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Tips from the IRS  

In celebration of National Small Business Week (May 4 - 8), the IRS is featuring some helpful online tools for small business owners and the self-employed. 

The products include webinars and videos on the IRS video portal at www.irsvideos.gov. Check out the special tab for Small Business Week to find a selection of webinars on topics viewed by thousands including:   

•   Business Use of Your Home Find out what kinds of deductions are allowable for a home office and what’s not. Learn about a simplified method for figuring the home office deduction.

•   Avoiding the Biggest Tax Mistakes Learn about available tax benefits and how best to avoid common mistakes small business owners make.

•   Depreciation Basics Depreciation is a deduction that allows a taxpayer to recover the cost or other basis of certain business property. This video will help Individual taxpayers and small business owners properly claim this deduction.

•   Child and Daycare Provider Tax Compliance Learn how to report correctly common tax items associated with owning a child or day care business.

•   Navigating the Small Business and Self-Employed Tax Center Everything a business owner needs to know about accessing the Small Business and Self-Employed Tax Center  is in this video containing screen shots and helpful navigational tools and tips.

This complete online resource features links to a variety of useful tools, including Small Business Taxes: The Virtual Workshop, common forms and their instructions and help on everything from how to get an Employer Identification Number online to how to engage with the IRS in the event of an audit. Also, link to a list of free local workshops and events. In addition, check out these pages on IRS.gov 24/7:

• The Self-Employed Individuals Tax Center is for sole proprietors and others who are in business for themselves. This site has many useful tips and references to the tax rules that a self-employed person may need to know.

• The Online Learning and Educational Products page has tools to help taxpayers learn about taxes on their own time, and at their own pace. For example, the IRS Tax Calendar for Businesses and Self-Employed has important tax dates for businesses. Download the CalendarConnector tool to  get the dates even when offline.
  
  
• e-News for Small Businesses is a free electronic mail service providing tax information for small business owners and self-employed individuals.
  
  
• SSA/IRS Reporter is a quarterly, online-only publication for businesses, payroll professionals and others who deal with payroll taxes and employee issues.

The IRS YouTube video channel also offers videos for small businesses including:

• IRS Online Tax Calendar
• Simplified Home Office Deduction
• Employer Identification Number