OBJECTIVE
To provide the young accountant with one year or less of tax experience or the rusty accountant needing an income tax brush-up with comprehensive three days of tax training with emphasis on individual income taxation, followed by basics of both S and C Corporation tax preparation.

Also, tax areas affecting all types of taxpayers will be covered in depth (i.e., property transactions). All recent tax legislation will be emphasized throughout this course and any new legislation enacted prior to the presentation date.

Participants will be able to

• Gain a thorough understanding of federal income tax laws for individual taxpayers
• Accurately prepare depreciation schedules (Form 4562) and report sales or exchange of property (Form 4797)
• Advise clients on basic tax issues such as income recognition, home sale exclusion, individual retirement plan rules, itemized deductions, and selected individual and business tax credits
• Accurately prepare S Corporation returns and reconcile book income to taxable income
• Reconcile corporate financial statement income to taxable income

Individual Taxation (est. 18 hours)

• Individual income tax formula
  
• Gross income, exclusions from income, kiddie tax parental election, and social security benefits
  
• Interest and dividend income, exclusions for Education Savings Bonds
  
• Trade or business activities and their problems, employee vs. independent contractor overview, home office deduction rules
  
• Property transactions applicable to all taxpayers including proper depreciation calculation and recapture rules under §§1231, 1245, 1250
  
• Capital asset transactions including recent legislative changes, an overview of installment sales
  
• Distributions and rollovers from qualified retirement plans, Traditional, Roth IRAs, and Coverdell Education Savings Accounts
  
• Passive activity losses – understanding what they are and how they work
  
• Adjustments including IRA’s, SEP’s, SIMPLE plans, Medical Savings Accounts, Keogh’s, Alimony, Education Deductions, etc.
  
• Coverage of the Roth-IRA and Conversion Issues will be discussed.
  
• Standard deduction, selected itemized deductions, personal and dependent exemption rules
  
• Tax calculations, regular tax, penalty taxes on retirement distributions, SE tax, and an overview of the alternative minimum tax system
  
• Selected tax credits relating to individual taxpayers including new First-Time Homebuyers, Adoption, Child, and Education Tax Credits
  
• Case studies and numerous examples are provided throughout the manual

Preparation of S Corporation Return (3 hours including property transactions above)

• Basics of S Corporation taxation including S Corporation Reforms and recent regulations
  
• Guided preparation of a typical S Corporation return from trial balance to a line-by-line review of the completed return

C Corporations (3 hours including property transactions above)

• Corporate election issues and planning to avoid pitfalls
  
• Reconciliation of book-to-tax income - Schedule M-1 explanation and analysis of the most frequently encountered adjustments
  
• Income and expense items receiving special treatment
  
• Personal service and brother - sister corporation overview
  
• Tax Calculations and credits, shareholder accruals and below market loans
  
• Practice Cases