Author Archives: Westbound HQ

So, you’ve probably noticed some big changes. That’s right – we’ve gone through a rebrand! Goodbye Jones Tax and Benefit Solutions, hello WestboundHQ. Firms choose to rebrand for a number of reasons; ultimately, to give a new look and feel that better represents where a company is, who it caters to, and the values it

Long-haul truckers with nights away from home have two options to deduct food expenses: Record the actual expenses (save or scan your receipts!), or Claim per diem. What is per diem? Claiming per diem simplifies deductions for food expenses when you’re traveling for business away from home.  Instead of keeping all of your food receipts,

Social Security tax is paid on our taxable income earnings to fund our future retirement benefits. The more we pay into Social Security, the more we get paid when collecting our Social Security benefits. If you work for an employer, you and your employer split the Social Security tax every paycheck.  Social Security tax is

Here is a scenario to consider: You do your mechanical work on your truck in the shed on your property and would like to rent the shop space to your company. Can you rent this shed to your trucking business?  How would that be done on your tax return? Be careful, as self-rental can be

Dogs are excellent companions, especially when you’re on the road more days than you’re home. Let’s explore if it makes sense to deduct expenses such as food, vet bills, and toys for your dog as a business expense.  Many dogs serve as “alarm” systems when they bark at strangers approaching your truck.  Is that enough

A “tax home” is important for a business owner to understand, especially when your business is in long-haul trucking.  Without a tax home, your per diem and business mileage are in danger if the IRS selects your tax returns for review. So, what is a tax home? The IRS generally defines your tax home as

If your business does not have any employees, the forgiven portion of your Payroll Protection Program (PPP) loan will likely be calculated as a formula.  This means that sole proprietors and partnerships without payroll will have to repay some of their loan. The moral of this story is that you should NOT exhaust your PPP

The IRS announced taxpayers can delay paying their income taxes on as much as $1 million owed for up to 90 days. How does this affect you?   Federal Tax Deferral On March 17, 2020 Treasury Secretary Mnuchin announced that TAX RETURNS ARE STILL DUE APRIL 15. However, payments that are due on April 15th,

If you received a loan through the SBA Payroll Protection Program, congratulations!  SBA guidance continues to come out on what will be needed to calculate the forgiveness component so this article focuses on a few tips to make the calculation easier.  We’d all like to maximize forgiveness, although it is going to be difficult to

This article will be updated as more information becomes available, but we wanted to provide a simple overview of both SBA loan programs and IRS responses to the ongoing COVID-19 crisis. I am not a fan of business debt and advise everyone to be cautious when receiving loans or tax credits, as they have specific