It is that time of year again where you should consider meeting with a tax professional to discuss any year end strategies that might reduce your 2022 taxes. The following are some of the tax breaks from which you may benefit, as well as the strategies that you could use to help minimize your taxable income and resulting federal tax liability for 2022.
Employee Benefits
Business owners could reap tax benefits and other advantages by offering a retirement plan and/or other fringe benefits to employees. By offering such benefits, the business has a better chance of attracting and retaining talented workers which, in turn, reduces the costs of searching for and training new employees. Contributions made to retirement plans on behalf of employees are deductible and the business may be eligible for a tax credit for setting up a qualified plan if one is not already established.
If a business has not already done so, it might consider the establishment of a flexible spending arrangement (FSA). An FSA allows employees to be reimbursed for medical expenses and is usually funded through voluntary salary reduction agreements with the employer. The employer has the option of making or not making contributions to the FSA. Some of the benefits of providing an FSA for employees include contributions made by the business being excluded from the employee’s gross income, reimbursements to the employee are tax free if used for qualified medical expenses, the FSA can be used to pay qualified medical expenses even if the employer or employee haven’t yet placed the funds in the account, and up to $570 of funds in the FSA can be carried over to subsequent years indefinitely.
Another popular employee benefit a business might consider is a high deductible health plan paired with a health savings account (HSA). The benefits to the business include savings on health insurance premiums that would otherwise be paid to traditional health insurance companies and having employee wage contributions to the plan not being counted as wages and thus neither the employer nor the employee is subject to FICA taxes on the payroll contributions. As for employees, they can reap a tax deduction for funds contributed to the HSA, and there is no use-it-or-lose-it limit like there is for most flexible spending arrangements (FSAs). Thus, the funds can grow tax free and be used in retirement.
Pass-Thru Entity Considerations
If you are operating a business through a pass-thru entity such as a partnership or S corporation, your basis in the entity must be high enough to allow for any loss deduction, if you have one for the year. In such a situation, you should consider the options available for increasing your basis in such entity.
If you are an S corporation shareholder it is important to ensure that you and other shareholders involved in running the business are paid an amount that is commensurate with the work being done. The IRS scrutinizes S corporations which distribute profits instead of paying compensation subject to employment taxes. Failing to pay arm’s length salaries can lead to tax deficiencies, interest, and penalties. The key to establishing reasonable compensation is showing that the compensation paid for the type of work an owner-employee does for the S corporation is similar to what other entities would pay for similar work. An S corporation needs to adequately document the factors that support the salary an S corporation owner is being paid.
Further, because there are stringent requirements for who may be an S corporation shareholder, if the number of shareholders have changed or increased during the year, you should review the residency or citizenship status of the S corporation’s shareholders and S corporation stock beneficiaries (including contingent and residuary beneficiaries).
Energy Efficient Commercial Building Deduction
If a business owns a commercial building, a deduction is available for an amount equal to the cost of energy efficient commercial building property placed in service during the tax year. The maximum deduction with respect to any building for any tax year is the excess (if any) of (1) the product of $1.88, and the square footage of the building, over (2) the aggregate amount of the deductions for all prior tax years.
Clean Energy Credits.
For 2022, the clean energy tax credits available include (1) residential energy property credits (the nonbusiness energy property credit and the residential clean energy property credit) and (2) vehicle-related credits (the qualified plug-in electric drive motor vehicle credit and the alternative fuel refueling property credit). These credits were significantly expanded by the Inflation Reduction Act, generally beginning after December 31, 2022. However, as described in more detail below, a change to the credit for purchasing an electric vehicle, requiring the final assembly of the vehicle in the United States, takes effect on August 17, 2022.
For years before 2023, the nonbusiness energy property credit (renamed the energy efficient home improvement credit by the Inflation Reduction Act) is a credit for: (1) 10 percent of the cost of qualified energy efficiency improvements installed during the year; and (2) the amount of the residential energy property expenditures paid or incurred during the year. Qualified energy efficiency improvements include the following qualifying products: (1) energy-efficient exterior windows, doors and skylights; (2) roofs (metal and asphalt) and roof products; and (3) insulation. Residential energy property expenditures generally include: (1) energy-efficient heating and air conditioning systems, and (2) water heaters (natural gas, propane, or oil). There is a lifetime limit of $500 on the total amount of nonbusiness energy property credits that may be claimed. In addition, the amount of the credit taken with respect to windows is limited to $200. The following additional limitations also apply to the nonbusiness energy property credit: (1) $300 for any item of energy-efficient building property; (2) $150 for any furnace or hot water boiler; and (3) $50 for any advanced main air circulating fan.
Beginning in 2023, this credit is increased to 30 percent of the costs of all qualified energy efficiency improvements and residential energy property expenditures made during the year. In addition, the lifetime credit limitation is replaced with an annual limit of $1,200. The annual limits for specific types of qualifying improvements are (1) $250 for any exterior door ($500 total for all exterior doors), (2) $600 for exterior windows and skylights, (3) $600 for other qualified energy property (including central air conditioners; electric panels and certain related equipment; natural gas, propane, or oil water heaters; oil furnaces; water boilers), and (4) a higher $2,000 annual limit for heat pumps and heat pump water heaters, biomass stoves, and boilers. The Inflation Reduction Act also added a credit of up to $150 per year for home energy audits. Roofs no longer qualify for the credit beginning in 2023.
The residential energy efficient property credit (renamed the residential clean energy credit by the Inflation Reduction Act) equals 30 percent of the cost of certain qualified property installed on or used in connection with your home. For 2022, qualifying properties are: (1) solar electric property, (2) solar water heaters, (3) fuel cell property, (4) small wind turbines, (5) geothermal heat pumps, and (6) biomass fuel property. Biomass fuel property expenditures no longer qualify after December 31, 2022. However, battery storage technology expenditures qualify beginning in 2023.
The qualified plug-in electric drive motor vehicle credit may be available if you acquired a qualified electric vehicle and placed it in service this year. For 2022, the amount of the credit is $2,500, plus an amount based on the battery capacity of the vehicle if the vehicle draws propulsion energy from a battery with at least 5 kilowatt hours of capacity. The credit begins to phase out for a manufacturer’s vehicles when at least 200,000 qualifying vehicles have been sold for use in the United States. For instance, Tesla and GM vehicles purchased in 2022 are not eligible for tax credits since those manufacturers have exceeded the 200,000-vehicle threshold.
The Inflation Reduction Act significantly modified the electric vehicle credit. After August 16, 2022, the credit is generally available only for qualifying electric vehicles for which final assembly occurred in North America. However, under a transition rule, if you entered a written binding contract to purchase an electric vehicle on or before August 16, 2022, but took possession of the vehicle after that date, you would not be subject to the final assembly requirement. The Inflation Reduction Act also increased the amount of this credit, effective after December 31, 2022. Beginning in 2023, the total credit amount is $7,500, consisting of $3,750 for vehicles meeting a critical minerals requirement and $3,750 for vehicles a battery component requirement. In addition, price limits apply depending on the vehicle type ($80,000 for vans, SUVs, and pickup trucks; $55,000 for other vehicles). The credit is also not available to taxpayers with adjusted gross income over $300,000 (married filing jointly), $225,000 (head of household), and $150,000 (single). Other requirements apply beginning after 2023.
The alternative fuel vehicle refueling property credit is a credit for 30 percent of the cost of purchasing qualified alternative fuel vehicle refueling property. This credit initially expired at the end of 2021 but was extended through 2032 by the Inflation Reduction Act. The amount of the credit is limited to a certain dollar amount, which depends on whether the property is used for business or personal purposes. The amount of the credit for business-use property (i.e., depreciable property) is limited to $30,000. The amount of the credit for personal-use property (i.e., non-depreciable property) is limited to $1,000.
Beginning next year, the credit allowed with respect to any single item of qualified alternative fuel vehicle refueling property placed in service during the tax year cannot exceed (1) $100,000 in the case of depreciable property, and (2) $1,000 in any other case. In addition, the definition of qualifying property is expanded to include bidirectional charging equipment and the credit can also be claimed for electric charging stations for two- and three-wheeled vehicles that are intended for use on public roads.
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