Drew Miles Tax Planning Advice and Tax Savings Tips

The House of Representatives voted on December 3, 2009 to extend the estate tax rate for 2009 into 2010. The estate tax is the transfer of property to heirs or family members and the exemption amount is the amount each person can pass free of federal estate taxes.

The estate tax extension plan was enacted under the George W. Bush administration as the Economic Growth and Tax Relief Reconciliation Act of 2001. Initially, the act provided an increase in exemption tax rates followed by a gradual decrease per year.
The scheduled exemption rate per year was 50% for 2002, 49% for 2003, 48% for 2004, 47% for 2005, 46% for 2006, 45% for 2007, 2008, and 2009. The estate tax amount would have fazed out to 0% for 2010.

Under this tax plan, there would have been a 0% estate tax rate for 2010. The revised extension allows a $3.5 million exemption per individual ($7 million for married couples) and a top rate of 45 percent.

The repeal of the estate tax rate is critical but the Senate is likely to go along with this temporary fix, while preserving the option to adjust the permanent levels further later and to add a provision for inflation indexing of the exemption amount.

Drew Miles says to document everything right to avoid a tax scam.  Drew grew up working in a family business on Long Island, NY.  After passing the New York State Bar, Drew established his own firm where he practiced for 18 years.  In 2006, he set out to concentrate solely on his commitment to serve his clients and expand Pathfinder’s scope of programs.

His unique approach combines what he has learned, not only from his formal legal education, but also his “informal” business education and 25 years of entrepreneurial experience, in the development of programs designed to educate people in the fine art of building and preserving wealth.

Drew is an author, teacher, and international speaker.  His highly acclaimed book, Zero to Success, chronicles the steps every new business owner must take to ensure success.  He has been featured in Forbes, the Dallas Morning News, American Banker, and Yahoo Finance.  To date, he has helped over 5,000 business owners save over $100 million dollars in taxes.  That’s why he’s known throughout the United States and Canada as the “Tax Saving Attorney”.

Avoid being looked at as though you are running tax scams by documenting everything the right way.  Take automobile expenses for instance.  A solid tax-planning tip for business expense deductions is to deduct the use of your automobile expenses. Business mileage is vehicle use for business tasks such as client meetings, mileage to the office, a trip to Office Depot for business supplies and business-related long distance travel.

The Internal Revenue Service issued the 2010 standard mileage rates in its news release, IRS-2009-111 on December 3, 2009. The new mileage rates are slightly lower than 2009. The IRS mileage rates are estimated based on lower transportation costs in comparison to the year before. Beginning January 1, 2010, the standard mileage rates for vehicle use are $.50 per mile for business use; $.16.5 for medical or moving purpose; and $.14 per mile in service for a charitable organization.

Auto mileage deductions can be tracked by using a business mileage diary. Business destination and mileage are logged on a continual basis. This task can be frustrating, however, one way of minimizing the monthly logs is to track your odometer reading for three straight months and multiply the result by four. Another method for business owners who have high (80%) business mileage is to track only your personal mileage and deduct from the overall mileage.

Keeping a good documentation system is a worthwhile investment of time and consistency. It justifies business tax deductions, updates and organizes business records and audit proofs your business so that you save money and avoid being accused of running a tax scam on the IRS.

Drew Miles is an author, teacher, and international speaker. He worked as an attorney for 18 years before retiring in 2006 to concentrate solely on his commitment to serve his clients and expand Pathfinder Business Strategies’ scope of programs. His highly acclaimed book, Zero to Success, chronicles the steps every new business owner must take to ensure success. He has been featured in Forbes, the Dallas Morning News, American Banker and Yahoo Finance. To date, he has helped 4000 business owners save over $50 Million dollars in taxes. That’s why he’s known throughout the United States and Canada as The Tax Saving Attorney™.