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Guides · US Tax

US Tax guides

364 plain-English guides on us tax, each one ending in what to do next.

All Cross-BorderUS TaxCanadian TaxSmall Business & BookkeepingCFO & AdvisoryTax Planning

Page 14 of 16, newest first.

US Tax

Law Firm Cybersecurity: Data Breach Costs, Cyber Insurance, and Tax Deductions for Security Investments

A data breach at a law firm does not just expose names and Social Security numbers (like a retail breach).

Aug 27, 2026
US Tax

Law Firm Entity Structure: PC, PLLC, LLP, and Why the S-Corp Election Matters

For most law firms the entity question is really the S-corp question: whether to split owner income into salary and distributions.

Aug 27, 2026
US Tax

Law Firm Partner Compensation: Guaranteed Payments, Distributions, and Self-Employment Tax

A law firm partner's pay arrives as guaranteed payments and a distributive share on the K-1, and both carry self-employment tax.

Aug 27, 2026
US Tax

Law Firm Retirement Plans: Solo 401(k), Cash Balance, and Defined Benefit Plans for Partners

Law firm partners can defer over $200,000 a year by stacking a solo 401(k) with a cash balance plan. How each plan type works and the contribution limits.

Aug 27, 2026
US Tax

Law Firm Succession Planning: Buy-Sell Agreements, Practice Valuation, and Partner Transitions

A law firm without a succession plan loses value when a founding partner exits. It loses the client relationships that partner built over decades.

Aug 27, 2026
US Tax

Law Firm Tax Deductions: Malpractice Insurance, CLE, Marketing, and the Expenses Unique to Legal Practice

Law firms have deductions other businesses do not: malpractice insurance, bar dues, CLE, and legal research subscriptions.

Aug 27, 2026
US Tax

Managing Rental Properties Across 5+ LLCs: The Multi-Entity Bookkeeping Guide

Separate LLCs isolate liability, not tax. The reason for multiple LLCs is liability isolation, not tax benefit.

Aug 27, 2026
US Tax

Nonprofit Donor Acknowledgment Letters: What IRC 170 Requires and What Gets Donations Disallowed

For any gift of $250 or more the donor's deduction depends on your letter: the amount, whether goods or services were provided, their value.

Aug 27, 2026
US Tax

Nonprofit Employee Retention Credit: ERC Eligibility, Calculation, and the IRS Moratorium

Tax-exempt organizations under IRC 501(c) were eligible for the Employee Retention Credit (ERC) on the same basis as for-profit employers.

Aug 27, 2026
US Tax

Nonprofit Executive Compensation: Reasonable Pay, Excess Benefit Transactions, and Form 990 Disclosure

Form 990 requires disclosure of compensation for officers, directors, key employees, and the five highest-paid employees and independent contractors.

Aug 27, 2026
US Tax

Nonprofit Fiscal Sponsorship: How It Works, Tax-Deductible Donations Without 501(c)(3) Status, and the Two Models

A project without its own 501(c)(3) can take tax-deductible gifts through a fiscal sponsor that controls the money.

Aug 27, 2026
US Tax

Nonprofit Form 990 Filing Guide: Which Version, What It Discloses, and What Triggers an Audit

Every exempt organization files a version of Form 990 unless it's a church, and three missed years end the exemption automatically.

Aug 27, 2026
US Tax

Nonprofit Governance: Conflict of Interest Policy, Board Oversight, and the Form 990 Questions

Form 990 asks whether your nonprofit has conflict of interest, whistleblower, and document retention policies.

Aug 27, 2026
US Tax

Nonprofit Grant Management: Restricted Funds, Compliance Reporting, and What Happens When You Misspend

A grant restricted to youth literacy can't pay the rent, and the accounting has to prove it didn't. Under the FASB standard for nonprofits (ASC 958).

Aug 27, 2026
US Tax

Starting a Nonprofit: 501(c)(3) Application, State Registration, and the First-Year Compliance Checklist

There is a specific order of operations for launching a nonprofit, and most founders get at least one step wrong.

Aug 27, 2026
US Tax

Nonprofit UBIT: When a Tax-Exempt Organization Owes Income Tax, What's Excluded, and How Form 990-T Works

A nonprofit owes 21% on net income from a regular business unrelated to its purpose, after a $1,000 deduction.

Aug 27, 2026
US Tax

Real Estate Professional Status: The 750-Hour Test That Unlocks Rental Loss Deductions

Real Estate Professional Status (REPS) removes the per-se passive classification that IRC 469(c)(2) applies to all rental activities.

Aug 27, 2026
US Tax

Real Estate Wholesaling Tax: Is My Assignment Fee Ordinary Income?

A wholesale assignment fee is ordinary income, not a capital gain. The dealer classification triggers self-employment tax and blocks 1031 exchanges.

Aug 27, 2026
US Tax

Restaurant Bookkeeping: Food Cost, Prime Cost, and the Numbers That Keep You Open

Food cost and prime cost determine whether a restaurant makes money. A restaurant that does not know its food cost percentage weekly is flying blind.

Aug 27, 2026
US Tax

Restaurant Cash Flow Management: Seasonal Budgeting, Weekly Forecasting, and Surviving the Slow Months

Most restaurants that close are profitable on paper but run out of cash. Here is how to build a weekly cash flow forecast and manage seasonal swings.

Aug 27, 2026
US Tax

Restaurant Entity Structure: LLC vs S-Corp and When the Switch Saves Tax

Most restaurants start as an LLC. When net income exceeds $60,000-$80,000, an S-corp election can save self-employment tax.

Aug 27, 2026
US Tax

Restaurant Inventory Management: Food Waste, Shrinkage, and Tax Deductions for Spoilage

Restaurants waste 4-10% of purchased food before it reaches a plate. Here is how to track inventory, account for waste, and deduct spoilage losses.

Aug 27, 2026
US Tax

Restaurant Lease Negotiation: Triple Net, Percentage Rent, CAM Charges, and Tax Treatment

The lease is a restaurant's largest fixed cost after labor. The base rent is the number that appears in the listing.

Aug 27, 2026
US Tax

Restaurant Payroll: Tipped Minimum Wage, Overtime for Tipped Employees, and State-by-State Rules

How the tip credit, tipped minimum wage, and overtime rules work for restaurant payroll, with common mistakes and state-by-state differences.

Aug 27, 2026