TaxEsqBlog -by Ronald J. Cappuccio, J.D., LL.M.(Tax)

Tax-free fringe benefits help small businesses and their employees In today’s tightening job market, to attract and retain the best employees, small businesses need to offer not only competitive pay but also appealing fringe benefits. Benefits that are tax-free are especially attractive to employees. Let’s take a quick look at some popular options. Insurance Businesses can provide their employees with various types of insurance on a tax-free basis. Here are some of the most common: Health insurance. If you maintain a health care plan for employees, coverage under the plan isn’t taxable to them. Employee contributions are excluded from income if pretax coverage is elected under a cafeteria plan. Otherwise, such amounts are included in their wages but may be deductible on a limited basis as an itemized deduction. Disability insurance. Your premium payments aren’t included in employees’ income, nor are your contributions to a trust providing disability benefits. Employees’ pr...

Help prevent the year-end vacation-time scramble with a PTO contribution arrangement Many businesses find themselves short-staffed from Thanksgiving through December 31 as employees take time off to spend with family and friends. But if you limit how many vacation days employees can roll over to the new year, you might find your workplace a ghost town as workers scramble to use, rather than lose, their time off. A paid time off (PTO) contribution arrangement may be the solution. How it works A PTO contribution program allows employees with unused vacation hours to elect to convert them to retirement plan contributions. If the plan has a 401(k) feature, it can treat these amounts as a pretax benefit, similar to normal employee deferrals. Alternatively, the plan can treat the amounts as employer profit sharing, converting excess PTO amounts to employer contributions. A PTO contribution arrangement can be a better option than increasing the number of days employees can roll over. W...

The "Section 125 cafeteria plan" has become a popular way to offer fringe benefits in the workplace on a pre-tax basis. Essentially, an employee is able to pick and choose the benefits desired. The employer only has to pay for those benefits that the employee actually chooses. Both parties save on taxes so it's usually a win-win situation. The IRS recently issued new guidance for companies with these plans, which clarifies many issues. Click Here for the full story.