Millions of Big Earners Should Expect Higher Payroll Taxes in ‘17
For those who have been excited to see their tax bill go down under a Trump administration, there might be cause for some concern, especially for some of the country’s highest earners. That’s because for the millions of workers who pass a certain threshold a tax hike is coming. So why the increase?
First, this change was in place before President Trump won the election in November. This scheduled change comes in the form of an adjustment to Social Security payroll taxes, and it will affect a lot of high earners. Over the past several years, workers have paid a 6.2 percent payroll tax to Social Security, which is matched by employers and automatically deducted from their paychecks.
That number will remain the same in 2017, but there is a catch. It used to be that workers only paid that amount on the first $118,500 they earned for the year. This year, that threshold increases to $127,200. That will amount to hundreds of dollars for anyone affected. Meantime, for self-employment workers, the news is even worse because they are forced to pay the full Social Security tax themselves without splitting the cost with an employer.
So how many people are we talking about? Anyone that makes less than $118,500 won’t be affected but the estimated 12 million workers that make more than that will see a hit, which amounts to one of the biggest changes in the tax code in nearly 30 years.
http://time.com/money/4628475/payroll-taxes-social-security-2017/
Top Tax-Saving Moves Used By High Net Worth Individuals
One of the biggest complaints certain groups or individuals have against the wealthy is that they can take advantage of too many tax breaks and loopholes to lower their tax bill. So what are some of the top tax strategies that high net worth individuals use to keep their tax rates down, and could anyone…
Should University Donations Trigger Tax Breaks for the Wealthy?
Universities big and small receive donations from many different sources, including wealthy alumni. However, not all donations are created equal and because the wealthy donors get a huge tax break for their significant donations, some wonder if that is really fair. For example, Nike co-founder, Phil Knight, recently donated $400 million to Stanford, where he…
Money-Saving Tips for Freelancers
When you hear the term freelancer, you might think of someone working a small business out of his or her home and just doing things on the fly. However, freelancers come in all forms and many owners of small businesses or startups are also freelancers. Being a freelancer means you are self-employed and being self-employed…
Who Really Qualifies as a Dependent for Taxes?
How many dependents do you really have? Who can really be counted as a dependent? These are some of the most common questions that all taxpayers have. Can you count all of your children, live-in help, or perhaps a dog or other family pet? What about a friend who decides to crash at your place…