Plain-text accounting insights, tutorials, and updates from the Beancount.io team.
A QLAC lets you move up to $210,000 — the 2026 SECURE 2.0 lifetime limit — from a traditional IRA, SEP-IRA, or 401(k) into a deferred annuity the IRS excludes from RMD calculations until payments start, as late as age 85. Here are the rules, a worked example, and the break-even math showing when to skip it.
On February 25, 2026, the NLRB withdrew its 2023 joint-employer rule and reinstated the 2020 standard, which requires actual "substantial, direct, and immediate control" over eight essential employment terms. Here is what the reversal means for businesses using staffing agencies, franchise agreements, or subcontractors — and the practical steps to limit exposure.
The Dutch zelfstandigenaftrek drops from €2,470 in 2025 to €1,200 in 2026 and €900 in 2027 — an 88% reduction since 2020's €7,280. For a ZZP freelancer with €50,000 profit, the 2026 cut alone adds roughly €400–€480 in tax, compounded by the MKB-winstvrijstelling falling to 12.70%. Here's the full phase-down schedule and five concrete budgeting steps.
The National Taxpayer Advocate's 2025 Annual Report to Congress found the IRS took over 13 months on average to process 1.6 million business amended returns, after a 27% workforce cut left the Small Business/Self-Employed division down nearly 38%. Here's what the report says and six concrete steps to shield your cash flow.
The Multistate Tax Commission's January 2026 white paper proposes a "blended" apportionment method that folds a partnership's sales, property, and payroll factors into each partner's own state tax calculation. Because states currently split between aggregate and entity sourcing theories, the same partnership dollar can be taxed twice — or not at all. Here's what multistate partnerships and multi-member LLCs should track now.
Software acquired as part of buying a business amortizes over 15 years under IRC Section 197 — not the 36 months standalone software gets. How to allocate a micro-SaaS purchase price across the seven IRS asset classes, agree on Form 8594 with your seller, and record it in a plain-text ledger.
MGA profit commissions aren't calculated until 18–24 months after a policy year ends and don't finalize until the third anniversary. This guide covers accruing constrained estimates under ASC 606, keeping fiduciary premium trust accounts separate from operating funds, and a chart-of-accounts structure that keeps multi-year true-ups auditable.
Livestock auction markets are federal fiduciaries under the Packers and Stockyards Act — custodial accounts must be funded by the next business day, reimbursed in full within seven days, and reconciled monthly. This guide covers the chart of accounts a sale barn needs, how the required surety bond is calculated from sale volume, and why Beef Checkoff and brand-inspection fees must stay out of revenue.
A 2026 TIGTA audit found 1,375 unauthorized entries into restricted taxpayer-document areas and critical vulnerabilities left unpatched an average of 223 days at IRS scanning contractors. Here is what the watchdog found, how the IRS responded, and the concrete steps — IP PIN enrollment, early filing, e-filing — that reduce your exposure.
Most indie developers are principals under ASC 606's principal-versus-agent test, so a $9.99 App Store sale is $9.99 of revenue plus a $3.00 platform-fee cost of sales — not a $6.99 net deposit. Here's the three-indicator control test, current Apple and Google fee tiers, and the exact journal entries to book it correctly.
Delivery platforms take an effective 30–40% of each order once commissions, promotions, and processing fees stack up — and a multi-brand ghost kitchen that books only net deposits can't tell which concept is profitable. This guide covers per-brand revenue categorization, three methods for allocating shared rent, utilities, and labor (square footage, revenue share, labor hours), per-brand food cost tracking, and a six-step monthly close checklist.
Georgia's Dignity and Pay Act requires Section 14(c) certificate holders to pay workers with disabilities at least half the federal minimum wage ($3.63/hour) starting July 1, 2026, and bans subminimum wages entirely after June 30, 2027. What certificate holders — sheltered workshops, community rehabilitation programs, and nonprofits — need to model in payroll budgets, grant contracts, and job costing before both wage steps hit.
