How New Tax Laws Will Affect Your Business in 2019 and Beyond

The thought behind the new tax law was that the economy needed a boost, and this new code is the best way to create that boost from a small business perspective. The hope was that it would help business owners save a little money, reinvest in the business, invest more in their employees and in turn, boost the economy.

I believe close to 100% of you will see a positive change in your taxes by paying at a lower rate. If you’ve looked at your books and you haven’t seen a positive change, it’s imperative that you have your taxes reviewed to see what you’re missing out on. If you think you’re missing out on tax savings that are rightfully yours, you can contact me for a free tax review.

Deduction Changes That Will Affect You

From a bookkeeping standpoint, things are relatively similar. However, a big change in what you can deduct is in meals and entertainment. The new tax code states that entertainment is no longer deductible, but meals still are. If you take a client to a baseball game, it’s no longer deductible, but if you take them out to lunch, it is.

Another common thing I’m hearing this year is that some think they can’t itemize expenses. However, remember that there are two kinds of itemizing:

• Itemizing deductions (as compared to the standard deduction)
• Itemizing expenses for a business

If you own a business, you’ll continue to write off expenses on your taxes, just like you have in the past. However, if you itemize and write off things like mortgage interest, real estate tax and medical bills, because of the increased standard deduction, you may no longer itemize.

Overall, the new tax code has many positives for business owners. But before you can reap the benefits, you need to be sure you have a quality set of books. That means knowing all the correct new write-offs and being able to account for them. If you keep your books on your own or you haven’t planned much for your taxes on a month-to-month basis, we can help you square everything away to help you avoid surprises and get the most out of the new tax code.

Your books, qualifications and deductions are unique to your business, so there's no single answer for making sure you're making the most of the new tax code.

If you want to be sure you're getting all benefits of the new tax code, give me a call or send me an email, or fill out the form below to start a conversation. I'd love to help you out.