Small Business Tax Tips

As a small business owner, you are responsible for paying taxes on what your business earns. But you only want to pay what you owe – no more and no less. What can you do to optimize your tax liability? Here are some tips that may help.

There are a variety of things you can do throughout the year to make filing taxes less painful and potentially less costly:

Focus and align your team on your near- and long-term goals

Chris Johnson, Regional Market President, First Financial Bank provides an essential recommendation for success:

“To help them understand your focus and goals when you are starting out and on a regularly scheduled ongoing basis, have a group meeting with your:

• Personal CPA

• Attorney

• Business CPA

• Wealth/Financial Planner

This can help keep you all on the same page with what you’re trying to accomplish globally as a small business owner – and personally as an individual/family as you plan for wealth creationr and retirement goal setting.”

Work with someone who understands small business taxes.

If you are a new business owner and have had a prior relationship with a CPA for your personal taxes, having them do the accounting for your business may seem like a good idea. Unfortunately, though they may be someone you are pretty comfortable with, they may not be as knowledgeable about the ins and outs of business tax law as you need. You want someone who “gets it” about all things small business finance and taxes. For example, you need a tax advisor who understands what are the rules and opportunities if you are a sole proprietor vs. a C corporation – and may help you determine if it makes financial sense to change your corporate structure. Someone who can advise you what types of business improvements, enhancements, and expenses can be used toward tax credits and/or are legally deductible – and which ones are not. The right person can help you to identify new opportunities and risks that may occur when tax laws change. You need someone with the experience and expertise to be a trusted advisor when you are filing taxes – and throughout the business year. Read more >