A New Type of Tax-Advantaged Account for Children
Families looking for another way to save for a child’s future may want to consider Section 530A accounts. Created by the 2025 tax legislation commonly referred to as the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, these tax-advantaged savings accounts, also known as Trump Accounts, are designed to help children build long-term assets. The ability to contribute became available on July 4, 2026. And some children may be eligible for a $1,000 government-funded deposit.
The Basics
A 530A account can be established for anyone who’ll be under age 18 at the end of the tax year and who has a Social Security number. U.S. citizen children born from January 1, 2025, through December 31, 2028, may also qualify for the $1,000 government contribution.
You can set up a 530A account by filing Form 4547, “Trump Account Election(s),” through the Trump Accounts app (available at trumpaccounts.gov) or through your IRS Individual Account.
You and any other individual, such as a grandparent, can make annual contributions up to a combined limit of $5,000 (adjusted for inflation starting in 2028) until the year your child turns 18. The $1,000 government contribution doesn’t count against the annual limit.
Beyond Family Contributions
Employers may establish programs to contribute to employees’ 530A accounts. An employer can generally contribute up to $2,500 annually (adjusted for inflation beginning in 2028) for an eligible employee or dependent under age 18. (The annual employer contribution limit is $2,500 per employee, regardless of the number of eligible dependents.)
These contributions count against the $5,000 annual contribution limit. Employer contributions are excluded from the employee’s taxable income.
Tax Benefits and Account Rules
Contributions aren’t deductible for individual contributors, but account earnings grow tax-deferred as long as they remain in the account. Generally, no distributions can be taken before the year your child turns 18.
Until age 18, investments are limited to certain eligible mutual funds and exchange-traded funds that satisfy IRS requirements. In the year your child turns 18, the account basically transitions into a traditional IRA, and most rules governing traditional IRAs apply. Future contributions generally require earned income and may be deductible if your child is eligible.
Also, starting with the year your child turns 18, distributions can be taken. But the distributions will generally be at least partially taxable, and IRA early withdrawal penalties could also apply.
Finding the Best Option
Before making contributions to Section 530A accounts, consider whether other tax-advantaged savings options might better achieve your goals. For example, if your primary objective is funding a child’s education, a Section 529 plan may be a better fit. Distributions used for qualified education expenses are tax-free, and some or all of a remaining balance may eventually be converted tax-free to a Roth IRA, subject to applicable requirements and limits.
If you determine that a 529 plan or other savings vehicle is better for your family, but your child would be eligible for the $1,000 government contribution to a 530A account, seriously consider opening one. Even if you never make a contribution, the tax-deferred compounding growth on $1,000 can lead to a substantial balance over time.
Seeking Guidance
A 530A account may provide significant long-term savings benefits. Consider how it fits into your overall financial strategy. Contact the office if you need assistance.
Choosing the Right Business Funding Solution
Access to capital helps small businesses succeed and grow. Whether you need to cover cash flow gaps, fund expansion plans or invest in long-term assets, it’s important to understand all your financing options. This will help you make informed decisions and select funding that aligns with your goals.
5 Financing Options to Consider
Your business may have access to several types of financing, with most options falling into five broad categories:
1. Lines of credit. This is a common form of financing because of its simplicity and flexibility. Once approved, businesses can borrow up to their credit limit whenever needed without reapplying. It can help meet periodic, temporary cash flow shortfalls. It’s often wise to establish a line of credit before you need it, so funds are readily available.
2. Term loans. These loans are issued for a specific period. They’re repaid with interest over a set number of years and are mainly used to purchase fixed assets, such as machinery, vehicles and equipment, or to support major business investments.
3. Commercial mortgages. This type of term loan is used to purchase new or existing commercial property, including retail space, industrial warehouses and office buildings.
4. Government loan programs. Small Business Administration (SBA) loan programs, including 7(a) and 504 loans, are a significant source of funding for qualifying businesses. The SBA periodically updates program rules and lending limits, so review current SBA requirements before applying. Because the SBA guarantees a portion of these loans, lenders may extend financing to businesses that otherwise wouldn’t qualify under standard underwriting criteria.
5. Equipment leases. When acquiring equipment, leasing may be a better option than purchasing it outright. This can be especially beneficial for technology that may quickly become outdated. Leasing can help preserve cash flow while allowing businesses to upgrade equipment as needs change.
Alternative Funding
Your business may also be able to access funding from less traditional sources. Examples include online lenders and specialized financing providers.
They may offer financing solutions that complement traditional lending options, including working capital loans, equipment financing and factoring. Factoring allows a business to receive cash based on outstanding customer invoices, helping improve short-term cash flow.
Moving Forward
Some financing options may offer tax advantages. Interest paid on business loans, including lines of credit, term loans, commercial mortgages and SBA loans, may be deductible, subject to various rules and limits. Payments made under qualifying equipment leases are generally deductible as a business expense.
If you’re considering borrowing or exploring alternative funding sources, contact the office for help evaluating your options, understanding the financial and tax implications and identifying financing solutions that best fit your needs.
Plan Now for Deferring Tax on Advance Payments
With year-end fast approaching, now is a good time to review strategies that could affect your business’s 2026 tax liability. One area that may deserve attention is the tax treatment of advance payments. Some accrual-basis businesses may be able to defer recognizing a portion of that income.
A Tax-Planning Strategy
For federal income tax purposes, advance payments generally must be reported as taxable income in the year received. This treatment always applies if your business uses the cash method of accounting for tax purposes. However, if your business uses the accrual method, it may qualify for favorable tax deferral treatment.
Accrual-basis businesses can elect to postpone including all or part of an eligible advance payment in taxable income until the year after it’s received. To qualify, among other requirements, an advance payment must:
- Be at least partially included in revenue for a later year according to the business’s applicable financial statement (AFS) or, if there’s no AFS, be treated as earned in a later year, and
- Be received for goods, services or other eligible items listed in IRS guidance.
If your accrual-basis business receives eligible advance payments in 2026, you potentially can elect to defer reporting some or all of that income until 2027 for federal tax purposes.
The AFS Requirement
An AFS can be an audited financial statement used for credit or financial reporting purposes, certain reports submitted to federal or state agencies, or a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, such as a Form 10-K or annual report.
If your business doesn’t have an AFS and elects the deferral method, the advance payment generally must be included in taxable income in the year received to the extent your business treats it as earned that year. Any remaining amount is included in income the following year.
Identifying Eligible Payments
Advance payments that may qualify for deferral include payments for services, goods, gift cards, intellectual property and computer software licenses, warranty contracts, and subscriptions. Certain other payments may also qualify under IRS guidance.
However, rents (with some exceptions), certain insurance premiums, payments for financial instruments and some service warranty contracts aren’t eligible.
Timing Is Key
The rules surrounding the tax treatment of advance payments can be complex. Contact the office to discuss whether your business may qualify to defer recognition of advance payments and how this strategy could fit into your overall tax-planning approach.
Single? You Still Need an Estate Plan
If you’re single with no children, an estate plan can help ensure your wishes will be carried out and important decisions remain in trusted hands.
Without a will, state intestacy laws generally determine who inherits assets. While beneficiary designations may control certain accounts, assets without beneficiary designations or joint ownership typically pass according to state law. For singles with no children, state law may call for assets to be distributed to relatives such as parents, siblings, aunts and uncles, or cousins. If no relatives can be located, assets may pass to the state.
For wealthier singles, there are also estate tax considerations. Singles with significant assets should consider estate planning techniques such as trusts to help minimize taxes.
Additionally, powers of attorney can allow someone you trust to handle financial matters and make medical decisions on your behalf if you become incapacitated.
Higher IRS Mileage Rates Take Effect
Due to rising fuel costs, the IRS has increased the 2026 cents-per-mile rates for calculating certain vehicle deductions. Effective July 1, 2026, the standard mileage rate for the business use of a car, SUV, van, pickup truck or panel truck is 76 cents per mile, up from 72.5 cents per mile for the first half of the year.
The revised rate for medical and eligible moving purposes is 23.5 cents per mile, up from 20.5 cents per mile. For charitable driving, the 14 cents per mile rate remains unchanged.
These rates apply to gasoline- and diesel-powered vehicles as well as electric and hybrid ones. To protect your deduction, keep detailed mileage records. Contact the office with questions.
Lending to Family or Friends? Know the Tax Rules
Making a personal loan to a family member or friend can create unexpected tax issues. If the loan carries little or no interest, the IRS might treat all or part of it as a taxable gift under the below-market loan rules.
To pass muster with the IRS, your loan should be backed by a written promissory note that includes the interest rate, a schedule showing dates and amounts for interest and principal payments, and the security or collateral, if any. Charge an interest rate that equals or exceeds the applicable federal rates set by the IRS. They potentially change each month. Contact the office for details.
Save Time with QuickBooks Online Automation
Routine bookkeeping can quickly become time-consuming. You might log in to your accounting software to record a customer payment, only to discover invoices that need to be sent, bank transactions waiting to be categorized or estimates that are ready to be converted into projects.
QuickBooks Online offers a variety of automation features that can help streamline these routine tasks and improve efficiency for both newer and experienced users.
Import Financial Transactions
Rather than entering bank and credit card transactions manually, you can connect most bank accounts, credit cards and payment processors so eligible transactions are downloaded automatically for review and approval. This can save significant time, particularly for businesses with a high volume of transactions, while also reducing the risk of manual data-entry errors.
Intuit uses multiple layers of security, including encryption and authentication technologies, to help protect your data. You can further protect your account by using strong, unique passwords, enabling multifactor authentication if available, keeping your devices secure and avoiding public Wi-Fi when accessing sensitive financial information.
Create Bank Rules
If you regularly record similar transactions, QuickBooks Online allows you to set up Bank Rules for them. From the home page, click the Accounting App, then Rules, then New rule in the upper right corner. In the panel that opens, define your rule. For example, if you want every expense whose Bank text contains Staples to be automatically categorized as Office supplies, you’d fill it out as shown in the image below.
Upload Receipts Immediately
Do you have piles of paper receipts on your desk or in an envelope somewhere? It’s important to be able to match receipts to expense transactions so you’ll have them stored safely for tax prep time. You need to know why you spent the money and whether it can be claimed as a business expense.
Using the QuickBooks Online mobile app, you can snap photos of receipts. The app will extract key information and attach the image to the transaction. You can add or edit anything that gets lost in translation.
Set Up Recurring Transactions
If you routinely send invoices or pay bills that are identical or very similar, you can create Recurring Transactions. These can be transactions such as:
- Rent payments,
- Loan payments,
- Monthly service invoices,
- Subscription fees, and
- Membership dues.
QuickBooks will either remind you when it’s time to dispatch them and allow you to review/edit them or send them through automatically. (Be careful with the latter.) You can do this by creating a transaction and clicking Make recurring at the bottom of the page or by opening the Accounting App and clicking Recurring transactions.
Reconcile Weekly
Consider reconciling your accounts weekly rather than monthly. Regular reconciliations can help identify discrepancies sooner, reduce the time required for each reconciliation and make it easier to categorize recent transactions accurately. To get started, open the Accounting App and click Reconcile. If you’ve never reconciled accounts using accounting software, you may need some guidance first.
Schedule Frequent Checkups
Consider scheduling a regular time each week to complete routine bookkeeping tasks. While these activities can be performed as needed, handling them during a dedicated session may improve efficiency and help identify potential issues before they become more difficult to resolve. A weekly checklist might include these to-dos:
- Review imported transactions and categorize any that require attention.
- Run accounts receivable and accounts payable reports.
- Reconcile your bank accounts.
- Review your profit and loss report.
- Upload any outstanding receipts.
If your review identifies discrepancies or other issues, address them promptly to help keep your financial records accurate and up to date.
If you encounter a bookkeeping issue or are unsure how to complete a task in QuickBooks Online, contact the office for assistance. If you’re new to the software, a training session can help you become familiar with its features and common tasks. Addressing questions or resolving issues early is often simpler than correcting problems after they’ve grown more complex.
Upcoming Tax Due Dates
August 17
Employers: Deposit nonpayroll withheld income tax for July if the monthly deposit rule applies.
Employers: Deposit Social Security, Medicare and withheld income tax for July if the monthly deposit rule applies.
September 10
Individuals: Report August tip income of $20 or more to employers (Form 4070).