Nonprofit Accounting Blog – Page 17

Securing Your Data from Misfortunate “Cookie Crumbles”

With the rise of mobility solutions, home and smaller regional office spaces are on the rise. With that comes increased risk to the office data from a standpoint of security. While many are accustomed to sophisticated security features in their workplace, those same features may not be protecting you at home or in the smaller office environment. Aptly named, “Misfortune Cookie” is one of several vulnerabilities recently named that may be causing a security breach for millions of computer users. Others include Poodle, Shellshock, Heartbleed, and Freak.

Remote attackers will find these flaws within your router and use it to take control of your device and potentially steal valuable data. To avoid such a miss-hap a patch is necessary to download and install from an authorized vendor. It is all too likely that you are unaware of when and to what extent your router was updated. Like many others you rely on your IT department to manage your technologies. However, IT departments are in high demand and are not always focusing on proactive security measures and updates. Understandably, there are more pressing issues to solve such as installations, trainings, trouble-shooting etc. Security may be put off for another day or less demanding time. Additionally, new vulnerabilities are popping up daily and would be impossible to stay ahead of without a security protocol.

Maintaining a secure IT environment would require personnel dedicated to knowing when things like the router was last updated as well as making sure each piece of equipment and software being used is regularly monitored and up to date. Knowing you are at risk is the first step towards maintaining a secure data environment. Armed with this information you are poised to take steps that will ensure your data safety. This will require someone on your team is dedicated to mitigating your risk by employing cyber safety processes are regularly carried out.

You need only watch the news in the past year to have noticed the many multi-million dollar corporations who have allowed a fatal breach within their data security, resulting in job loss and bad press. And just because these stories have been featured in the news does not mean this story couldn’t be yours. This is just one reason why it is so important to stay informed about the risks and develop thorough strategies to provide a secure data environment.

Consider including the following elements to your data security strategy:

Stay up to date on current cyber vulnerabilities
Train employees on security processes and protocol
Ensure IT controls are strong
Don’t miss updates…ever!
Regularly asses your organizations security

Furthermore it is important to be prepared should you ever find yourself a victim of a security breach. Here is a suggested protocol

Create a written incident response plan
Communicate and Train all staff to know and report any incident
Establish a team with designated responders
Research where you will get help from
Learn from your experiences and those who have gone before you

You can become a leader in this area of your nonprofit business. This is an essential tool for all nonprofit leaders to ensure their companies and employees are safe from internet vulnerabilities.

Here at Beck & Company, Certified Public Accountants and Business Advisors, we want to help you. We are an accounting and consulting firm delivering specialized expertise, creative thinking, and unsurpassed service to ensure that our clients’ financial endeavors flourish. Ultimately we want to see your nonprofit reach its goals and we would love to help you. Contact us to learn more.

Maintaining New Governments Standards with Reporting Health Plan Coverage

2015 brought new standards of reporting Health Plan Coverage to both employees and the IRS. Although official reports won’t be due until January of 2016, there are several steps to take now to ensure you are prepared when the time comes. Depending on if you are a small or large employer, the requirements are as follows:

Small Employer: If you are an employer with self-insured health plans and are not considered a large employer (over 50 full-time equivalent employees), you are required to issue Form 1095-B to every covered employee, and file copies with the IRS.
Large Employer: If you are considered a large employer, you are required to issue a Form 1095-C to every employee and file copies with the IRS.

The following information will be required to report for each employee receiving a 1095-C

Health care coverage. You must report the health care coverage that was offered or not offered to the employee
Amount. You will need to report the amount that was paid by the employee for their portion of the lowest-cost monthly premium. This applies to self-only minimum value coverage.
Reasoning. Should an employee not be offered insurance at any time within the calendar year you must indicate the reasoning using the corresponding code. For instance, if the employee was not employed in that month (2A) or employed at a part time level (2B).

A list of codes is available at www.irs.gov/instructions/i109495c/index.html and should be reviewed to ensure all form requirements are begin met throughout the year.

Self-insured Employer Reporting

Any employer offering a self-insured health plan must provide the following information:

List of each employee, including spouse, dependents or others covered under the plan who was given coverage for a minimum of one month throughout the year.
Date of birth and social security number for each covered individual.
Each month for which the person was covered

Large Employers will report using Form 1095-C, part 3. If you are not considered a large employer you will want to use 1095-B.

See www.irs.gov/instructions/i109495b/index.html. For the comprehensive requirements of form 1095.

Transition Relief for Large Employers

Transitional relief has been provided by the IRS for a variety of employer and plan situations including penalties for incomplete or incorrect returns. Generally, the relief will provide extra time to develop processes for data collection in compliance with the new requirements. However, no relief will be extended to employers who can show a concerted effort to collect and provide required information. Transitional relief will be extended in specific circumstances, some of which are detailed below:

If by December 27, 2012, your health plan was not on a calendar you may be eligible for transitional relief for the first calendar months of 2015. Please note you must have offered affordable coverage providing minimal benefits by the first day of 2015.
If your company has wavered at the 50 Full Time Employee (FTE) mark you may be eligible for Transitional Relief. You may use a six consecutive month measuring period in 2014 to assess whether you are considered a Large Employer.
The requirement states that you must offer coverage for all days within the month, for January 2015 if you provided coverage before the first payday you will be considered as offering coverage as of January 1, 2015.
If you did not offer coverage in 2013 or 2014 for dependents you will not be subject to shared responsibility liability in 2015. However, you must prove that you are taking steps to offer dependent coverage.
Should you have more than 50 but fewer than 100 FTE, for 2015, you are not held liable for the shared responsibility payment. However, you must show that you
- Have fewer than 100 FTE employees
- has not reduced its hours of service or workforce between 2/9/2014 and 12/31/14
- Are maintaining previously offered coverage. Forms 1094C and 1095-C will verify these requirements.
An employer will have a reduced penalty if they have over 99 FTE employees and have offered affordable minimum coverage to at least 70% of its employees

The Affordable Care Act requirements have had their challenges. Concerns have been identified and requirement changes have been made. However, it is advisable to prioritize compliance and planning to adhere to these regulations. Reports to the IRS and employees are imperative to the compliance process and should be followed.

At Beck & Company, Certified Public Accountants and Business Advisors, we are an accounting and consulting firm delivering specialized expertise, creative thinking, and unsurpassed service to ensure that our clients’ financial endeavors flourish.

Serving small and mid-sized organizations and individuals, we provide audit, tax, accounting, and consulting service that address all aspects of your business with one goal in mind – exceeding your expectations. We are able to do this by drawing on our combined business backgrounds and experience in public accounting to help you in virtually any area of your business. Contact us for more information on our accounting and consulting services that can help you.

Best Practices For Planning Your Nonprofit Budget – part 2

Having a budget is essential for any company or individual who desires to have better control over their finances. The process by which that budget is developed is also important. Last week we looked a few overarching components that are essential to have in place before you begin the budgeting process. This week we will take a deeper look into key documentation and steps needed to complete the budget process.

Keep in mind that your organization’s mission and vision should drive the budgeting decisions along with fiscal accountability. A great budgeting process will include the input of those ultimately responsible for executing the company’s mission in conjunction with the finance team and senior staff. Identifying fixed costs and known revenue along with incorporating a plan for the year’s initiatives will be the primary data used to get started.

Follow these steps to develop a good budgeting process:

Document the process.

Put your budget process in writing. Doing this creates a measurable tool to reference as you go along. Having steps and checklists will keep the team accountable and productive throughout the planning. Additionally as the process evolves and changes from year to year, be sure to maintain current notes for reference in future planning seasons.

Identify stakeholders and assign the planning committee.

The finance team and senior staff will naturally play a significant role in developing the budget, but additional staff members whose responsibility is to be accountable to the budget should also play a role. Inviting the team to weigh-in builds buy-in and allows relevant feedback which could prove invaluable to creating an accurate budget. At minimum be sure to include a time period where other staff members are asked to review and speak into the budget in the draft stages.

Get out the calendar.

The early bird gets the worm – this is true in establishing the budget as well. Having a budget approved less than 30 days before the beginning of the fiscal year could severely compromise the success of the year’s goals. At the very least aim for budget approval 60 days before the new fiscal year begins and if possible complete it even earlier. Consider your natural rhythms and take advantage of non-peak seasons to work on it when staff and volunteers have ample time to focus on the numbers.

Assign tasks and a timeline.

As you are building the budget process define tasks and assign deadlines. Oftentimes multiple people will have responsibility over a line item – regardless you want to choose one person to be accountable for the task. Having a single person responsible for the task will increase the likeliness of it getting done and on time.

Match the financial statement to the chart of accounts.

Ensure that line items from the financial statements and charts of accounts are the same. This will eliminate guesswork from your administrative staff when matching the budget and actuals. Particularly where expenses are concerned when the financial statement does not have a corresponding line item within the budget it can result in mistakes or overages in line item balances.

Work the plan.

After carefully creating the detailed budget, the next step is to implement the plan. This may sound obvious, but setting clear expectations for how the budget should be executed is as if not more important.

At Beck and Company Certified Public Accountants and Business Advisers our Nonprofit Services team is committed to assist you with your back-office accounting and financial needs so you can focus on your mission. Contact us to learn more about our nonprofit specialists provide professional advice and assistance in a number of areas including business planning and budgeting.

Best Practices For Planning Your Nonprofit Budget – part 1

Top performing nonprofit organizations large and small have one thing in common, they are continually planning for their success. Creating a budget is a huge part of a successful plan, and it’s a tool that aids in the implementation of your organizations mission. When both management and your board of directions have this tool they are able to sufficiently oversee your organization’s financial health.

Having an operating budget approved in advance of the beginning of the fiscal year is a common best practice. Often times, in order to achieve this goal you must begin the process at least three months prior to year-end. In this blog we will address some general tips to help increase the effectiveness of your budgeting process. If you’ve already begun this will be a helpful tool to measure your current progress. For those of you that have yet to get started, now is a great time to begin.

Having a budget that actually works requires a little time and energy devoted to development and implementation and should include the following components:

Clearly defined and itemized objectives:

Most likely you have multiple projects and programs planned throughout the year. Each one should have its own budget and then once those have been completed, they should be compiled to complete the overarching operating budget.

Having defined budgets for each project allows you to see areas that may require additional consideration so that you can fully understand the financial implications of each objective and how it works together with the overall goal of the organization.

Clearly defined time period.

Although your budget will likely cover a one year period or fiscal year it is also helpful to further divide the budget into smaller portions such as months or quarters. In so doing, you will have the ability to be proactive with any variance as the year goes on. If you find yourself overspending in a particular quarter you will have the benefit of making necessary adjustments in the remaining quarters. This also provides you with a great tool to reflect on at years end and use to strategize for the future.

Realistic expectations.

Having a realistic estimate of revenue and expenditures is so important. All too often, expenses are underestimated which leads to overspending and improper allocation of resources. When this happens the budget fails to be a useful tool for your organization. Be sure to use last year’s actual numbers coupled with future predictions. Take the time to truly analyze expenses and income to help you create a budget that is based on realistic expectations rather than assumptions.

In addition it can be helpful to have a plan “B” with your board of directors in the event that something does not go according to plan you know exactly how you will handle it. For example, which initiatives can be bumped to next year or executed using a smaller budget.

Measurable goals.

Create your budget based on the same accounting method with which your books are kept and monitored. Doing so allows you to compare the predicted budget against actual income and expenses as they happen. When variances arrive, which is inevitable you must have the flexibility to make adjustments and address cash shortages and/or inflated expenses. Maintaining your budget this way will allow you to assess and correct your budget as needed, while flexibility will enable you to alter your budget when necessary.

At the end of the day the most important part to planning your budget is to ensure that you were able to move forward the mission of your organization. Keeping these helpful tips in mind as you begin the budget planning process will set your organization up for success.

In our next blog we will get into the budget process in further detail. Here at Beck and Company Certified Public Accountants and Business Advisers we are committed to assist you with your back-office accounting and financial needs so you can focus on your mission. Contact us to learn more about our planning and budgeting services.

Nonprofits Can Reap the Benefits of Cloud Computing

Miriam Webster defines Cloud Computing as the practice of storing regularly used computer data on multiple servers that can be accessed through the Internet. Contrary to popular belief this isn’t a new concept at all. In fact, the idea to combine hardware and software as a service dates back to the early 1960s. And the reality of such a service exists today. Cloud accounting is another tool for nonprofits to take advantage of as they pursue the vision and mission of their organization. Cloud computing can help by streamlining processes and making information readily available to its users.

Businesses are looking to the cloud to drive business transformation across the enterprise. They are looking for new ways to engage their clients in a digital economy and new ways to engage their employees to increase productivity and employee satisfaction. Employees today expect a mobile enabled work environment to connect with their digital savvy customers. Take a look at some of the many benefits of cloud computing for nonprofits.

Utilizing cloud storage saves time and money enabling you to grow as fast as your business without leaving you with the expense of equipment and staff in a downturn season.
Centralized access to data and reports means more efficient processes, easier telecommuting and less time wasted waiting for information stored on an individual’s hard drive
Ever changing technology mandates a sizable budget towards upgrades and repairs which can be avoided with cloud computing services
No more concerns about storage space or capacity with almost unlimited amounts available on the cloud
Rest assured that your data is backed on the cloud. Additionally your service provider will be skilled enough to handle recovery of information
Handpick the services that you need and don’t worry about software integration as this generally occurs automatically on the cloud.
No waiting! Cloud computing offers quick deployment once you decide to move in this direction.

Another benefit to moving to cloud technology is the flexibility to take on new projects. The availability of on-demand cloud resources allows new configurations to be set up and running in a matter of hours. And because you are partnering with a service you will only pay for the time that is actually used towards expanding your business tools. We know the biggest drawback to taking ground in a new territory is time and money, or the lack thereof. However, on-demand cloud resources could be the key to unlocking doors for your nonprofit.

Benefits aside there are still rainy day risks involved with cloud driven solutions. Confidentiality and security are among the top two risks facing organizations today. Some of this concern may stem from not being able to physically see the machine housing your data. In order to mitigate the risks be sure to do your due diligence when selecting a service provider. Be sure of their use of security tools including virus and hacker protection. In addition, hesitation may come from fear of change to well-known processes. Remember vision leaks. Communicate the benefits of the transition to the team – specifically time saving benefits such as fewer hours spent commuting to the office to obtain files that will be made available at the touch of a button.

As you adopt cloud technology it is important to look at how your business processes and technologies work together to ensure optimal results. Here at Beck & Company’s Certified Public Accountants and Business Advisors we want to help you succeed. Contact us today to see how a cloud computing solution can help advance the mission of your nonprofit organization.

Top 8 Reasons To Take Your Nonprofit Budget To The Cloud

Do you pull your hair out at board meetings trying to read the tiny print on an overpopulated excel spreadsheet? Do you dread the line item on the agenda dedicated to budget? You are not alone – many board members find this task frustrating as they try to make sense of poorly managed Quickbooks reports and line items that just don’t always make sense. It can be difficult to even discern if a budgeted line item is actually financially healthy for a nonprofit. These types of budgets fail to be useful as an ongoing solution.

While it may be frustrating it is required by the U.S. government to keep an approved annual budget on file. And, that budget must then be reviewed at monthly board meetings. Although it may feel like the rule exists to frustrate and confuse you it is not. Having a working, well developed and managed budget provides tons of important values to your nonprofit – particularly when the budget process is simple and user friendly.

If you’re like most nonprofits the members of your board are successful and busy people. They believe in your organization and want to contribute their unique skills to help you accomplish your mission. Imagine the possibilities if those same people could review the budget on an ongoing basis online? They could be empowered to…

Analyze predictions and compare them to actual costs.
Show up to meetings with ideas for improvement.
Spend time on the cause at hand rather than trying to decipher code.

Let’s face it – who wants to spend their precious time looking backwards when you can take steps forward? This is all possible with the right tools and using software designed to help you budget with ease is a great place to start.

Although there are many great online budgeting tools available one solution we have found extremely useful for nonprofits is Adaptive Insights. This cloud software makes it easy to move beyond the spreadsheet nightmare without the cost and complexity associated with traditional applications.

There are multiple benefits we have seen from customers using cloud budgeting software. Below are the top 8 that we wanted to highlight:

Dramatically reduce budgeting and forecasting cycle times-by up to 90%
Simplify and standardize data collection across the organization
Decrease errors and improve accuracy by eliminating broken links and formulas
Deliver more complete and frequent forecasts, including rolling forecasts
Enable timely and thorough what-if analysis
Establish one version of the truth
Make faster, more informed decisions
Enhance collaboration with, and ownership by, department managers

When a person decides to support your business with their hard earned money they most certainly want to know where that money is going. People don’t part with their cash carelessly. Your donors give because they believe in the cause. Being able to show them that their donations served a worthy purpose is essential. When you have a good budgeting tool that is easy to use and organize, finding this information is easy and makes board meetings so much more productive.

We know that implementing new budgeting software can be difficult. At Beck & Company, Certified Public Accountants and Business Advisors, we are an accounting and consulting firm delivering specialized expertise, creative thinking, and unsurpassed service to ensure that our clients’ financial endeavors flourish. We want to see you spend your time where your time is most valuable, working towards the vision and mission of your NPO. Let us help you manage your budgeting process so you don’t have to. If your organization is looking for ways to improve your accounting functions and reduce the time you spend managing your back-office, our nonprofit client accounting services may be the answer. Contact us today for a free consultation and see how we can help you reach your goals.

A Closer Look at Healthcare Reform Guidance for Small Businesses

Over the past two weeks, we have been taking a look at an overview of the ever-developing new health care laws and how they impact small businesses. We looked at past guidelines, upcoming deadlines, and options small business employers have when it comes to providing health care coverage. We also examined three reimbursement methods for small business employers that give them choices in terms of how they will provide their employees with coverage options. For more information, visit here.

There is so much background knowledge needed to understand all of this that we thought it would be beneficial to dig a little deeper into healthcare reform regulations for small businesses. Let’s take a closer look.

Background into Healthcare Reform Decisions

Back in 2013, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued Notice 2013-54. This notice defined that an employer had created an “Employer Payment Plan” considered to be a group health plan under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) when the employer reimburses an employee for individual health insurance premiums or directly pays the insurance company for this employee’s individual policy. Even still, the Employer Payment Plans will fail to comply with two aspects of the ACA—the prohibition of annual limits on an individual’s benefits and the preventive health service requirements. If these were not complied with, employers would be subject to an excise tax, according to Section 4980D, of $100 per day for each individual that doesn’t meet compliance.

On February 18, 2015, the IRS issued new guidance. Through this, transitional relief was offered to employers that reimburse their employees for the cost of premiums for individual health coverage. This also allowed for arrangements to increase employees’ compensation to help pay for the cost of these individual policies.

Caveats to the Excise Tax—Transitional Relief for Small Businesses

As defined by the IRS as employers that employed an average of less than 50 full-time (and full-time equivalent) employees on business days during the preceding calendar year, small employers were offered limited relief from the Section 4980D excise tax. For these employers only, the excise tax would not be asserted on them for failure to comply with the Market Reforms by Employer Payment Plans that we discussed above. This is applicable through June 30, 2015. In addition to being exempt from the excise tax during this period, small employers are not required to file Form 8928 solely because of the Employer Payment Plan for timeframe during which the employer qualifies for the relief. But, it is important to note that after the June 30th deadline, small employers may be liable for the excise tax, but this does not apply to reimbursement arrangements (health reimbursement arrangements and others) for medical expenses other than insurance premiums.

How Small Employers are Responding

Because of Notice 2013-54, employers don’t want to risk the excise tax by sponsoring Employer Payment Plans. Instead, many have chosen to increase after-tax compensation for employees who can then purchase their own coverage. This practice is only exempt from the ACA and is not considered a group health plan if the compensation is increased and the employer does NOT require that the compensation be used to fund health insurance. It is important to understand that employers that require the extra compensation to be used for health coverage will be considered part of an Employer Payment Plan that IS subject to the 4980D excise tax. Please note that whether an Employer Payment Plan is offered on an after-tax basis will still be subject to treatment as a group health plan.

What to do for the Future

If you, as a small employer, have Employer Payment Plans in place, you’ll want to modify them before June 30th to avoid the Section 4980D excise tax. As Beck and Company’s Certified Public Accountants and Business Advisors, we understand that you, as small business owners, want to do what you can for your employees and hope the information has helped you understand the regulations more thoroughly. To learn more about our accounting services to help you navigate through these tricky processes, visit here.

Contact us here at Beck and Company CPAs so we can help you with your unique needs as small business owners navigating the new healthcare reform regulations.

Health Insurance Options for Small Business Employees

Keeping up with the ever-evolving world of health insurance rules and regulations has probably never been quite as difficult or confusing as it is currently. It is essential to understand current policies, future deadlines, and available options to help your small business be informed and make the best choices for your employees and their health insurance while remaining compliant with government rules. To learn more, visit here. Let’s take a closer and more in-depth look at methods the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) permits employers of small businesses to reimburse employees for the cost of health insurance premiums in three ways. If the regulations were not followed for reimbursement, please note that these reimbursements would then be considered taxable income for the employee.

Reimbursement Method #1: Reimbursements that are administered by the Employer

A payment may be issued to the employee by the employer to reimburse them for a portion or for their full health insurance premiums. If this payment is received, it is the responsibility of the employee to provide proof of both payment and coverage for the times in which they received reimbursement. If the employer does obtain proof from the employee that the funds received from the employer were used by the employee to purchase health insurance, the payments are not taxable income. Instead of paying just the employee, the employer has the option to give a check that is made payable to the employee’s insurance company that must be remitted to the insurance provider. The most important factor of this method is sufficient proof obtained by the employer from the employee that the reimbursement is being used for health insurance and that there was coverage throughout the course of time in which there was reimbursement.

Reimbursement Method #2: HSA- Health Savings Account

Employers are allowed to contribute towards the amount of the premiums of an employee’s health savings account, but the combined amount maximum contributed between employers and employees has limits established by the IRS. Employer contributions do not count as taxable income on the part of the employee, but this is only the case if the funds are used to pay medical expenses and premiums. If they are not expenses that would be deductible, the employee must then report this and pay tax on this amount.

Reimbursement Method #3: HRA- Health Reimbursement Arrangement

With a health reimbursement arrangement (HRA), an employer may establish one for employees that can stand alone or be offered alongside other plans (flexible spending, cafeteria plan, etc.). HRAs can only be contributed to by the employer, and contributions are not included as part of the employee’s taxable income. The IRS does not put limitations on HRAs so there are not limits on the deductible or the employee expenses, and the employer has flexibility in how the plan terms are established.

Policies that are not eligible for reimbursement by employers

The three methods above are acceptable forms of reimbursements for employee health coverage, but there are policies and plans that do not meet IRS regulations. This means these would not qualify for a medical expense deduction cannot be tax-exempt reimbursements. These include hospitalization plans and policies that pay a flat amount for hospitalization or falling ill. Life insurance is not included either. Finally, policies that pay wages of employees while they are ill or disabled are also not included.

As Beck and Company’s Certified Public Accountants and Business Advisors, we understand that you, as small business owners, want to do what you can for your employees and hope the information has helped you understand what you can and cannot do in terms of health coverage reimbursement. Our client accounting services are designed with you and your business in mind to help with the complexities and changes of health insurance and taxation policies. We want to help you understand and navigate through confusing rules and regulations so you can protect your business and still care for your employees and their health insurance needs. To learn more about our accounting services to help you in this process and many others, visit here.

Contact Beck and Company CPAs for further assistance and for us to help you answer any personalized or specific questions you have related to these health insurance reimbursement guidelines.

Small Businesses and Individual Health Insurance: What you Need to Know

It is unbelievable and hard to comprehend just how much has changed in the world of health insurance in the United States in such a short period of time. So much has transformed in just the last few months to a year alone, and keeping up with all of the changes and regulations can be daunting to say the least. As a small business, it is important to stay up-to-date on the latest regulations and policies to avoid penalties and stay compliant. At the same time, following it all can be confusing. Do you know and also truly understand the latest information and its implications for your business? Let’s take a closer look at current policies, future deadlines, and available options to help your small business be informed and make the best choices for your employees and their health insurance while remaining compliant with government rules.

Past Rules and Regulations, Upcoming Deadlines

On September 30, 2013, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) issued rules prohibiting employers from paying for or reimbursing employee insurance premiums when they enroll in an individual health insurance plan. The fines for not being in compliance are steep. Employers who continue to pay for or reimburse insurance premiums face fines as great as $100 per employee per day. This adds up quickly!

There is good news, though, for those in small businesses of fewer than 50 employees. For these businesses, the IRS has provided a special transitional relief period by waiving penalties for this practice. Unfortunately, the good news of this relief is followed by bad news related to a deadline for when this transitional relief period will run out. This deadline is coming up on July 1, 2015. After this date, there will no longer be a transitional relief for small employers seeking to provide reimbursement to employees for their personal health insurance plans.

Exploring Alternative Options that still Assist your Employees with Coverage

So, how do you, as small business owners, remedy the situation? There are other options besides reimbursement or paying for health insurance policies. One of these would be to increase employees’ pay overall and not connect this pay in any way to pay for health insurance. Another option, now that small businesses cannot be penalized for adverse medical history with higher premiums, is to establish a group health insurance plan instead of having employees find their own policy. With the new laws since 2014, a wider spectrum of products with more benefits and tax advantages are now available with group plans.

As Beck and Company’s Certified Public Accountants and Business Advisors, we realize just how much heart and effort goes into striving to do what you can for employees as a small business. We understand that this is true in terms of wanting to assist them with health insurance as well. It is important to know the regulations and abide by them while simultaneously doing what you can for your employees. That is why we are here to help. Our client accounting services are designed with you and your business in mind. We want to help you understand and navigate through confusing rules and regulations so you can protect your business and still care for your employees and their health insurance needs. To learn more about our accounting services to help you in this process and many others, visit here.

Contact Beck and Company CPAs for further assistance to find out more about employee health insurance rules, regulations, and options for your specific business and its needs. Then, stay tuned next week as we explore your options for health insurance coverage for employees even further.

Important Tax Forms to Complete this Summer

It isn’t just April 15th that is an important date for taxes. There are deadlines for various forms and tax documents throughout the entire year that individuals and businesses need to be aware of. For this upcoming summer in particular, you will need to be aware of two important forms and due dates. These are the Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR) forms that are due on June 30, 2015, and the Form 5500 series returns for employee benefit plans for calendar year employers that are due on July 31, 2015. Let’s take a closer look at what these forms are and what they involve. Most of all, be sure to keep the important filing deadlines in mind.

Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR)

If you, as a United States person, had interest in a foreign financial account or signature authority over a foreign financial account (including bank or brokerage accounts, mutual funds, trusts, and other foreign financial accounts) at any time during the last calendar year, you likely are required to file the FBAR. A United States person includes U.S. citizens, U.S. residents, entities, and trusts/estates formed under United States laws. According to regulations, if the aggregate value of all foreign financial accounts exceeds $10,000 at any time during the calendar year, you must file an FBAR. For FBAR filing purposes, even an LLC is required to file an FBAR report with interest in or signature authority over a foreign financial account. Please note that you may be required to report even if your foreign account did not generate any income.

The FBAR must be filed electronically with FinCEN. This form is not filed with income tax returns and must be RECEIVED by the Department of the Treasury on or before June 30th. No extensions are granted for the FBAR, and postmarks are not considered evidence of timely filing.

Form 5500 Series Returns for Employee Benefit Plans

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS), the Department of Labor (DOL) Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA), and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation jointly require nearly all employee benefit plans to file some version (Form 5500, Form 5500-SF, Form 5500-EZ, etc.) of the Form 5500 report each year for employee benefit plans. This satisfies annual reporting requirements. This form reports profit sharing or money purchase pension plans, individual 401(k), and ERISA 403(b) plans. The version of the form that must be completed depends on the number of plan participants and the type of plan. These forms are the annual returns/reports of employee or small employee benefit plan forms. The return must be filed with the EBSA by the last day of the seventh month after the end of the plan year that began in 2014. For calendar year plans, this year’s filing due date is July 31, 2015.

Beck and Company Certified Public Accountants and Business Advisors know that tax documents and forms such as the FBAR and the Form 5500 are certainly complicated and can be confusing. It can even be tricky to know if they are required to be filed and which version needs to be filed, if required. The good news is that you don’t have to figure this all out alone. Beck and Company CPAs offer a large variety of tax services including tax planning and preparation to meet your needs. For more information about our tax consulting services, visit here.

Contact us here at Beck and Company CPAs if we can be of assistance to you or help you as you fill out these summer tax forms. We are happy to answer questions you may have about the forms and filing as well.