CPE Catalog & Events

Surgent's Taxation of Tips and Overtime Under OBBBA

$12,500 deduction per individual for qualified overtime pay Payment of overtime under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) Calculating the “premium portion” of the extra half-time pay Social Security and Medicare withholding Employer furnishing the record of qualified overtime compensation to employees Definition of a qualified tip IRS list of traditionally-tipped occupations $25,000 deduction for reported tips The transition rule allowing employers to indicate the approximate amount designated as tips or overtime State tax issues relating to tips and overtime Changes in the W-2 reflecting new employer reporting responsibilities

Surgent's Preparing Individual Tax Returns for New Staff and Paraprofessionals

Updates related to HR 1, One Big Beautiful Bill Act, incorporated throughout the course Preparation of various Form 1040 individual tax returns and schedules; provided answers include “filled-in” forms  Coverage of Form 7203  Coverage of §199A qualified business income, its calculation, limitations, and examples  Dividends and interest – Ordinary, return of capital, and capital gain distribution dividends; tax-exempt interest, original issue discount, etc.  Security transactions – From Form 1099-B to Form 8949 to Schedule D, plus mutual fund sales and related basis issues  Self-employed person issues  Schedule C deductions including depreciation  Sale and exchange of property – Understanding Form 4797 and depreciation recapture; capital gains  A working understanding of passive losses – How to handle rental property and how the passive loss rules flow to the tax forms  Itemized deductions – A thorough understanding of what’s deductible and what’s not  Interest deductions – Limitations and timing problems  Charitable contributions substituting for taxes, IRS says – No!  Retirement contributions and education credits and deductions  Tax computations – The Kiddie Tax, AMT, regular tax, tax credits  Individual problems illustrated by form preparation for various items, with numerous “practice tips”  Impact of recent legislation and forms changes on the 1040 

Ethics in the World of AI: An Accountant's Guide to Managing the Risks

Business uses of AI Nine risk areas of AI Three ethical frameworks Risk mitigation strategies

Surgent's Handling Difficult People

Be familiar with the nature and sources of difficult behaviors in the workplace, as well as strategies for addressing them Understand a proven formula for handling difficult people Utilize a problem-solving model to brainstorm strategies for working effectively with challenging individuals Implement a step-by-step process to resolve conflicts between yourself and others within your organization Apply the hostility curve as a tool to maintain control in situations involving angry or upset individuals Implement new strategies for managing your emotions in difficult interactions Understand the impact of attitude on interactions with others Create a personalized action plan for applying course strategies in your workplace

Surgent's What Tax Practitioners Need to Know About Medicare

Eligibility for Medicare How to apply for  Medicare Introduction to Parts A, B, C, and D of Medicare Payments for Parts B and D of Medicare: the higher costs imposed on higher income beneficiaries Late enrollment penalties Medicare Advantage in lieu of original Medicare The Affordable Care Act’s impact on Medicare Legislative and regulatory developments

Surgent's Employee Stock Options: What Financial Professionals Should Know When Advising Their Clients

What stock options are and why they are growing in popularity How stock options work, including the process of conveyance and vesting How to exercise stock options and the implications from doing so The risks associated with stock options and how to manage exposure Tax consequences and updates regarding stock options Strategies for selecting the best time to exercise stock options The difference between the two types of stock options: non-qualified and incentive The basic terminology relevant to owning and exercising options

Surgent's Hiring and Firing of Employees - What You Can and Cannot Do

Employment at will — what this means in a practical sense Implied employment contracts What a prospective employer can ask about, and test for, during employment interviews Federal anti-discrimination rules applicable to hiring and firing How to discipline or fire an employee and not get sued FMLA/ADA/PWFA — Pregnant Worker’s Fairness Act Constructive discharge — what is it and how it affects your business?

Surgent's Introduction to Charitable Gifting for Individual Taxpayers

Fundamentals of charitable gifting Income and estate tax considerations for charitable giving Charitable deduction rules and limitations Structuring charitable contributions for maximum tax efficiency Advanced charitable gifting techniques Compliance and documentation requirements

Surgent's Taxation of the Mobile Workforce

What states do not have an income tax? What is the relevance to employers? Where does an employer have an obligation to withhold state taxes for an employee? At what point does an employee become a resident? Where is unemployment paid for an out-of-state employee?

Surgent's Annual Accounting and Auditing Update

Recently issued FASB Accounting Standards Updates, PCC Update, and items on the FASB’s Technical Agenda Recently issued ASUs covering derivatives, credit losses under ASC 326, government grants, and expense disaggregation FASB Final PIR Report for Leases (Topic 842) Statement on Quality Management Standards: SQMS 1, SQMS 2, and SQMS 3 Proposed SAS on the auditor’s responsibility relating to fraud Recently issued SASs and other AICPA activity Recently issued PCAOB standards and SEC rulemaking activities Other important A&A practice matters

Surgent's Individual and Financial-Planning Tax Camp

Comprehensive coverage of the One Big Beautiful Tax Bill Act Reading a tax return for developing client-specific tax strategies Changes to the lifetime estate tax exemption considering proposed regulations  The net investment income tax: planning for compliance Family income-splitting strategies that need to be considered Income tax issues: impact on timing of other income Selling a principal residence Two principal residences at the same time Use of life insurance to protect families: Whole Life Insurance, Term Life Insurance, Universal Life Insurance, and Variable Life Insurance Using Roth IRAs and Roth contribution programs to best advantage Conversions: do they still make sense? Taking distributions: matching timing to client requirements Qualified plan contributions to reduce current income and Social Security tax: implications for business owners and self-employed Social Security - the latest on the looming solvency crisis Incentive Stock Options and Employee Stock Purchase Plan considerations What to do about itemized deductions Trans-generational planning: conversions, income, and gain-splitting Tax benefits of HSAs and other tax-advantaged accounts Identifying tax opportunities: reviewing the prior-year return to develop a plan for the future Planning for middle-income taxpayers: financial planning for the young, the working, and those approaching or in retirement Best financial planning ideas for young people

Surgent's Avoiding Deficiencies in Peer Reviews: Focus on Engagement Quality

AICPA’s Enhancing Audit Quality initiative Recent revisions to Quality Management standards Feedback from peer reviews, including areas driving deficiencies in audit Elements of an effective risk assessment and how to link to audit procedures performed Understanding internal controls and making the decision whether or not to test them Best practices in documentation

S Corporations: Key Issues, Compliance, and Tax Strategies - Tax Staff Essentials

Advantages and disadvantages of S corporations Electing S corporation status Termination of S corporation status S corporation tax on built-in gains S corporation pass-through to shareholders, basis, and losses S corporation distributions Taxable year of S corporations S corporation passive activity rules, fringe benefits, and other considerations

The Best Individual Income Tax Update Course by Surgent

Comprehensive coverage of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act Review of key components of President Trump's tax bill, including a tip income exemption, overtime pay relief, Social Security tax exemption, auto loan interest deductibility, SALT deduction modifications, a lower corporate tax rate, restoration of 100% bonus depreciation, immediate R&D expensing, and permanent extension of select TCJA provisions Tariff policy and implementation - analyze the use of tariffs as a fiscal and trade policy tool Digital assets and tax implications - understand the new Form 1099-DA for reporting digital asset transactions, along with updated IRS guidance on cryptocurrencies, NFTs, and broker responsibilities Artificial intelligence - discover how AI and generative tools are transforming tax practices, as well as how the IRS is leveraging AI to enhance audit selection Form 1099-K reporting requirements - understand the evolving IRS thresholds and rules for third-party payment platforms The Gig Economy - examine key tax implications for gig workers, including Independent Contractor vs. Employee classification challenges, reporting responsibilities, and the impact of the 2024 Department of Labor Final Rule on worker status Timely coverage of breaking tax legislation Real Estate professional requirements Review of pertinent cases and rulings affecting taxpayers Practice aids, including all the numbers applicable for the current year -- inflation-adjusted amounts, mileage rates, retirement contributions, and more Advanced practice, reporting, and other issues intertwined with advanced planning and discussion ideas

Surgent's Food, Beverage, and Entertainment Expensing

The 50% deduction for meals that are ordinary and necessary in carrying on a trade or business Elimination of the temporary rules that applied for 2021 and 2022 which allowed for 100% deductibility for ordinary and necessary business-related meals When meals are still 100% deductible IRS rules relating to the nondeducibility of activities considered entertainment or amusement What constitutes entertainment/amusement for tax purposes? When employers may deduct food and beverages provided to employees 50% deductibility for occasional employee meals and for overtime meals 50% deductibility for business meals during business meetings Business meals incurred during business travel Invoice meals separately from entertainment

Surgent's Key Roth IRA and Roth 401(k) Rules for Funding and Tax-free Distributions

Funding options for Roth accounts Roth IRA contribution eligibility and income limits Enhanced catch-up contributions and age-based limits The Roth catch-up mandate for employer plans Roth 401(k) contribution rules, including catch-ups Roth SEP and Roth SIMPLE IRAs 529 plan rollovers to Roth IRAs Backdoor Roth strategies and pro-rata considerations The tax impact of rolling a 401(k) to a Roth IRA Who can start the Roth IRA 5-year clock? The 5-year rules for Roth IRAs and Roth 401(k)s Direct and indirect Roth conversions Direct and indirect rollovers from Roth 401(k) plans Ordering rules for Roth IRA distributions FIFO treatment and when it applies The risk of recapturing the 10% early distribution penalty Case studies and practical cheat sheets to reinforce key concepts

Surgent's Understanding Partnership Taxation: Debt Allocations

Recourse debt allocations Constructive liquidation scenarios Nonrecourse debt allocations Minimum gains and nonrecourse deductions Section 704(c) gains Allocations under 704(c)

Construction Contractors: Non-Revenue and Non-Lease Accounting Considerations

Types of contractors Non-revenue GAAP accounting for contractors Contractor financial statements Sureties and their place in the construction relationship

Surgent's Ensure Your Accounting Team Is Operating at Peak Performance Through Engagement and Motivation

Increase productivity and profitability Communicate better and resolve conflict Learn teamwork principles in today's changing accounting workplace Motivate yourself and your team

Business Transformation: Critical Skills for CFOs and Controllers