At Spain & Higginbotham CPA Group, PLLC, we feel an informed client is our best customer.  There is a lot of information on the Internet, and it can be tough to determine what is valuable. That is why we have selected the following article(s) for you to view. 2011 Social Security Rate Lowered for Employees  The recent extension of the Bush tax cuts also instituted a one-year reduction in the Social Security tax (FICA) for employees, from 6.2% to 4.2%. Please note this is for the employee only. The employer continues to pay 6.2 % as in the past.  It is up to the business  owners to adjust their employees’ withholdings. The employer must do so as soon as possible in January 2011, but no later than January 31, 2011. If you use a payroll service, the service will probably adjust for the change. But if you use payroll software, you may need to make sure you have the current update that contains this change.  If you withhold too much Social Security tax during January, you will need to make an offsetting adjustment in your employees' pay as soon as possible and no later than March 31, 2011. Ask us for more details. http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p15.pdf This link will give you the current withholding tables.

Retaining Tax Information and Records Retaining and storing your income tax information and records is an important final step of your tax filing responsibility. This article contains information on the rules for keeping your tax records.   Traditional to Roth IRA Conversions Four years ago, the Tax Increase Prevention and Reconciliation Act of 2005 (TIPRA) relaxed some restrictive rules preventing many taxpayers from converting a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA, but this favorable change was not effective until 2010.   Year-end Tax Planning There is still time to lower your 2010 tax bill, contribute to your tax-advantaged retirement accounts, and do some tax planning for next year.