Your 1099s Have New Boxes for Tips and Overtime: A Payer's Guide to the 2026 Reporting Changes
IRS Forms 1099-NEC, 1099-MISC, and 1099-K add tip, occupation-code, and overtime boxes for 2026, plus a $2,000 reporting threshold.
#bookkeeping
Bookkeeping
Modern bookkeeping techniques using plain-text and automated workflows
COGS vs. Operating Expenses: Where Freight, Packaging, and Delivery Belong
Freight-in and product packaging are COGS; freight-out, shipping boxes and delivery are selling expenses. Misfile them and gross margin can run 10+ points high.
Employer-Provided Meals Are Nondeductible in 2026: What Section 274(o) Means for Your Cafeteria, Overtime Dinners, and Break-Room Perks
Section 274(o) ended the employer meal deduction in 2026: cafeterias and convenience meals are 0% deductible, yet still tax-free to employees.
Sponsoring the Local Little League? How to Deduct It as Advertising Instead of Losing It as a Nondeductible Gift
IRS rules let your business deduct a Little League banner as advertising — but only with visible promotion and a paper trail.
Oyster Farm Bookkeeping: Why Your 10-Year Aquaculture Lease Is a Balance-Sheet Asset
A 10-year oyster lease books as an ASC 842 right-of-use asset; 12-month grow-out costs track by cohort until harvest.
How to Reconcile Shopify Capital Loans Without Double-Counting Revenue
Shopify Capital proceeds are a liability, not revenue: book remittances against the loan, amortize the fee, and tie gross sales to your IRS Form 1099-K.
Sign Painter Bookkeeping: Pricing Per Square Foot, Costing Gold Leaf, and Weather Days
Price sign jobs per square foot, bill gold leaf and lift rental to the job, and keep cash reserves for weather days.
Asphalt Paving Contractor Bookkeeping: Per-Ton Job Costing, Crew-Day Rates, and Surviving the Winter Cash Gap
Reconcile plant tickets to tons weekly, load crew-day rates with burden and iron, and bank 8-12 weeks of overhead before winter shuts paving down.
Ghost Assets Are Inflating Your Balance Sheet: How to Find and Remove Them
Ghost assets — equipment on your books but long gone — run 10-30% of fixed asset registers; a yearly physical count plus disposal entries clears them.
Lost Your EIN Confirmation? CP575 vs. Letter 147C and How to Get Proof Fast
The IRS never reprints the CP575 — request a 147C at 1-800-829-4933 or download the digital CP575 from your Business Tax Account.
Don't Wait Until January: Start Your Year-End Tax Prep This October
Start year-end tax prep in October: collect W-9s under the IRS $2,000 1099 rule, clean up vendors, reconcile Q3, and calendar every deadline.
Pet-Sitting Insurance: Why Care, Custody, and Control Coverage Matters More Than General Liability
General liability excludes pets in your care; a $100–$300 CCC endorsement closes the gap. Deduct premiums on IRS Schedule C, Line 15.