Professional Tax Preparation.
01/09/2026
IRS announces first day of 2026 filing season; online tools and resources help with tax filing | Internal Revenue Service IR-2026-02, Jan. 8, 2026 — The Internal Revenue Service announced Monday, January 26, 2026, as the opening of the nation’s 2026 filing season. This year, several new tax law provisions of the One, Big, Beautiful Bill become effective, which could impact federal taxes, credits and deductions.
Key IRS Overtime Rules for the 2025-2028 Tax Years
Federal Income Tax Deduction: Eligible individuals can deduct the portion of their overtime pay that exceeds their regular rate of pay (the "half" in "time-and-a-half" pay).
Deduction Limits: The maximum annual deduction is $12,500 for single filers and $25,000 for married couples filing jointly.
Income Phase-Outs: The deduction begins to phase out for taxpayers with a modified adjusted gross income (MAGI) over $150,000 (single filers) or $300,000 (joint filers).
Eligibility: The overtime must be required under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). This generally means compensation for hours worked over 40 in a workweek. Overtime paid under more generous state laws or employer policies may not qualify for the federal deduction.
F**A and Medicare Taxes: Overtime pay remains subject to Social Security and Medicare taxes (F**A). The deduction only applies to federal income tax.
Availability: The deduction is available to both taxpayers who itemize and those who take the standard deduction.
Guidance for Tax Year 2025
For the 2025 tax year, the IRS has provided transition relief because tax forms (like Form W-2) were not updated in time to separately report the qualified overtime amount.
Employer Reporting: Employers are not penalized for failing to separately report qualified overtime for 2025, but they are encouraged to provide this information to employees.
Employee Reporting: Taxpayers must use a "reasonable method" to determine their qualified overtime amount to claim the deduction. The IRS has issued Notice 2025-69 with examples of how to calculate this, such as using one-third of the total overtime compensation if paid at time-and-a-half and the premium portion wasn't listed separately.
Withholding: Initially, the deduction will primarily result in a larger tax refund, as federal income tax withholding procedures were not updated for 2025. Updated W-4 forms for 2026 will allow employees to adjust their withholding in advance.
For more details, refer to the official IRS guidance on the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act provisions. You can also find general information on federal overtime provisions from the U.S. Department of Labor.
12/11/2025
Continuing Education is paramount
The Treasury Department announced March 2 that it will no longer enforce the Corporate Transparency Act or the associated Beneficial Ownership Information reporting requirements.
Furthermore, the agency announced that, “Not only will it not enforce any penalties or fines associated with the beneficial ownership information reporting rule under the existing regulatory deadlines, but it will further not enforce any penalties or fines against U.S. citizens or domestic reporting companies or their beneficial owners after the forthcoming rule changes take effect either.”
The Treasury Department said it will further be issuing a proposed rule that will narrow the scope of the rule to foreign reporting companies only.
“This is a victory for common sense,” said U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent. “Today’s action is part of President Trump’s bold agenda to unleash American prosperity by reining in burdensome regulations, in particular for small businesses that are the backbone of the American economy.”
The Corporate Transparency Act, which was signed into law in January 2021, is an anti-money laundering law that directs businesses to report their ownership structures to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), which is overseen by the Treasury Department. The thinking is that clear ownership structures make it more difficult for bad actors to use shell companies for illicit activities like money laundering or drug trafficking.
A Jan. 1, 2025, deadline had originally been set for reporting companies to file their BOI reports with FinCEN, but that deadline has been delayed and suspended numerous times by federal courts.
02/27/2025
You may need more than just a W2.
Additional tax forms:
Mortgage interest statements
Investment income statements
Charitable contribution statements
Gather all your receipts (you kept those, right?) if you plan on itemizing your deductions so you’re not scrambling and pulling your hair out by the time April rolls around.
Walker Tax Preparation x WynDax Financial Solutions, LLC
02/11/2025
Call or email me to get those taxes out of the way today! Premium service is priority #1.
Tax filing for 2025 begins on January 27
12/18/2024
Walker Tax Preparation LLC