You may have breathed a sigh of relief after filing your 2017 income tax return (or requesting an extension). But if your office is strewn with reams of paper consisting of years’ worth of tax returns, receipts, canceled checks and other financial records (or your computer desktop), you probably want to get rid of what you can. Follow these tax document management guidelines as you clean up and start organizing important documents.

Accurate job descriptions are the foundation of every organization’s staffing efforts. Without clear, focused documentation of what each position does, you may struggle to hire and retain good employees or even undermine productivity.

Summer will be here before you know it and that means that kids are out of school and ready for some relaxation and fun. If you continue to work full time during the summer, you must find reliable childcare for your kids during the duration of the summer. Finding a summer nanny could be something that you’ve never had to do before. It’s important to note that hiring a nanny for the summer is different than paying a babysitter for services occasionally. Hiring a summer nanny means you’re officially a household employer and with that, comes some rules that you’ll have to adhere to.

When employees are off the clock, how they choose to spend their time is up to them. However, that doesn’t mean an employer is immune to a staffer’s off-work behavior. Your organization (or personal reputation) can be severely harmed by an employee’s actions — even when he or she isn’t on the job.

If you have a new nanny or senior caregiver, it’s important that you have a reliable way to keep track of their hours worked. Accurate, contemporaneous time tracking will protect you as an employer from unpaid wage and overtime complaints and it will also ensure that the nanny or caregiver is paid for all their hours. Here are some free employee time clock apps that can help.

If you purchased qualifying property by December 31, 2017, you may be able to take advantage of Section 179 expensing on your 2017 tax return. You’ll also want to keep this tax break in mind in your property purchase planning, because the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), signed into law this past December, significantly enhances it beginning in 2018.

Disclaimer: HomeWork Solutions employees are experts in Employment Taxes, not personal income taxes. That said, we see these forms every day. If you have specific questions please see your personal tax accountant for more 2018 W-4 help.

First off, here is a link to the IRS maintained version of the Form W-4.

This new version has substantial changes. Even some elements that haven’t changed have been rearranged on the new 2018 federal W-4 form. Starting from the top we do see some familiar things (provided you’ve read the “fine print” of the form before). The general instructions haven’t changed much but there are some clarifications about the adjusted child care tax credit as well as credits for other dependents. You’ll notice then that the bottom third of the first page is now the Employee Withholding Allowance Certificate with no allowance worksheet above it. The section is still the same with name, address, social security number, etc. The most important things here are filing status (box 3) and number of allowances (box 5), the same as it has always been. The major difference is that getting to your number of allowances is considerably more difficult.

All employees, including household employees, use the Form W-4 to direct the employer on how to calculate Federal income tax deductions from their paycheck. The responsibility for the accuracy of this form rests with the nanny or other employee.

Individuals can deduct some vehicle-related expenses in certain circumstances. Rather than keeping track of the actual costs, you can use a standard mileage rate to compute your deductions. For 2017, you might be able to deduct miles driven for business, medical, moving and charitable purposes. There are significant changes to some of these deductions under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), so we've outlined the most important things you need to know in claiming mileage on taxes in 2018.

Once you’ve found the right person to serve as a nanny or caregiver in your home, you’ll be able to rest easy knowing that your loved one is in good hands while you’re away. Once you’ve hired your caregiver or nanny, you’ll discuss what hours they will need to work, but if you’re planning on "banking hours", or carrying their hours over, be aware that this process is illegal. Federal law requires that your household employee is paid for each hour they work in a given workweek.  If they work more than 40 hours in any given 7 day workweek, you must pay them overtime, likely at a rate of at least 1.5 times their regular rate. Some states even mandate daily overtime, so be sure you know the overtime rules in your state.