After Hours Eastside

SPECIAL EVENT

Gene Juarez Salon in Bellevue

Join us for a fantastic fall special event at the Gene Juarez Salon in Bellevue.  Guests will be pampered with a classic manicure and dry style!  Want to try out a new style before the holidays?

If you haven’t been to the new Gene Juarez in Bellevue this is your chance. There are separate men’s and women’s facilities, steam showers and saunas, 22 spa treatment rooms, a separate dining area for private parties, private pedicure suites, a double pedicure suite to enjoy with a friend, a manicure room, and an expansive relaxation area, including a soothing waterfall for total comfort and serenity. Not to be missed is the premium indulgence of the Vichy Shower – a triple rain bar with 14 jets that gently massage and improve your circulation. Or experience specialty massage services, such as the incredible Hawaiian healing massages Lomi Lomi, Loku Lomi, and Lomi ‘ili ‘ili.

Also unique to Bellevue: the Gene Juarez Men’s Salon. Part barbershop and part men’s club, our Men’s Salon offers top-notch hair services, as well as one-of-a-kind treatments such as the Men’s Cleanse & Restore Facial and the Signature Manicure or Pedicure.

Available Services: Couture Haircuts, Shampoo/Blow Dry, Custom  Color and Highlighting, Relaxers, Conditioning Treatments, Custom-Blend Makeup Artistry, Bridal Makeup, Manicures, Pedicures, Nail Enhancements, Customized Facials, Facial and Body Waxing, Massages.

550 106th Avenue NE
Suite 105
Bellevue,WA98004

Driving Directions

Southbound on I-405:

Take Exit 13B (NE 8^th St East/West), merge onto NE 8^th St, heading west, turn left onto 106^th Ave NE. The Bellevue Galleria is approximately a block away on your left.

Northbound on I-405:

Take Exit 13B (NE 8^th St). Turn sharp left onto NE 8^th St, heading west, turn left onto 106^th Ave NE. The Bellevue Galleria is approximately a block away on your left.

Nearby Parking Lots

The garage entrance is on 106^th Ave NE.

http://www.genejuarez.com/Salons-And-Spas/Bellevue.aspx

 Space is limited to the first 25 people to sign up

Appetizers will be catered by Purple Wine Bar

Monthly Networking Luncheon

SPEAKER: Heidi Hughes, Economic Development Policy Advisor to Governor Christine Gregoire

Heidi Hughes, Economic Development Policy Advisor to Governor Christine Gregoire, will speak to this question at our next luncheon. Keenly aware that Washington’s economic recovery is tied to the growth and success of small business, the Governor has launched several initiatives focused on small businesses. Heidi will discuss the policies and programs at the state level that will help yo…u in your business today.

Heidi joined Governor Gregoire’s Executive Policy Office in September 2009 and serves as the Economic Development Policy Advisor. Heidi hails from Florida with a background in both the public and private sectors. She held several senior level positions in Florida state government where she was involved in economic development, land use, transportation and environmental issues. While serving in the Governor’s office in Florida, Heidi worked on a major economic development initiative that was the catalyst for a life sciences/biotech cluster. Prior to joining Governor Gregoire’s office, she was engaged in real estate development with a public company where she ran a statewide land acquisition program and advised on large scale mixed use developments in Florida. Heidi received her law degree from Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia.

Bring a guest and enter for a chance to win a $100 gift certificate to El Gaucho donated by LarsonAllen.

Cost: Members: Prepaid – $45. After deadline – $55.
Non-Members: Prepaid – $55. After deadline – $65.
First-time Visitors: Prepaid – $45. After deadline – $55.
Prepaid registration closes at the end of the day on Tuesday, October 25.

Register online at www.womenbusinessowners.org or call WBO at 206-575-3232.

Here are a few things the IRS wants you to know about recordkeeping.

1. In most cases, the IRS does not require you to keep records in any special manner. Generally, you should keep any and all documents that may have an impact on your federal tax return. It’s a good idea to have a designated place for tax documents and receipts.

2. Individual taxpayers should usually keep the following records supporting items on their tax returns for at least three years:

  * Bills 
  * Credit card and other receipts 
  * Invoices 
  * Mileage logs 
  * Canceled, imaged or substitute checks or any other proof of payment 
  * Any other records to support deductions or credits you claim on your return 

You should normally keep records relating to property until at least three years after you sell or otherwise dispose of the property. Examples include:

  * A home purchase or improvement 
  * Stocks and other investments 
  * Individual Retirement Arrangement transactions 
  * Rental property records 

3. If you are a small business owner, you must keep all your employment tax records for at least four years after the tax becomes due or is paid, whichever is later. Examples of important documents business owners should keep Include:

  * Gross receipts: Cash register tapes, bank deposit slips, receipt books, invoices, credit card charge slips and Forms 1099-MISC 
  * Proof of purchases: Canceled checks, cash register tape receipts, credit card sales slips and invoices 
  * Expense documents: Canceled checks, cash register tapes, account statements, credit card sales slips, invoices and petty cash slips for small cash payments 
  * Documents to verify your assets: Purchase and sales invoices, real estate closing statements and canceled checks 

Links:
  * Publications 552, Recordkeeping for Individuals (PDF [ http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p552.pdf ]) 
  * Publications 583, Starting a Business and Keeping Records (PDF [ http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p583.pdf ]) 
  * Publication 463, Travel, Entertainment, Gift, and Car Expenses (PDF [ http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p463.pdf ]) 

YouTube Videos:
English [ http://www.youtube.com/IRSvideos#p/u/2/RX7D2JBCOQE ]

Spanish [http://www.youtube.com/IRSvideosmultilingua#p/search/0/UMvIElPeZns ]

ASL [ http://www.youtube.com/user/IRSvideosASL#p/a/u/0/eAcQqHrEng8 ] 
 

-Mark Shapiro, Chief Brand Officer
    www.e-myth.com

1. Don’t panic. Many of these letters can be dealt with simply and painlessly.
2. There are number of reasons the IRS sends notices to taxpayers. The notice may request payment of taxes, notify you of a change to your account or request additional information. The notice you receive normally covers a very specific issue about your account or tax return.
3. Each letter and notice offers specific instructions on what you need to do to satisfy the inquiry.
4. If you receive a correction notice, you should review the correspondence and compare it with the information on your return.
5. If you agree with the correction to your account, usually no reply is necessary unless a payment is due.
6. If you do not agree with the correction the IRS made, it is important that you respond as requested. Write to explain why you disagree. Include any documents and information you wish the IRS to consider, along with the bottom tear-off portion of the notice. Mail the information to the IRS address shown in the lower left part of the notice. Allow at least 30 days for a response.
7. Most correspondence can be handled without calling or visiting an IRS office. However, if you have questions, call the telephone number in the upper right corner of the notice. Have a copy of your tax return and the correspondence available when you call.
8. It’s important that you keep copies of any correspondence with your records.

For more information about IRS notices and bills, see Publication 594, The IRS Collection Process. Information about penalties and interest charges is available in Publication 17, Your Federal Income Tax for Individuals. Both publications are available at www.IRS.gov or by calling 800-TAX-FORM (800-829-3676).

Links:

*        Publication 594 (pdf <http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p594.pdf> )
*        Publication 17 (pdf <http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-prior/p17–2010.pdf> )

Blame Congress. TIGTA gives the IRS credit for having to operate in an environment of everchanging tax laws. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, for example, included 56 tax provisions (20 related to individual taxpayers), and The Worker, Homeownership, and Business Assistance Act of 2009 revised the First-Time Homebuyer Credit, causing untold confusion. More tax laws mean more to enforce; more changes mean it’s more likely taxpayers will mess up.

The uptick in enforcement is all for the greater good of maintaining a voluntary tax compliance system, the report says. IRS Oversight Board studies of taxpayer attitudes showed that fear of examination is a major factor influencing taxpayers to report taxes honestly.  In 2010, 64 percent of taxpayers surveyed cited fear of examination as a factor that influenced their voluntary compliance (up from 63% in 2009). Yet an astonishing 12 percent of taxpayers believed that it was acceptable to cheat on their income taxes (down from 13 percent in fiscal year 2009).

One bit of good news for those fearing a full-blown audit is that you’re way more likely to get an audit by mail, although both in-person and by-mail examinations are up over last year. Only 1 out of every 503 individual returns filed got a face-to-face examination in fiscal 2010 (a 4 percent increase in coverage over fiscal year 2009), while 1 of every 110 returns got an audit by mail (a more than 8 percent increase over fiscal year2009).

What is perhaps the most troubling for taxpayers is the increased use of liens, levies and seizures. The use of liens has increased by 74 percent since fiscal year 2006, with this year’s increase the largest since fiscal year 2007. The total number of levies increased by 4 percent, and the total number of seizures increased 4 percent. National Taxpayer Advocate Nina E. Olson has argued that liens are inappropriate in some cases, given the impact the lien has on a delinquent’s ability to earn a living, pay off his tax bill and even stay off the public dole. Publicly filed liens can destroy credit and potentially wreck careers and businesses. For more on how the IRS is churning out liens, click here. For how TIGTA found that the IRS mishandles federal tax lien filings, click here.

Enforcement revenue collected during fiscal year 2010 increased by 18 percent from $48.9 billion to $57.6 billion. This amount (not adjusted for inflation) is the first increase since fiscal year 2007. These numbers could be higher, but the collection folks are unable to work all of the existing accounts with current staffing, the report says. Sounds like a call for more compliance staff, and more exams. Watch out.

Source: Forbes.com

“We think the regulations are clear when read as a whole that no second extension was available to be granted on the facts of this case,” wrote Chief Judge Sandra Lea Lynch for the First Circuit. “[The estate's executor] had already received the automatic extension, was not an executor who was abroad, and did not qualify for any of the categories for ‘good cause’ extensions.”

The decision affirms a ruling by the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, which found Internal Revenue Code Section 6081(a) is ambiguous as to whether IRS may grant more than one six-month extension. The district court said, however, that the implementing regulations, codified in Treasury Regulation Section 20.6081-1, made it clear that IRS lacked the authority to grant Dickow more than one six-month extension.

Extension Rules Provide Clarity for Taxpayers

According to the First Circuit, IRS’s filing deadlines and extension rules are crucial to handling the millions of returns the service must process each year.

“The regulatory scheme as the IRS has promulgated it also provides clarity as to limits,” the court said. “It clearly sets forth rules based on identified categories of taxpayers. Thus, for example, the regulations allow further extensions beyond one six-month extension only to executors abroad who can show good cause.”

Lynch said the regulations are clear, when read as a whole, that no second extension was available to be granted on the facts of the case.

“The regulations rather pointedly do not say that the IRS has the discretion to accept or act upon applications for extensions based on any type of general ‘good cause’ claim other than the three types explicitly set forth in § 20.6081-1(c),” explained Lynch. “Further, the regulations refer repeatedly to Form 4768, which by its terms does not allow for the extensions sought here. Thus, in our view, Chevron deference requires that the IRS position prevail.”

Source: http://www.bnasoftware.com/

1. There are three options for obtaining free copies of your federal tax return information – on the web, by phone or by mail.
2. The IRS does not charge a fee for transcripts, which are available for the current and past three tax years.
3. A tax return transcript shows most line items from your tax return as it was originally filed, including any accompanying forms and schedules. It does not reflect any changes made after the return was filed.
4. A tax account transcript shows any later adjustments either you or the IRS made after the tax return was filed. This transcript shows basic data, including marital status, type of return filed, adjusted gross income and taxable income.
5. To request either transcript online, go to www.irs.gov and use our online tool called Order A Transcript. To order by phone, call 800-908-9946 and follow the prompts in the recorded message.
6. To request a 1040, 1040A or 1040EZ tax return transcript through the mail, complete IRS Form 4506T-EZ, Short Form Request for Individual Tax Return Transcript. Businesses, partnerships and individuals who need transcript information from other forms or need a tax account transcript must use the Form 4506T, Request for Transcript of Tax Return.
7. If you order online or by phone, you should receive your tax return transcript within five to 10 days from the time the IRS receives your request. Allow 30 calendar days for delivery of a tax account transcript if you order by mail.
8. If you still need an actual copy of a previously processed tax return, it will cost $57 for each tax year you order. Complete Form 4506, Request for Copy of Tax Return, and mail it to the IRS address listed on the form for your area. Copies are generally available for the current year and past six years. Please allow 60 days for actual copies of your return.
9. The fee for copies of tax returns may be waived if you are in an area that is declared a federal disaster by the President. Visitwww.irs.gov, keyword “disaster,” for more guidance on disaster relief.
10. Visit www.irs.gov to determine which form will meet your needs. Forms 4506, 4506T and 4506T-EZ are available at www.irs.gov or by calling 800-TAX-FORM (800-829-3676).

Links:

• Order a Transcript - Online Service
• Form 4506-T-EZ, Short Form Request for Individual Tax Return Transcript (PDF)
• Form 4506-T, Request for Transcript of Tax Return (PDF) 
• Form 4506, Request for Copy of Tax Form (PDF)
• Tax Return Transcripts 

The current economic recessions has had a hard toll, especially on small businesses. Their access to financing and their ability to shoulder tough business seasons are much less than that of bigger businesses. For this reason, many small businesses are being tempted and choosing to skip the remittance of payroll taxes and instead using these funds to work at surviving in the struggling economy. However noble the reasons for defaulting on payroll taxes may be, the IRS is indeed, not happy with this trend. They are now aggressively seeking such businesses and implementing tough consequences for these defaulters. According to tax experts, payroll taxes may lack the urgency of remitting as compared to other business creditors as the IRS does not proactively seek to recover the funds. However, delaying or not submitting the taxes has the potential of bringing your business to a halt. From freezing a business’s account receivables to placing a lien on the wages of staff responsible for remitting the payroll taxes, the IRS can literally cause havoc to your business. It is therefore, advisable to remain in the good books of Uncle Sam.

Report by Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration on Payroll Taxes

The extent of delayed and non remitted payroll taxes by many businesses was highlighted by a report on payroll tax compliance done by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) in early 2011. According to the report by this IRS watchdog organization, about $54 billion of payroll taxes are not remitted every year. This is a huge contributor to the tax gap. For this reason, the IRS has taken drastic measures to catch up with defaulters of payroll taxes.

New Approach Taken by the IRS

Following the report by TIGTA, the IRS has randomly picked some 6,600 employers and is auditing them for payroll tax compliance. The IRS states that this is a start and probably, it hopes that the audits will send a warning to any businesses that are still not complying with tax requirements. Some tax experts have seen this move by the IRS as being unfair and harsh, as it sidelines some employers to take the blame of many others who are not complying. Unfortunately, a non-compliant employer is already at fault and lacks any defense and therefore, the employers who are picked in the sample have no recourse for being selected.

Implications of Withheld and Unremitting Payroll Taxes

According to the tax code, the IRS has a right to hold the company responsible for non-remitted taxes. It also has a right to hold responsible the various individuals and entities who have control over the business accounts and who are responsible for remitting the taxes. This includes the accountants, book keepers, treasurers, and owners of the business. The IRS can even hold business creditors responsible for the taxes if they prevent the remittance of the taxes by taking control of the business accounts to recover their debts.

When the IRS catches up with a business that has not complied with payroll taxes, they will not only seek the payment of the due taxes, but will also levy the late payment charges that go as high as 25% of the the taxes due. The employer is also expected to pay any interests that would have accrued because of the delay in remittance. The amounts due can really sky rocket and can easily drive a business into economic hardship or even bankruptcy. It is therefore, best to pay the taxes within the deadline and to seek compliance as soon as possible if you are already a defaulter.