Season's Greetings from the Beverly & Bucker Team!
We hope that everyone has a wonderful holiday season and greets this time of year in good health. As we approach the new year, our office would like to provide updates and information on upcoming changes. Please use this Newsletter and the Links available on our Website to stay up-to-date.
As in years prior, clients who received $600 or more through cash-sharing apps like Venmo, Zelle, and PayPal will receive a Form 1099-K by mail or through the app. If you receive this form, please include it with your tax documents as we will not be able to complete your return without it. If you believe you received $600 or more through a cash-sharing app but did not receive a Form 1099-K, please contact the company. Please be prepared to explain where the funds came from and what they were used for to determine how the amount should be applied on the Tax Return.
For our Virginia clients who are over the age of 55 and receive military retirement, you may be able to claim a subtraction for certain military benefits of up to $10,000. This means that qualifying recipients may receive up to $10,000 of military retirement pay tax-free. Qualifying benefits include military retirement income received for service in the US Armed Forces or paid to the surviving spouse of a veteran under the Survivor Benefit Plan program. If you have questions concerning this change, please contact our office or consult the Virginia Department of Taxation website.
Now that we've covered changes in tax code, here's what you can expect in our office. As we continue to prioritize the safety of our staff and clients this cold and flu season, we encourage anyone who does not require a face-to-face appointment to use our Drop Off option. Many of our clients used this method for the first time during the pandemic and found that it was easier and much faster than waiting for an available appointment time. The Tax Return will be prepared in your absence and our staff will contact you when it has been completed. If you are dropping off your Tax Return but would still like to discuss your concerns with a Tax Preparer, a Phone Appointment option is now available! To schedule a Phone Appointment, please contact our office or select the Phone Appointment option on our website when scheduling. Due to IRS guidelines, we are not able to use online phone call platforms such as Zoom, FaceTime, Google Chats, or Signal. These third-party calling platforms do not provide the level of security required for discussing sensitive personal information. For clients who are able to Drop Off Tax Documents, we would like to make sure you are aware of our variety of Drop Off methods.
Drop Offs:
Tax Documents can be mailed to our office, dropped off with our staff during our office hours, or dropped off after hours via the mail slot beside our front door. We also have a contact-free, digital option available. If you would like to virtually submit your documents, please contact our office via phone or email to request a link to our secure, Document Sharing Portal. Upon request, a link will be sent to you via email. This link will be randomly generated and, for your security, should not be shared. Once you have received the link, you will be able to upload your documents to our Secure Portal, at which point our staff will be notified and will be able to view your documents to prepare your Tax Return. Please do not email sensitive documents to our office or submit them via Facebook. These are not secure options to submit sensitive information. If you have any questions concerning our Digital Drop Off method or any of our other methods for receiving documents, please let us know. When mailing documents, we request that you mail copies, not original documents. Original documents that are lost in the mail are difficult to replace so, if possible, please only mail copies.
No matter how you Drop Off this year, please include your Name, Phone Number, Address, and a list of any changes in family structure such as Marriage, sale of a property, or changes in the number of Dependents. If you have questions concerning what documents to include when dropping off, our staff will be more than happy to assist.
Appointments:
For our clients who necessitate a face-to-face appointment, please schedule either through our website or by phone. We ask that if you or someone in your household is experiencing Covid-related symptoms to please wear a mask during your appointment. Our front desk staff will have extras available. If you or someone in your household has tested positive for Covid-19 or RSV within four days of your appointment, please contact our office to reschedule.
Client Organizers:
Client Organizers are available! These are helpful tools that list what documents we will require to prepare your Tax Return. Client Organizers are based off of the information you provided to our office for the prior Tax Year, so they will not include any information that has changed since we last saw you. With Client Organizers, we will include an additional checklist that outlines any changes in Tax Code for the upcoming year. If you are new to our office this year, welcome! We have blank Client Organizers available for you in our office and on our website in "Info Center." While they will not have a list of documents that you have used for prior Tax Returns, they will have a summation of documents you may need to bring in depending on your needs. If you have any questions or would like to request a Client Organizer, please contact our office.
I would like to, once again, thank our amazing clients. Our team is excited to assist with the approaching tax season and we're looking forward to seeing everyone. We hope everyone has a great New Year and we look forward to working together in 2025!
Ryan Beverly E.A.
Beverly & Bucker Inc.
The IRS has announced that, under the phased implementation of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), there will be no changes to individual information returns or federal income tax withholding tables for the tax year at issue.
The IRS has announced that, under the phased implementation of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), there will be no changes to individual information returns or federal income tax withholding tables for the tax year at issue. Specifically, Form W-2, existing Forms 1099, Form 941 and other payroll return forms will remain unchanged for 2025. Employers and payroll providers are instructed to continue using current reporting and withholding procedures. This decision is intended to avoid disruptions during the upcoming filing season and to give the IRS, businesses and tax professionals sufficient time to implement OBBBA-related changes effectively.
In addition to this, IRS is developing new guidance and updated forms, including changes to the reporting of tips and overtime pay for TY 2026. The IRS will coordinate closely with stakeholders to ensure a smooth transition. Additional information will be issued to help individual taxpayers and reporting entities claim benefits under OBBBA when filing returns.
IR-2025-82
The IRS issued frequently asked questions (FAQs) relating to several energy credits and deductions that are expiring under the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act (OBBB) and their termination dates. The FAQs also provided clarification on the energy efficient home improvement credit, the residential clean energy credit, among others.
The IRS issued frequently asked questions (FAQs) relating to several energy credits and deductions that are expiring under the One, Big, Beautiful Bill Act (OBBB) and their termination dates. The FAQs also provided clarification on the energy efficient home improvement credit, the residential clean energy credit, among others.
Energy Efficient Home Improvement Credit
The credit will not be allowed for any property placed in service after December 31, 2025.
Residential Clean Energy Credit
The credit will not be allowed for any expenditures made after December 31, 2025. Due to the accelerated termination of the Code Sec. 25C credit, periodic written reports, including reporting for property placed in service before January 1, 2026, are no longer required.
A manufacturer is still required to register with the IRS to become a qualified manufacturer for its specified property to be eligible for the credit.
Clean Vehicle Program
New user registration for the Clean Vehicle Credit program through the Energy Credits Online portal will close on September 30, 2025. The portal will remain open beyond September 30, 2025, for limited usage by previously registered users to submit time-of-sale reports and updates to such reports.
Acquiring Date
A vehicle is “acquired” as of the date a written binding contract is entered into and a payment has been made. Acquisition alone does not immediately entitle a taxpayer to a credit. If a taxpayer acquires a vehicle and makes a payment on or before September 30, 2025, the taxpayer will be entitled to claim the credit when they place the vehicle in service, even if the vehicle is placed in service after September 30, 2025.
FS-2025-5
IR-2025-86
The IRS has provided guidance regarding what is considered “beginning of constructions” for purposes of the termination of the Code Sec. 45Y clean electricity production credit and the Code Sec. 48E clean electricity investment credit. The One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB) Act (P.L. 119-21) terminated the Code Secs. 45Y and 48E credits for applicable wind and solar facilities placed in service after December 31, 2027.
The IRS has provided guidance regarding what is considered “beginning of constructions” for purposes of the termination of the Code Sec. 45Y clean electricity production credit and the Code Sec. 48E clean electricity investment credit. The One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB) Act (P.L. 119-21) terminated the Code Secs. 45Y and 48E credits for applicable wind and solar facilities placed in service after December 31, 2027. The termination applies to facilities the construction of which begins after July 4, 2026. On July 7, 2025, the president issue Executive Order 14315, Ending Market Distorting Subsidies for Unreliable, Foreign-Controlled Energy Sources, 90 F.R. 30821, which directed the Treasury Department to take actions necessary to enforce these termination provisions within 45 days of enactment of the OBBB Act.
Physical Work Test
In order to begin construction, taxpayers must satisfy a “Physical Work Test,” which requires the performance of physical work of a significant nature. This is a fact based test that focuses on the nature of the work, not the cost. The notice addresses both on-site and off-site activities. It also provides specific lists of activities that are to be considered work of a physical nature for both solar and wind facilities. Preliminary activities or work that is either in existing inventory or is normally held in inventory are not considered physical work of a significant nature.
Continuity Requirement
The Physical Work Test also requires that a taxpayer maintain a continuous program of construction on the applicable wind or solar facility, the Continuity Requirement. To satisfy the Continuity Requirement, the taxpayer must maintain a continuous program of construction, meaning continuous physical work of a significant nature. However, the notice provides a list of allowable “excusable disruptions,” including delays related to permitting, weather, and acquiring equipment, among others.
The guidance also provides a safe harbor for the Continuity Requirement. Under the safe harbor, the Continuity Requirement will be met if a taxpayer places an applicable wind or solar facility in service by the end of a calendar year that is no more than four calendar years after the calendar year during which construction of the applicable wind or solar facility began. Thus, if construction begins on an applicable wind or solar facility on October 1, 2025, the applicable wind or solar facility must be placed in service before January 1, 2030, for the safe harbor to apply.
Five Percent Safe Harbor for Low Output Solar Facilities
A safe harbor is available for a low output solar facility, which is defined as an applicable solar facility that has maximum net output of not greater than 1.5 megawatt. A low output solar facility may also establish that construction has begun before July 5, 2026, by satisfying the Five Percent Safe Harbor (as described in section 2.02(2)(ii) of Notice 2022-61).
Additional Guidance
The notice provides additional guidance regarding: construction produced for the taxpayer by another party under a binding written contract; the definition of a qualified facility; the definition of property integral to the applicable wind or solar facility; the application of the 80/20 rule to retrofitted applicable wind or solar facilities under Reg. §§ 1.45Y-4(d) and 1.48E-4(c); and the transfer of an applicable wind or solar facility.
Effective Date
Notice 2025-42 is effective for applicable wind and solar facilities for which the construction begins after September 1, 2025.
Notice 2025-42
The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration suggested the way the Internal Revenue Service reports level of service (ability to reach an operator when requested) and wait times does not necessarily reflect the actual times taxpayers are waiting to reach a representative at the agency.
The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration suggested the way the Internal Revenue Service reports level of service (ability to reach an operator when requested) and wait times does not necessarily reflect the actual times taxpayers are waiting to reach a representative at the agency.
"For the 2024 Filing Season, the IRS reported an LOS of 88 percent and wait times averaging 3 minutes," TIGTA stated in an August 14, 2025, report. "However, the reported LOS and average wait times only included calls made to 33 Accounts Management (AM) telephone lines during the filing season."
TIGTA stated that the agency separately tracks Enterprise LOS, a broader measure of of the taxpayer experience which includes 27 telephone lines from other IRS business units in addition to the 33 AM telephone lines.
"The IRS does not widely report an Enterprise-wide wait time- as the reported average wait time computation includes only the 33 AM telephone lines," the report states. "According to IRS data, the average wait times for the other telephone lines were much longer than 3 minutes, averaging 17 to 19 minutes during the 2024 Filing Season."
TIGTA recommended that the IRS adjust its reporting to include Enterprise LOS in addition to AM LOS and provide averages across all telephone lines.
"The IRS disagreed with both recommendations stating that the LOS metric does not provide information to determine taxpayer experience when calling, and including wait times for telephone lines outside the main helpline would be confusing to the public," the Treasury watchdog reported. "We maintain that whether a taxpayer can reach an assistor is part of the taxpayer experience and providing average wait times across all telephone lines for the entire fiscal year demonstrates transparency."
The Treasury watchdog also noted that the National Taxpayer Advocate has stated the AM LOS is "materially misleading" and should be replaced as a benchmark.
TIGTA also warned that the reduction in workforce at the IRS could hurt recent improvements to LOS and wait times, noting that the agency will lose about 23 percent of its customer service representative employees by the end of September 2025.
"The staffing impact on the remainder of Calendar Year 2025 and the 2026 Filing Season are unknown, but we will be monitoring these issues."
It also noted that the IRS is working on a new metric – First Call/Contact Resolution – to measure the percentage of calls that resolve the customer’s issue without a need to transfer, escalate, pause, or return the customer’s initial phone call. TIGTA reported that analysis of FY 2024 data revealed that 33 percent of taxpayer calls were transferred unresolved at least once.
By Gregory Twachtman, Washington News Editor
The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has granted exemptive relief to covered investment advisers from the requirements the final regulations in FinCEN Final Rule RIN 1506-AB58 (also called the "IA AML Rule"), which were set to become effective January 1, 2026. This order exempts covered investment advisers from all requirements of these regulations until January 1, 2028.
The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has granted exemptive relief to covered investment advisers from the requirements the final regulations in FinCEN Final Rule RIN 1506-AB58 (also called the "IA AML Rule"), which were set to become effective January 1, 2026. This order exempts covered investment advisers from all requirements of these regulations until January 1, 2028.
The regulations require investment advisers (defined in 31 CFR §1010.100(nnn)) to establish minimum standards for anti-money laundering/countering the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) programs, report suspicious activity to FinCEN, and keep relevant records, among other requirements.
FinCEN has determined that the regulations should be reviewed to ensure that they strike an appropriate balance between cost and benefit. The review will allow FinCEN to ensure the regulations are consistent with the Trump administration's deregulatory agenda and are effectively tailored to the investment adviser sector's diverse business models and risk profiles, while still adequately protecting the U.S. financial system and guarding against money laundering, terrorist financing, and other illicit finance risks. Covered investment advisers are exempt from the obligations of the regulations while the review takes place.
FinCEN intends to issue a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) to propose a new effective date for these regulations no earlier than January 1, 2028.
This exemptive relief is effective from August 5, 2025, until January 1, 2028.
FinCEN Exemptive Relief Order
