Tax Strategies for the High-Income Individual (as part of AICPA ENGAGE 2019)

In the biggest bill for retirement planning in years, Congress is poised to change the law for life expectancy payouts to either a five- or ten-year payout. This legislation has strong bipartisan support and is supported by the President.

Advisors, CPAs and lawyers will need to quickly pivot with innovative strategies for this new paradigm. If you wait until this bill is signed before beginning to pivot you will miss the 2019 planning opportunities. This class will cover:

1. Understanding the change in life expectancy payouts on traditional and Roth IRAs
2. Impact of the loss of deferral and bracket compression on wealth transfer planning
3. Using CRTs to maintain deferral and bracket management - the law and the math
4. Roth conversions for better bracket management and greater wealth transfer
5. Designing IRA trusts and the terrible payout result with RMD conduit trusts - the law and the math
6. Using IRA trusts in low tax states to achieve state tax savings by avoiding or delaying the state taxation of the lump sum payout
7. Using single life insurance to enhance bracket management - the unbiased math
8. Using Second-to-Die insurance to increase wealth transfer
9. Urgent action steps for ill and dying clients including avoiding conduit trusts and using out of state trusts.
10. Charitable strategies for the mass-affluent and the wealthy

Annuities have had their share of detractors over the years. The reality is annuities currently serve a critical purpose for millions of Americans – adding a level of security, while helping alleviate some of the financial worry for the future. This presentation will address:

1. Common objections to annuities including cost, complexity, liquidity and tax considerations.
   
2. The benefits of annuities including a discussion of some of the protective features offered by annuities today.
   
3. The value of incorporating guaranteed income into a comprehensive retirement income plan.
   

Learning Objectives:

1. Provide several actionable talking points to help advisors understand and overcome common objections to annuities and start the important conversation about retirement income planning.
   
2. Help inform investors to be in a better position to determine whether an annuity makes sense as part of their overall financial plan.

The Association (unified voice of AICPA & CIMA) and CPA.com launched a shark-tank style startup accelerator two years ago with a focus on FinTech and EdTech. Its purpose is to foster innovation in the profession and provide members, the Association, and CPA.com more visibility into disruptive trends and emerging technologies. In this session, you will hear from the 2019 cohort – 3 startup companies that have a leading role in client workspace solutions, cash flow management and accounting task automation.

During this session you will:

1. Discover trends in FinTech that are impacting the profession and your role.

2. Hear from the front lines of disruption.

3. Learn about the 3 startups that are members of the second cohort of the Association and CPA.com Startup Accelerator - https://www.aicpa-cima.com/accelerator.

4. Get inspired to rethink how you can leverage financial and educational technology.

Be ready to take the next step in addressing your clients’ tax and planning needs. Your individual, family, and business owner clients’ needs are changing, and they need you now more than ever. Now that the rush of tax season is over, you can turn your attention to some planning of your own. Have you thought about formalizing financial planning in your practice? 

In this chat, Lyle Benson, CPA/PFS will share: 

1. How to position your firm securely for the future for your clients, the services you offer, and your current and future staff.
   
2. What the landscape is and why this window of opportunity is important to you and your clients. 
   
3. How to position yourself as your clients’ primary point of contact. 
   
4. How to deepen your relationship with your clients to have a meaningful impact on their financial lives.

Advising your clients on their plans for retirement is more than just setting aside money in an IRA. Find out how to guide them through the important conversations about retirement plans including unique ways to save on taxes, attracting and retaining quality talent, and meeting fiduciary requirements. As your business clients’ most trusted advisor, you are well positioned to help guide them toward a dignified retirement.

Join our session to uncover critical retirement strategies and opportunities to further assist your clients in achieving their financial goals.

1. Review current state of retirement readiness and the regulatory environment.
   
2. Compare features and options to maximize savings potential.        
   
3. Highlight the exclusive benefits provided by the AICPA to help you and your clients prepare for retirement security.

Do you have clients who transact with cryptocurrencies? If so, you’ll want to attend this session! We’ll explore various tax compliance and planning opportunities you should consider when working with your clients. The only guidance we have from the IRS on virtual currencies (also referred to as cryptocurrencies) is Notice 2014-21. Limited guidance presents challenges for tax practitioners, but also allows for some interesting planning opportunities. In this session you will:

1. Gain an understanding of how the IRS treats cryptocurrencies.
   
2. Discuss compliance considerations to be aware of as a tax practitioner.
   
3. Determine tax planning strategies to use when working with clients who transact in cryptocurrencies.

1. Expert insight into the financial challenges impacting American consumers today including student loan debt, retirement, insurance concerns, etc.
   
2. Understanding financial wellness and its impact.
   
3. Solutions to help address the most pressing financial challenges.

Objectives:

1. Understand the financial challenges individuals are facing today.
   
2. Learn about solutions that can help address the most pressing financial challenges facing American consumers.
   
3. Identify ways to help empower individuals to synthesize and reflect on one’s own financial profile and develop a personalized financial roadmap.

After this session, you will be able to:

1. Identify legislative and regulatory tax developments.
   
2. Identify emerging tax policy and advocacy issues important to AICPA members.
   
3. Understand how to develop comment letters and position statements on important advocacy issues.

The addition of Sec. 199A is perhaps one of the most significant changes and opportunities in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA). It is also very complicated from a compliance and planning standpoint. This session will provide a quick refresher of the basics, cover some of the compliance difficulties and provide forward-looking planning ideas. Specifically, this session will cover:

1. Sec. 199A for Real Estate
   
2. Sec. 199A for Insurance and Financial Planning Professionals
   
3. Understanding Separate vs. Separable for SSTBs
   
4. Sec. 199A with REITs and PTP
   

Learning Objectives:

1. Understand how Sec. 199A works for both traditional business and SSTBs.
   
2. Understand when a taxpayer can use separate and separable rules.

As IRS enforcement becomes more automated, the need for trained representatives who know what to do and when to do it has never been greater. This panel will cover the mechanics of representing taxpayers before the IRS, including exam and collections, so that attendees can identify and understand when taxpayers need help, and how to go about the process of helping them resolve their IRS issue.

Learning Objectives:

1. Explain the process for challenging an exam issue with the IRS.
   
2. Understand the IRS collection process.

The impact of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) on the deductibility of state and local taxes has created an additional incentive for taxpayers in high-tax states to move to a low or no-tax state. 

This session will help participants to:

1. Identify the rules used throughout the United States to get a state to accept a taxpayer’s change of residency;
   
2. Discuss planning opportunities and traps for the unwary; and
   
3. Understand the income and other tax implications of changing residency.

U.S. taxpayers and residents are required under the Internal Revenue Code and the Bank Secrecy Act to report their relationship to foreign accounts and assets on an annual basis. The IRS and the Department of Justice have significantly increased enforcement of these reporting requirements through criminal prosecutions and the imposition of crushing civil penalties that can come when taxpayers are not compliant. This panel will explore the current state of IRS and DOJ civil and criminal enforcement with respect to taxpayers who have not complied with FBAR (Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts) and FATCA (Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act) reporting requirements. The panel will also cover pathways to compliance for the non-compliant taxpayer, including the IRS’s Voluntary Disclosure Practice.

Learning Objectives:

1. Distinctions between FBAR and FATCA reporting requirements. 
   
2. Criminal versus civil consequences to noncompliance. 
   
3. Options for coming into compliance with unreported foreign accounts. 
   
4. Best practices for representing a noncompliant taxpayer in an audit.
5. Strategies for defending FBAR and FATCA related penalties. 
   
6. The current landscape of FBAR litigation.

Elizabeth Forspan will address important issues affecting those in the “sandwich generation”, or those who are charged with caring for both elderly parents as well as their own children. Topics will include planning for one’s parent’s incapacity, long term care and death, planning for one’s own incapacity and long term care, and planning for adolescent children, adult children and children with special needs. Elizabeth will also touch on estate planning topics, elder care/Medicaid planning and the important topic of how to avoid guardianship/conservatorships.

Learning Objectives Include:

1. Understanding the critical importance of advance directives, including the durable power of attorney.
   
2. Understanding, at a high-level, the various governmental programs that are available to the elderly and disabled.

Due to the rising costs of higher education, clients are relying more than ever on advisors to help them navigate the financial complexities associated with the college funding and financial aid planning processes. In this presentation, Ross A. Riskin, CPA/PFS, CCFC, will share highlights from the AICPA’s The Adviser’s Guide to Education Planning, which are focused on education planning strategies for business owners, high income/high net worth individuals, divorced/divorcing couples, and grandparents. In addition, Ross will also cover relevant changes from the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA).

Learning Objectives:

1. How to incorporate education planning strategies for business owners.
2. How to incorporate education planning strategies for high income/high net worth individuals.
3. How to incorporate education planning strategies for divorced/divorcing couples.
4. How to incorporate education planning strategies for grandparents.