New Printer Won't Print in QuickBooks?

Have you recently purchased a new printer and found that it works in every program on your computer except QuickBooks?

You're not alone.  The fix is easy...simply follow these steps:

• Go to the printer (under control panel)
• Right click on the printer
• Select properties
• Select the advanced tab
• Check print directly to printer option

Voila you can print!

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IRS & States Team up to Find Independent Contractors

The IRS and the states know how tempting it is to classify workers as Independent Contractors because of saved employment taxes. 

That’s why Delaware and Wisconsin are targeting the construction industry with penalties of $1,000-$5,000 per violation. 

Other states such as Indiana and Nevada and Ohio are starting to share information on misclassified workers and similar violations. 

Expect your state to be watching you for misclassifying employees as Independent Contractors.

Determining a workers’s status depends on the facts that define both the entity and relationship of the entity to the worker at the time that the services are rendered. 

Here are the two categories of workers that the IRS and states are focusing on: 

Common Law Employee - Works for and performs services under the control of the entity that pays for the services.

Independent Contractor - An individual in business for him-/herself whose services are free of control from the entity paying for the services.

Employment taxes apply soley to employee wages.  These include FITW, employee and employer FICA, and FUTA. 

States may have SITW, SUI and disability. 

A business normally is not required to withhold from payments to Independent Contractors, but there are exceptions in some states.

Classification of Employees vs Independent Contractors

Classification depends on the degree of control exercised by the entity.  Evidence of control vs independence fall into 3 categories: behavioral control, financial control, and the relationship between the parties:

Behavioral Control: Facts that indicate whether the entity has the right to direct and control how the worker does the task for which the worker is paid including the type and degree thereof.

• Instructions given to an employee:  An employee is generally subject to the business' instructions about when, where, and how to work.   Even if no instructions are given, sufficient behavioral control may exist if the employer has the right to control how the work is done.

•  Training given to the worker:  Although an employee may be trained to perform services in a particular way, Independent Contractors ordinarily use their own methods.

Financial Control: Indications of the entity’s right to control the business aspects of the worker’s job include: 

•  Unreimbursed Business Expenses:  Independent Contractors are more likely to have unreimbursed expenses than employees.

• The Worker's Investment:  An Independent Contractor often has a significant investment in the “facilities” used to perform services for someone else, but this is not mandatory.
• To What Extent the Worker' Services are Available to Other Entities:  Employees tend to work for a single business.
• How the Business Pays The Worker:  An employee generally is paid by the hour, week, or month. An Independent Contractor usually is paid by the job, although in professions, such as law, Independent Contractors are paid an hourly rate and are nevertheless still Independent Contractors.
• The Extent in Which the Worker Can Realize a Profit or Incur a Loss:  An Independent Contractor can make a profit or have a loss.

Type of Relationship: Facts that reveal the type of relationship between the entity and worker include:

• Written contracts describing the type of relationship the parties intend to create.
• Whether the entity offers the worker employee-type benefits-e.g., insurance, a pension plan, vacation pay, sick pay.
• Permanency of the relationship. Expecting a worker to stay with you indefinitely rather than for a specific project or period is generally evdidence of an employer-employee relationship.
• The extent to which the services performed by the worker are a key aspect of the entity’s regular business. If a worker’s services are a key aspect of the entity’s business activity, it is more likely that the entity has the right to direct and control those services, indicating an employer-employee relationship.

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For official IRS guidance, use Pub. 15-A. For related publications that give additional details, go to www.irs.gov and in the search box, type “employee vs. IC.” If you still don’t know if a worker is an employee, file Form SS-8 with the IRS to get a determination.

Changing Bank Accounts after You've Written Checks

“I opened a new checking account, but ran payroll checks through the old checking account in QuickBooks.  

How do I fix them?”

 This is so easy to do....and the answer is simple...here's how.

1. Go to Reports->Banking->Check Detail
2. In the upper left hand corner of the report, select MODIFY
3. Select the date range and filter for the the bank account that you incorrectly posted the checks to
4. Return to the report
5. Double-click on each check in the report to bring it up on your screen
6. Change the bank account in the upper portion of the check form to the desired bank account
7. Press SAVE & CLOSE to complete the correction and return the to modified report
   

When the report is empty, you will have moved all the checks to the correct account.

Finally, double-check each bank account register to be sure that you have properly reassigned the transactions you wanted to correct.

Got Questions?  Call Us!

775-348-9225 Call The QuickBooks Gal!

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Enterprise Solutions, QuickBase

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QuickBooks Scan and Deposit

Have you heard about the new feature from QuickBooks called Check Solutions?

Save time and hassle: Skip the bank lines and start processing checks electronically.  Scan, Deposit, Done!

Features

Scan your checks with Intuit Check Solution for QuickBooks and eliminate almost all the time you spend depositing and accounting for check payments
Intuit Check Solution for QuickBooks provides two ways to process electronic checks depending on how your business takes check payments

• Scan checks - if you receive paper check payments in the mail or in a drop off box, you can scan the paper check into QuickBooks. You can also take check payments over the phone with this option.
• Checks over the phone - take check payments over the phone and key the check information directly into QuickBooks.

Save time depositing check payments

• Scan up to 30 checks per minute, or accept checks over the phone and manually enter check info(no scanner required)
• Skip the bank: send your check payment transaction electronically, anytime.
• Eliminate time spent filling out deposit slips

No waiting, accept checks over the phone

• Accept checks over the phone and key enter check info (no scanner required)
• No need to wait for checks to arrive in the mail
• Can be more cost-effective than electronic payment alternatives such as PayPal
  

Save time accounting for check payments

• Intuit Check Solution for QuickBooks captures check information (by scan or manually) and enters it into QuickBooks for you
• Automatically matches check payments to invoices so you don't have to

Minimize hassles of returned checks

• Intuit Check Solution for QuickBooks includes a verification service that reduces the risk of bad checks
  

Get your money sooner

• Deposit your checks when you receive them, not when you make your weekly bank visit
• Intuit Check Solution for QuickBooks includes the option to take checks over the phone and enter the info manually, with no need to wait for the mail to arrive

Apply Online for eCheck by Phone or call (888) 385-0273

Got Questions?  Call Us!

775-348-9225 Call The QuickBooks Gal!

775-348-9200 Point of Sale, Enterprise Solutions, QuickBase

jayne@quickbooksgal.com

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What IRS Auditors Look for When Examining a Business

Recently, a client asked me about the IRS and what they might look for in an audit.

* He keeps great records and is very careful not to "co-mingle" funds.
* All cash received is deposited to the company business checking account.
* And, in an effort to better control cash purchases, he has opened a separate bank account that he funds periodically from the business operating account.
* He then carries the ATM debit card for that account and makes "cash" purchases with that card.
* Additionally, all workers are either employees or licensed contractors.


I found a great article from Wells Fargo that I think provides a great check list for some of the most common issues the IRS may consider when reviewing a business file in an audit. Here is an excerpt from that article:

In the case of audit, be aware that the IRS training manual tells its auditors that they are examining you, not just your tax return.

The auditor wants to see how you match up with the income reported on your return, or what the IRS terms “economic reality.”

According to Frederick W. Daily, tax attorney and author of Stand Up To the IRS and Tax Savvy for Small Business, if your business is audited, the IRS is likely to investigate the following issues:

Does your lifestyle square with your reported income? “

An auditor sizes you up for dress, jewelry, car and furnishings in your home or office, if given a chance to make these observations. Someone who looks like a Vegas high roller, with the tax return of a missionary, will cause any auditor to dig deeper,” Daily says.

Does your business handle a lot of cash?

If your business handles a lot of cash, expect the auditor to suspect skimming, or diverting income into your own pocket, without declaring it.

Did you write off auto expenses for your only car?

Personal use of your business-deducted set of wheels is so common that auditors expect to find it.

That doesn’t mean they’ll accept it, however. Auditors don’t believe you use your one-and-only auto 100% for business and never to run to the grocery store or the dentist.

If you operate your car for both business and pleasure and claim a high percentage of business usage, keep good records (preferably a mileage log).

Did you claim personal entertainment, meals or vacation costs as business expenses?

Travel and entertainment business expenses are another area where the IRS knows it can strike gold. Document all travel and entertainment deductions. Taking buddies to the ball game and calling it business won’t fly if you can’t explain the business relationship in a credible fashion.

Did you “forget” to report all of your business sales or receipts?

If you failed to report significant business income—$10,000 or more—strongly consider hiring a tax pro to handle the audit. Remove yourself from the process altogether.

If the auditor finds evidence of large amounts of unreported income, and it looks intentional, he may call in the IRS criminal investigation team.


If you have employees, are you filing payroll tax returns and making tax payments?

Employment taxes are a routine part of every audit of a small enterprise.

And last but not least, if you hire people you call “independent contractors,” are they really employees?

The IRS routinely conducts audits of businesses that hire independent contractors, because of the tax savings associated with hiring contractors instead of employees.


These are great questions for all of us to ask about our business practices. Check with your tax professional for more guidelines to proper record keeping and IRS tax compliance.

Payroll - Getting Ready for End Of Year

It's time to start thinking about end of year procedures. One of those for me is verifying payroll to assure that there won't be any problems when it comes time to prepare W-2 forms.

There is a great tool in QuickBooks called the Payroll Summary Report.

You can find that in the Report drop down menu at the top of the main window in QuickBooks. From there, select Employees & Payroll and then select the Payroll summary.

You can use this report to review totals by employee and for your company. Additionally, you can review payroll-related liabilities & expenses by employee and grand totals for the company by date range or for the year to date.

I generally print this report every time I create a payroll and keep that report in my Payroll Book and I always keep a final year-end copy with my payroll records and employer copies of quarterly reports & W-2's.

I hope this tip is useful. Please tune in again for another QuickBooks Gal Minute.

Got a QuickBooks Mess? Call The QuickBooks Gal!

I'm Jayne Miller, The QuickBooks Gal. Thanks for your continued interest. If you have questions or suggestions for future topics, please drop me a line at jayne@qbgal.com.