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Insights, analysis, and updates from the AI agent economy. Browse by tag.
The New 1% Remittance Transfer Tax: What Small Businesses Paying Overseas Contractors Need to Know in 2026
Since January 1, 2026, cash-funded remittance transfers sent abroad are subject to a 1% federal excise tax collected by providers and reported on Form 720. This guide explains what triggers the tax, which bank-funded transfers are exempt, and how small businesses should record the tax, fees, and contractor payments.
Parking Garage and Valet Bookkeeping: Reconciling Five Revenue Streams and the 30-Day Client Float
A parking operator's chart of accounts and close process — how to separate transient, monthly permit, corporate, valet, and event revenue, book monthly permits as deferred revenue, back parking tax out of tax-inclusive rates, and hold at least 1.5× one month's gross client collections before signing a management agreement with 30-day remittance terms.
New Jersey's New ABC Test Regulations Take Effect October 1, 2026: What Businesses Hiring Contractors Must Prove
New Jersey's ABC test regulations become operative October 1, 2026, clarifying that every worker is an employee unless you prove freedom from control, work outside your usual course or places of business, and an independently established trade — learn the three prongs, five common mistakes, and a pre-deadline audit checklist.
The IRA Contribution Limit Hits $7,500 for 2026: Your Freelancer and Small-Business Owner's Guide to the First Big Increase in Years
The IRA contribution limit rises to $7,500 for 2026 — the first base increase since 2023 — plus a new $1,100 catch-up at 50+. Learn who qualifies, how it stacks with Solo 401(k) and SEP, and how freelancers can capture the extra room before April 15, 2027.
Gig Economy Driver Tax Deductions 2026: The 72.5-Cent Mile, the $25K Tips Break, and 100% Bonus Depreciation
For 2026, gig drivers deduct 72.5 cents per mile through June and 76 cents after, claim up to $25,000 in qualified tips as an above-the-line deduction, and expense vehicles at 100% bonus depreciation — if they log miles and tips contemporaneously and keep books on the right Schedule C lines.
Ghostwriting Agency Bookkeeping: Pricing Per-Word, Retainer, and Flat-Fee Work Without Losing Your Margin
How ghostwriting agencies account for the three pricing models — per-word, monthly retainer, and flat-fee book projects — including deferred-revenue entries for retainers, milestone versus cost-to-cost recognition on a $36,000 book, a 150-to-275-hour cost sheet for a 60,000-word business book, and the 1099-NEC and W-9 rules that keep contractor writers correctly classified.
A Fed Rate Hike Is Back on the Table: What Small Business Owners Should Do About Variable-Rate Loans and SBA Financing Before the Next FOMC Meeting
A potential 2026 Fed hike would lift prime and SOFR within days, raising payments on variable-rate lines, cards, and SBA 7(a) loans. Learn which loans reprice first, how to stress-test at +50 bps, and what to lock before the next FOMC meeting.
Coworking Space Bookkeeping: Membership vs. Day-Pass Deferred Revenue, Proration, and the Add-Ons You Can't Forget to Reconcile
Your coworking cash and earned revenue rarely match — learn how to book membership deferred revenue, prorate mid-month starts and upgrades, and reconcile meeting-room hours and print credits so every dollar is counted.
Cigar Lounge and Retail Tobacco Shop Bookkeeping: State Excise Tax, Humidor Inventory, and the Membership-Locker Revenue You Are Probably Booking Wrong
Premium cigar lounges pay OTP excise as a capped percentage of wholesale, carry humidor inventory at landed cost with FIFO or average costing, and must defer locker and membership fees as unearned revenue until each month is provided — separating all three keeps margins, taxes, and audits accurate.
Building Business Credit From Zero: How Net-30 Vendor Accounts and Your D-U-N-S Number Create a Score Apart From Personal Credit
Build business credit from scratch with net-30 vendor accounts that report to Dun & Bradstreet, Experian Business, and Equifax. Get your free D-U-N-S Number, enforce NAP consistency, and follow a 90-day plan to a scorable PAYDEX and Intelliscore.
The 2026 AMT Cliff: Lower Phaseout Thresholds, Twice the Clawback
For 2026 the OBBBA resets AMT phaseout thresholds to $500,000 single and $1,000,000 joint and doubles the exemption clawback from 25 to 50 cents per dollar, so the same income that owed no AMT in 2025 can owe five figures next year. A guide to who is exposed, how to estimate your position, and five planning moves before year-end.
The Federal 1099-K Threshold Is $20,000 Again — But Your State May Still Require One at $600: A State-by-State Guide for Online Sellers and Gig Platforms
Federal 1099-K filing reverted to $20,000 and more than 200 transactions for 2026, but Maryland, Massachusetts, Vermont, Virginia, DC, Montana and North Carolina still require it at $600 — learn which states keep the lower threshold, how payment-card and TPSO rules differ, and how to book gross, fees, and sales tax so your books tie to every form you receive.