A message from Charles Petz, CPA

Thank you for another great year!

I wanted to take a moment to personally thank you for selecting CrossLink as your professional tax software solution. It is customers like you that have helped us to become the fastest growing professional tax software solution in the country* and I am proud to say that, based on the results of our annual customer survey, we have done so while maintaining our industry-leading customer satisfaction scores.

In the past year we expanded our operations in Rome, GA – and we are not done growing! To continue to meet your needs, this summer we will be doubling our office space in Bellevue, WA. Additionally, we continue to look at ways to improve our solutions and integrate additional technologies to enable your success. Along those lines, I am happy to report that a 64-bit driver for Motorola Symbol scanners will be available on your archive disk in early June.

As many of you will remember from last year, I strongly believe that well rested employees are essential to meeting your needs and ensuring our continued success. In support of this, I wanted to let you know in advance that our employees will be out of office for the period between May 28th and June 1st. During these four business days the entire PEI Team will be recharging their batteries so that when we return to the office on Monday, June 4th we do so with the energy, creativity, and passion you have come to expect from CrossLink. During this period, CrossLink Technical Support will be checking emails and voicemails to ensure urgent matters are supported.

Should you have any questions regarding this break, please do not hesitate to contact your CrossLink Account Team for additional information. Thank you very much for your business!

Charles Petz, CPA
Chief Financial Officer
Petz Enterprises, Inc.

* Based on "Freedom of Information Act data from Third Party Data Store extract listing currently authorized Electronic Return Originators".

IRS Update: Federal Tax Provisions Not Applicable for 2012 Tax Returns

As we move towards the 2013 Filing Season you will need to keep an eye out on what Congress does with regard to the “Extender” tax provisions that expired at the end of 2011.

Here are two lists of the provisions that will have the most impact on individual Tax Year 2012 Federal returns.

Provisions that are no longer applicable for Tax Year 2012 Federal returns:

• $250 Educator Expense Deduction – Form 1040, line 23
• Tuition and Fees Deduction – Form 8917
• Itemized Deduction for Sales Tax
• All personal nonrefundable tax credits allowed when calculating Alternative Minimum Tax
• Click here to read more

Provisions that changed significantly for Tax Year 2012 returns:

• Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) exemption amounts revert to what they were for Tax Year 2000: Tax Year 2012 AMT exemption amount is:
• Single/Head of Household: $33,750
• Married Filing Joint: $45,000
• Married Filing Separate: $22,500
• Maximum Section 179 Deduction amount has been reduced to $139,000 for Tax Year 2012
• Click here to read more

Click here to read the entire CrossLink Tax Update that includes further information regarding Federal tax provisions that are not applicable or have been changed for Tax Year 2012 Federal tax returns.

Introducing the New CrossLink Blog!

We would like to welcome our customers and prospective customers to the new CrossLink Blog. As part of our commitment to building our relationship with you and taking your success personally, we believe that delivering meaningful information and interaction via social media is critical. The blog format will allow us to deliver industry news, support updates, commentary from CrossLink management, and other relevant information to help you be as successful as possible.

Remember to bookmark this page and check it periodically or subscribe using the RSS feed buttons on the right. This blog supports Google, Yahoo, Outlook and any Atom-compatible RSS feed reader applications. If you use Outlook, choose the Atom feed from the drop-down buttons, then select Microsoft Outlook from the drop-down list on the new page you arrive at and finally click Subscribe Now to complete the setup. You will then start receiving blog posts under a new folder within your Outlook client. Just make sure to come back to the blog itself to comment and interact with other users!

To comment, just click on the X comments link below any blog post and sign in with your Google (Gmail) or AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) account. If you don’t have an account, these are free to create by visiting accounts.google.com/SignUp or http://www.aim.com/. You can even subscribe specifically to comments using either the same RSS buttons on the right side of the blog or by clicking Subscribe by email below the comments box to receive replies to posts you commented on in your email box.

Thank you and happy reading.

P.S. Please be sure to “Like” us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/CrossLinkTax for even more valuable information.

IRS Update: Circular 230 and Registered Federal Tax Return Preparers

Remember registered Federal tax return preparers must follow the due diligence and ethical conduct requirements in IRS Circular 230 (Regulations Governing Practice before the Internal Revenue Service) when preparing tax returns. Enforcement of these regulations is performed by the IRS Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR).

As a registered Federal tax return preparer you will need to become familiar with all of Circular 230, however the following sections are especially important:

• Definition of practice before the IRS and what this means to registered Federal tax return preparers who are not CPAs, EAs or Attorneys:
• Section 10.2 – Definition of practice before IRS, Practitioner, and Tax Return Preparer.
• Section 10.3 (f) – What practice means for registered tax return preparers.
• Section 10.22 (Diligence as to accuracy) emphasizes that you must exercise due diligence when preparing all Federal tax returns.
• Section 10.27 (Fees) covers rules surrounding contingent fees and how a practitioner may not charge these types of fees for any services rendered in connection with any matter before the IRS which includes preparing a tax return.
• Section 10.30 (Solicitation) explains the rules covering advertising, solicitations and how and what fee information may be published.
• Click here to read more.

Click here to read the entire CrossLink Tax Update that includes further information regarding Circular 230 and how it affects Registered Federal Tax Return Preparers.

IRS Update: Registered Tax Return Preparer Testing

It is time for all provisional registered tax return preparers to begin thinking about taking the competency test. Even though preparers have until the end of 2013 to take and pass the test, you should think about taking the test beforehand to avoid the rush.

Below are some key facts to help you navigate the requirements for taking the competency test:

• The test is now based on Tax Year 2011 tax law. Click here for a list of the recommended IRS publications and form instructions that will help you prepare for the test.
• The testing fee is $116 and is paid at the time you schedule a test appointment.
• To take the test you must schedule an appointment using your IRS Online PTIN account you used to renew or register your PTIN at www.irs.gov/ptin. Once you have logged into your account select View Next Steps and Outstanding Requirements from the Main Menu (it is the third option under Functions on the left hand side of the Main Menu screen).
• The test consists of 120 multiple choice / true or false questions and will take up to 2.5 hours.
• A passing score on the test is 350 or above. The potential scores range from 50 to 500.
• You will receive your test results before you leave the testing site.
• The test is available in English only.

Click here to read the entire CrossLink Tax Update that includes further information regarding the Registered Tax Return Preparer Testing.