Do you enjoy paying taxes? If you’re like most people, you hate taxes. Most people must only file a personal tax return. However, if you own a business, you must file both personal and business taxes. Of course, both types of taxes differ in many ways.
Continue reading to learn what makes filing personal taxes different from filing business taxes. In the end, you’ll understand some of the benefits of having a business accountant on your side.
Forms
You can only file personal income taxes on personal tax returns. However, some business owners, such as sole proprietors, can file their business income taxes on their personal tax return. Meanwhile, most corporations require the use of specialized tax forms designed for their type of business entity.
Businesses must also file a slew of other tax forms. For instance, if you live in Salt Lake City, you must file sales and property tax forms with your state. You may also have to pay a variety of local taxes and licensing fees.
If you have access to a Utah CPA, you can rest assured that your business and personal taxes have been properly prepared and filed. Additionally, you’ll have confidence that your business accountant has claimed all the deductions, exemptions, and credits for which you qualify.
Deadlines
In the USA, most people recognize April 15th as Tax Day. Because of that famous deadline, you can make sure that you file your individual taxes on time. Unfortunately, business taxes have many deadlines. In addition to having a different deadline for every type of business tax, you may need to file some business taxes multiple times throughout the year.
So, in addition to knowing what taxes your business must file, you also need to know when to file them. Furthermore, your tax deadlines may vary depending on whether your business operates in Salt Lake City or elsewhere in the country.
Tax Rates
When you file your individual taxes, different tax rates apply to you based on your type of income and how much income you’ve earned. For example, you might pay a different rate depending on whether you claim long- or short-term capital gains. Moreover, different portions of your standard income are taxed at different rates as your income increases.
Businesses face a dizzying array of business tax rates on federal, state, and local levels. These depend on how businesses classify their income and what tax rules apply to their type of organization. Furthermore, depreciation and other calculation can complicate things. Also, businesses tend to have more tax deductions available to them than individuals, so they can look for ways to minimize their tax liability.
Now that you understand some of the differences between business and personal taxes, you might realize that you need help. By working with a Utah CPA, you can take advantage of all available tax benefits, meet all applicable deadlines, and have confidence that you’ve properly filed all your taxes