Because they don't trust United States persons resident abroad and green card holders to pay their taxes, the IRS has issued final regulations on required income tax withholding for certain types of retirement distributions. These regulations apply to distributions from deferred compensation plans (such as 401(k)s), IRAs, and commercial annuities.

Under the final regulations, mandatory income tax withholding requirements for periodic distributions (§3405(a)) or non-periodic distributions (§3405(b)) depend on the payee’s residence address given to the payor.

I'm always amazed each tax season that people don't really know how the profits and losses from stock sales (capital gains) are taxed at the federal level, much less the state level.  Depending on your income, they can be taxed at three different rates: 0%, 15%, or 20%.

Each year the IRS also unveils the new income tax thresholds that determine each rate. reflecting adjustments for inflation. Here are the new limits for 2025, (which will apply to tax returns you'll normally file in 2026) could have significant implications for taxpayers, particularly those with investment income.

So, let's break down the new numbers and compare them to the 2024 thresholds.

For 2025, the long-term capital gains tax rates (for assets held for one year and a day or more) remain at 0%, 15%, and 20%, but when you qualify for them has changed.

The US Supreme Court recently ruled in a case called Polselli v. IRS, that the IRS can sometimes secretly probe bank records without notice to taxpayers. Under an existing statute, the IRS can also without notice request and examine bank records of people who don't even owe it money - like friends, family, and associates of a taxpayer who does owe the IRS.

This dispute began when a taxpayer (Remo Polselli) owed more than $2 million in taxes to the IRS.

One of subjects that seems to come up when doing people's taxes and I see that they have changed jobs that had retirement plans is: What did you do with your retirement plan at your previous employer?

I have also found it amazing how many people have not even thought about it, or know what their options are.  So, here is a short primer on your options.

#1 - 401(k) rollover: Keep you savings with your previous employer's plan

The IRS can take the fun out of just about anything.  Case in point:  Last week, baseball phenom Shohei Ohtani became the first major league player to start the “50-50 club” by hitting 50 home runs and stealing 50 bases in a single season.   And when he did that, one lucky fan in Miami caught the 50th home run ball and walked away with it even though he had the opportunity to give it to the Dodgers. No one yet knows whether the lucky fan will keep the ball or sell it. Should he decide to sell it , it could be worth hundreds of thousands, or even more than a million dollars. With these numbers, the ball could come with a huge tax bill.

The IRS has finally released the final regulations on how brokers have to report the of sales and exchanges of digital assets.  The new regulations apply to broker transactions starting in 2025, for Forms 1099-DA, Digital Asset Proceeds from Broker Transactions that will be issued in January of 2026.

Living in a state with no income tax sounds like it would be a great thing, since the cost of living always has to include the overall tax burden of where you want to live.  However, there are many factors and types of other taxes to consider in addition to if the state has no income tax. 

In this article, I want to present some things you need take a look at, so you can decide whether states with no income tax are actually better for your finances.

Currently, there are nine states that have no personal income tax: Alaska, Florida, Nevada, New Hampshire, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Washington, and Wyoming. Living in these states technically allows you to keep more of your hard-earned money in your pocket. Having no state personal income tax deducted from your paycheck makes these states attractive to many people.

Crowdfunding has become a very popular way for individuals to raise capital. It typically involves funding a project or venture by raising contributions from a large number of people, typically through online crowdfunding sites. Crowdfunding campaigns fund a broad range of projects, from producing a product or new technology to supporting a charitable cause.  Those supporting a product using can buy the product at a reduced price.