AARP State Meeting CA-2

Statewide Volunteer Program Mark Callahan Statewide Volunteer Program Coordinator

Duck Books

Duck Books Continued All areas submitted request via a single spreadsheet We expect to start mailing the middle of December We’ve put the AARP page link to the Duck Book on forms list page on our web site (ftb.ca.gov) 540 Books will be mailed as soon as they are available in the same numbers as the Duck Books except where reduced or none were requested on the spreadsheet

E-versions of publications will be available on the FTB web site (ftb.ca.gov) mid December

Forms Ordering Procedure 2333V-CA is online at www.ftb.ca.gov Fill in the form and submit Your order can be sent directly to the Volunteer Coordinator mailbox and processed from there

List of items available on the web

Fill out the form with your information

Mailing instructions are in the middle of the form Currently, you need Reader version 10.x to save the form on the desktop.

California Taxpayers Impacted by Wildfires Receive More Time to File, Pay   The Franchise Tax Board (FTB) announced special tax relief for California taxpayers impacted by wildfires. Affected taxpayers are granted an extension to file 2016 California tax returns and make payments until January 31, 2018. FTB automatically follows federal postponement periods for any presidentially declared disasters.

The IRS granted relief to individuals and businesses in the following counties: Butte Lake Mendocino Napa Nevada Sonoma Yuba  

This relief applies to various tax filing and payment deadlines that occurred starting on October 8, 2017. This includes:     Individual filers whose tax-filing extension runs out on Oct. 16, 2017. Because tax payments related to these 2016 returns were originally due on April 18, 2017, any payments associated with these filings are not eligible for this relief.  Quarterly estimated tax payments due Jan. 16, 2018. Quarterly payroll and excise tax returns due on Oct. 31, 2017.  Calendar-year tax-exempt organizations whose 2016 extensions run out on Nov. 15, 2017.

Copies of Returns: Disaster victims may receive free copies of state returns to replace lost or damaged ones. Taxpayers may complete Form FTB 3516, Request for Copy of Tax Return  and print the name of the disaster in red ink (for example, Tubbs Fire) at the top of the request. Claiming Disaster Losses: Taxpayers may claim a deduction for a disaster loss sustained in an area proclaimed by the Governor to be in a state of emergency. For a complete list of all disasters declared by the Governor, see the “Qualified Disasters” chart on FTB’s Disaster Loss webpage.  

Additional information and instructions are available in FTB Pub Additional information and instructions are available in FTB Pub. 1034, How to Claim a State Tax Deduction for Your Disaster Loss.  Disaster-loss rules apply to victims in Governor-declared or presidentially declared disaster areas. Taxpayers may claim a disaster loss in one of two ways: They may either claim the disaster loss in the tax year that the disaster occurred, when they file their 2017 tax return next spring. Or, taxpayers may claim the loss in the tax year before the disaster occurred by filing either an amended or original 2016 tax return. The advantage of claiming the disaster loss in the prior tax year is that the FTB can more quickly issue a refund.   

Taxpayers claiming the disaster loss should write the name of the disaster in red ink at the top of the tax return to alert FTB to expedite the refund. If taxpayers are e-filing, they should follow the software instructions to enter disaster information.

California Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) The CA EITC is "refundable," meaning that you will receive a refund if the amount of the credit is greater than the tax you owe This credit is available to California households with adjusted gross income of less than $15,009 if there are no qualifying children, less than $22,322 if there is one qualifying child, or less than $22,309 if there are two or more qualifying children Maximum credit amounts are $223 with no qualifying children, $1,495 with one qualifying child, $2,467 with two qualifying children, and $2,775 with three or more qualifying children

California Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)​ Like the federal EITC, income from self-employment can be used to qualify for the California credit You must file a state tax return, even if you do not owe any tax or are not otherwise required to file Self employment can now be used. In order to claim the credit, taxpayers must file a return.

California Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)​ You, your spouse, and any qualifying children must each have a social security number issued by the Social Security Administration that is valid for employment. You must file using the single, married/registered domestic partner (RDP) filing jointly, or head of household filing status The “married/RDP filing separately” status may not be used. Your principal residence must be in California for more than half the tax year

California Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC)​ FTB 3514, California Earned Income Tax Credit, must be completed and filed with return to claim credit The credit amount, if you qualify, is on line 23 of the 540 2EZ, line 75 of the 540 return, line 82 of the 540NR (short) and line 85 of the 540NR (Long) Taxpayers who would like to file returns to claim EITC are being encouraged to use the Volunteer Program to prepare those returns

What’s new for TY 2017? Starting with TY2017 you can e-file an amended return (if supported by our software) If TaxSlayer supports, amended returns can be e-file by checking this box. We don’t know what it’s going to look like in the software yet. If supported a Schedule X will also have to be completed with the return.

A CA Schedule X will need to accompany the amended return to explain why the return is being amended The New Schedule X needs to be filled out if the amended check box is filled in on the front of the 540. We don’t know what this will look like in the software yet (if supported).

Because self-employment income is accepted for CA EITC, there’s a new information area on the Form 3514 This section of the FTB 3514 is new. We don’t know what this will look like in the software at this time. If the taxpayer does not submit this information on the form, there is a real good chance they will contacted by the FTB and their return will not be processed quickly.

FTB Contact Information Volunteer Hotline – 1.800.522.5665 Volunteer Hotline hours: 8:00 A.M.- 4:00 P.M. VolunteerCoordinator@ftb.ca.gov Local Contact – Mark.Callahan@ftb.ca.gov

Questions?

Thank you for volunteering! California Volunteers Make the Difference