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STAFFING AGENCIES

Avoid NJ DOL Audits- S-Corp Owners Should Take Reasonable Compensation

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Wages vs. S Corp. Income

In an S-Corporation, a popular choice of tax entity among businesses, an owner who works for the company is required to take wages. How much of the company’s income is classified as wages versus S Corp. income (reported to the owner on Form K-1) is up to the owner. The net income will be taxed regardless of how it’s classified. The big difference lies in federal employment taxes, which are not paid on K-1 income. Another consideration is that K-1 income is exempt from the new 3.8% Medicare tax. So it would seem like a no brainer to take the lowest salary possible, right? Think again. There are significant downsides to consider before taking an unreasonably low compensation.

Risk of IRS Penalties

Let us assume Sam Success worked full-time as the manager of his staffing agency, which has net income of $200,000 this year. If he decides to avoid payroll taxes and classify $20,000 as wages and $180,000 as K-1 income, the IRS will probably notice. Using industry averages and other factors, it will argue that the compensation was unreasonable and will therefore impose steep penalties on top of the payroll taxes owed for the difference between the unreasonable $20,000 and what they determined is reasonable compensation.

Avoid NJ DOL Audits

Even if the IRS doesn’t take notice, the State of New Jersey has taken an aggressive stance with regard to unreasonable compensation. New Jersey is looking to collect state unemployment insurance (SUI), and if Sam Success’ salary is less than the SUI threshold ($31,500 in 2014) it will likely be scrutinized.  The number of such NJ DOL audits is on the increase. Moreover, New Jersey will inform the IRS after taking its share.

Less Disability Coverage

If Sam Success was injured by an insured party, he wouldn’t be able to argue that as manager of a staffing agency he deserves at least $100,000 for lost wages. Since he only classified $20,000 as wages, he cannot claim that his lost wages are greater.

Goodbye Social Security and Pension Benefits

The amount one receives from Social Security depends on one’s wage income or other income subject to Social Security tax. By minimizing his wages, Sam is also minimizing his potential benefits. In addition the company’s contribution to his pension is based on his wages. Lower wages equals lower pension benefits.

Keep it Reasonable

When it comes to determining wages from your S-Corporation, reasonable compensation is the way to go. Your tax professional can advise you in determining just the right amount to classify as wages in order to maximize the tax advantages, while avoiding the aforementioned pitfalls.  

Good News for NJ Employers: Federal Unemployment Tax (FUTA) Surcharge Avoided

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New Jersey employers can breathe a sigh of relief, as Governor Christie has announced that new fiscal management practices have brought New Jersey’s Unemployment Insurance Trust Fund into solvency for the first time since 2009. This spares businesses from a drastic tax surcharge, as Federal Unemployment Tax (FUTA) was set to increase from the base rate of 0.6% ($42 maximum per employee) to 1.5% ($105 maximum per employee).  The surcharge is imposed when a state has borrowed from the Federal Unemployment Trust Fund and increases each year. In 2012, NJ employers paid 1.2% due to the surcharge ($84 maximum per employee). By repaying the loan to the Feds, employers will not be subject to this surcharge on their 2013 FUTA wages and will only pay the base rate of 0.6% ($42 maximum per employee).   

Tax Planning Tips for the new 3.8% Net Investment Income Surtax

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With a new 3.8% tax on “unearned” income kicking in in 2013, it’s very difficult to limit your tax to just “ordinary” income tax. If your income is earned, you pay 15.3% Self-Employment (Social Security) tax. If your income is un-earned, you now have the new 3.8% Net Investment Income (NII) tax to pay.

Profits from an S corporation are just about the only income that escapes Self-Employment tax as well as the 3.8% NII tax. The S corporation is now an even more attractive form of entity to minimize taxes for owners of certain businesses, depending upon the facts and circumstances. After paying reasonable compensation to the owners, the remainder of the profits flow through to owner’s personal tax returns subject only to income tax, not Self-Employment or NII tax.

 There are several areas you can address to possibly reduce your overall tax. Is your “Reasonable Compensation” unreasonably high? If it is, you may be paying Social Security tax on that compensation unnecessarily. Even if you are over the Social Security wage limit ($113,700 in 2013) you still continue to pay the Medicare tax of 2.9% coupled with the new 0.9% Medicare surcharge for high-wage earnings totaling 3.8%. Find out what is the standard of executive compensation for companies of your size, industry niche and profitability. [Read more…] about Tax Planning Tips for the new 3.8% Net Investment Income Surtax

NJ Division of Taxation Warns of Solicitations Mailed to Businesses

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Many NJ businesses have recently received a solicitation concerning “Annual Corporate Records Form”. The mailing, which has an official appearance, solicits a fee of $125 in return for the recording of corporate shareholders, directors and officers. The Division of Revenue is alerting all New Jersey businesses that there is no requirement to file this form State of New Jersey, and the sender isn’t affiliated with the State.

New Jersey businesses that receive the mailing may report it by:

  1. Filing a complaint with the New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs, PO Box 45025, Newark, NJ 07101 (complaint forms can be downloaded at http://www.nj.gov/oag/ca/complaint/ocp.pdf)
  2. Contacting the United States Postal Inspections Service to report mail fraud at (877) 876-2455 or http://postalinspectors.uspis.gov/forms/MailFraudComplaint.aspx.

Sleepy’s Wage and Hour Case Goes to NJ Supreme Court

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This is nothing to snooze about. The New Jersey Supreme Court has agreed to rule on a case that will have a broad impact on NJ businesses and workers. In Hargrove v. Sleepy’s, Plaintiffs Sam Hargrove, Andre Hall and Marco Eusebio accused Sleepy’s of using an “Independent Driver Agreement” as a ruse to avoid paying them employee benefits. The case was initially dismissed by U.S. District Judge Peter Sheridan in March 2012, as he applied the common-law “right to control” test. This test focuses on how much control the employer has of the workers. In this case, the plaintiffs drove for several other companies in addition to Sleepy’s, and maintained their own trucks, paying for gas, tolls, tickets and repairs. This bolstered the argument that they were in fact independent contractors.

On appeal, the National Employment Law Project, a New York non-profit workers advocacy group, contended that the “right to control” test shouldn’t be a determining factor. They reasoned that the New Jersey statutes at issue- the Wage Payment Law and the Wage and Hour Law- define “employee” more broadly than common law. Under the NJ statute a worker is considered an employee unless he meets all of the following three provisions:

  1. The worker has been and will continue to be free from control or direction over the performance of such service, both under his contract of service and in fact
  2. The service is either outside the usual course of the business for which such service is performed, or that such service is performed outside of all the places of business of the enterprise for which such service is performed
  3. The worker is customarily engaged in an independently established trade, occupation, profession or business

NJ Employer Contribution Deadline Arriving Soon

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 Beginning 2012, employers no longer receive an annual paper Notice of Employer Contribution Rates. Instead, the notice is now accessible through the Tax Web Enabled System (TWES). As a result of this change, it’s urgent that you check your TWES account as soon as possible. The new rates were posted as early as July 18, and there’s a 30 day deadline (from the date of “mailing”) to make a voluntary contribution. In many circumstances a voluntary contribution represents an excellent opportunity to reduce labor costs.  For more information regarding TWES check out our blog at: Set Up TWES Account.

 

The unemployment expense is a substantial component of your labor cost. Staffing agencies should give it careful attention. If you wish to make a voluntary contribution to your reserve balance you have 30 days from the date of your notice to do so. In addition, we suggest that you verify the amount of the employer contributions and the benefits charged to your account.  Report any discrepancies to the NJ Dept. of Labor.

 

If you would like assistance in determining if a voluntary contribution will save you money, please do not hesitate to contact us. We will provide you with an illustration of the benefits which you stand to reap from making such a contribution. You will be able to weigh the considerations and act accordingly.