If you're eligible for advance child tax credit (CTC) payments provided by the American Rescue Plan Act, you might wonder if you should spend the extra cash. Some families are incurring extra child-care costs so the parents can return to work. But others don't have any imminent child-care-related expenditures to cover.

Rather than spend the money on a trip to Disneyland or new smartphones, you might want to invest in your child's future by starting or contributing to a tax-favored Section 529 college savings plan. Here's what you should know:

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Tags: Accounting, COVID, CTC, Section 529, College Fund, American Rescue Plan Act

On July 16, 2021, California’s governor signed Assembly Bill 150 (AB 150). Among other things, this bill includes the “Small Business Relief Act”, which allows taxpayers to receive a credit for their share of state and local tax (SALT) deducted from the net income on their federal returns for their qualified business(es). This elective tax payment will be available from January 1, 2021 through January 1, 2026.

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Tags: Accounting, COVID, IRS, California State Tax, Small business relief act, federal tax, Income tax

About the Child Tax Credit (CTC) and advance payments

Taxpayers are allowed a CTC for each qualifying child. The credit was temporarily expanded and made refundable for 2021 by the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). It phases out for taxpayers with adjusted gross incomes (AGIs) over certain thresholds.

Eligible families will receive up to $300 per month for each child under age 6 and up to $250 per month for each child age 6 and older.

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Tags: Accounting, COVID, Child Tax Credit, CTC, IRS

Has the Government-mandated Covid shutdown brought your cash flow to a halt? Have you been able to operate, but still haven’t been able to get your revenues up to the level they were at before all the lockdown madness of 2020?  Here's a brief overview of how the federal Employee Retention Credit (ERC) can get you up to $33,000 (per employee) in refundable federal tax credits through the end of 2021.

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Tags: Accounting, COVID, Employment Tax, business, cash flow, Employee Retention Credit, payroll, ERC