In what seemed a never ending parade of bad news, poorly presented sessions and a lack of ability to answer anyones questions, I was struck by how good the about to take place myRA accounts presented at the retirement session at July’s IRS Nationwide Tax Forum really is.
From the Department of Treasury web site:
For businesses, making myRA available to employees is straight-forward. Treasury will handle account set-up and maintenance and will provide informational materials for business owners to share with their employees. There is no employer-match or contribution. In fact, all that interested employers have to do is to make Treasury-provided program materials available to their employees and set-up ongoing payroll direct deposits into myRA for interested employees. myRA is intended for employees who do not have access to an employer-sponsored plan or who are not eligible for their employer’s plan. myRA is not intended to replace current employer-sponsored retirement plan offerings.
For workers, myRA is simple, safe and affordable. Employees will be able to start saving with an initial deposit of as little as $25 and recurring contributions each pay period of $5 or more. Account balances are protected--they will never go down in value, and there are no fees for savers to participate. The accounts are also portable so if savers change jobs, they can maintain their accounts across multiple jobs.
Contributions to a myRA are made with after-tax dollars, and when savers retire, they won’t have to pay taxes on what these accounts earn, provided they meet the relevant Roth IRA requirements.
While myRA is for employers of all sizes, Treasury knows that this program has the potential to be a powerful tool for small business owners who want to help their employees begin to save for retirement.
As an incentive to small business employers to offer the the myRa program the government is going to offer a tax credit for your troubles. Although I read some criticisms of the program while researching it, this is a program that even the lowest paid employee can participate in, a minimal amount of periodic savings deposit requirement, the principal amount of the account is backed by the federal government, and a tax credit for allowing your employees to participate, adding up to a very good thing. We will forward you information after the Treasury Department officially begins offering the accounts, hopefully this fall.
To the contrary I couldn’t help thinking that the enforcement of the Obamacare employer mandate, as presented at the IRS Nationwide Tax Forum, is going to pretty much be mission impossible.
2014 was the year that the Obamacare was suppose to impose the employer employee health care mandate was scheduled to be implemented. It obviously wasn’t implemented. For 2015 the employee health care mandate was again postponed for all employers with under 100 employees. By my estimation this postponement covered nearly 95 % of all businesses in the United States. Safely after election day the employer health care mandate will finally be in force for all businesses with more than 50 employees.
If you are an employer, and are mandated to cover your employee’s health insurance and you don’t, you are subject to a penalty of $2,000 per employee. Or if you have any employee getting a subsidy from the Healthcare Marketplace and you are not providing this employee health insurance, you are subject to a penalty of $2,000 per employee. Here is the rub. There are no forms to file, well kind of. The IRS is going to send you a bill, relying on information provided to them from three sources; Insurance companies, The Health Insurance Marketplace, The Employer.
Under current IRS Obamacare rules, three new forms have been developed to determine whether an employer is subject to the $2,000 penalty. The plan is for the already overburdened IRS to process these additional forms, compare the information, make a determination if the employer is in compliance. and assess any penalties if applicable. IRS currently processes, rather poorly, not my opinion but that of the Treasury Inspector General For Tax Administration (TIGTA), 173 million tax forms a year. I couldn’t find an estimate of the number of additional forms that Obamacare will generate, but it has to be in the tens of millions.
As proof of IRS’ inability to handle the upcoming responsibility to determine the employer mandate you don’t have to look any further than how it is currently enforcing other current portions of the Obamacare taxes. According to Yahoo news, Obamacare has instituted an excise tax – equal to 2.3 percent of the sales price of medical devices – that took effect in January, 2013 and is estimated to bring in about $20 billion through 2019, according to the Joint Committee on Taxation has said. Auditors say the IRS had originally estimated that the tax would bring in about $1.2 billion in the second and third quarters of 2013 – but it’s only received $913.4 million. Under the law, producers and manufacturers are required to file Form 720 that reports the medical device tax on their tax returns. But when TIGTA went to review how the agency was processing the tax returns this year, it found the agency had no way to identify which medical device manufacturers were required to pay the tax. It also had no controls in place to “ensure the accuracy” of the tax revenue reported. One can come to the conclusion that when the employer mandate is finally instituted next year the same results are in store. Like I said mission impossible.
One final note from the IRS Nationwide Tax Forum. You really are going it alone when it comes to tax law and certainly don’t rely on the IRS for help. I learned that a recent tax court case dealing with the number of allowed IRA rollovers is limited to one per taxpayer per year. This ruling is contrary to information that had been written in the previous IRS publications dealing with IRA rollovers. The ability to execute IRA rollovers on a one-per-IRA basis has been described in detail in IRS Publication 590, Individual Retirement Arrangements (IRAs), for at least 20 years “IRS publication is not official guidance” wrote the tax court. In the case Bobrow v. Commissioner, the Court looked at a situation where the taxpayer, Mr. Bobrow, had made two IRA rollovers within a 12-month period. Each rollover consisted of assets distributed from a different IRA. The Court disallowed Bobrow’s IRA rollover on the grounds that he was limited to one rollover per taxpayer per 12-month period, not one rollover per IRA contrary to IRS guidance. There you go.
There comes a time in a small business owner’s life where you figure it out or your business dies. The mistake most business owners make is a focus on production, not marketing. The number one mistake that small business owners make is that marketing is subject to the influence of, dare we call it salespeople. Advertising salespeople. Master the marketing of your business and you will succeed.
Thursday, September 4, 2014
Forbes.com Obamacare is dampering the job market in three ways
From Forbes.com
For most Americans, Labor Day is an opportunity to take an extra day off of work and enjoy a long weekend with family and friends. But for more than 100 million Americans, Labor Day isn’t a day off from work. That’s because two-fifths of the population is either unemployed, or out of the workforce altogether. The U.S. economy is still not back on its feet, six years after the financial crisis of 2008. One big reason is Obamacare, a law that is hampering job growth in three principal ways.
Read more by clicking on this link
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