Introduction to Income Tax Accounting

Catalog description

This course covers the basic income tax concepts relevant to individual taxpayers, and ?how to? apply those principles. The course deals with the basic income tax provisions of the Internal Revenue Code, with a particular focus on provisions that affect the tax liabilities of individual taxpayers as opposed to corporations. They should be able to explain how the current federal individual income taxation evolved and developed .Students will prepare tax returns that includes Schedules A, B, C, D, and E as well as other schedules and forms that are required to complete individual income tax returns both manually and using tax software. Issues that put tax practitioners at odds with clients will be discussed, guided by the ethical parameters established by the various standards, codes of conduct, and Treasury Department Circulars. Problem solving skills will be emphasized by examining real world applications and situations. The materials presented in this course focus on preparers perspective so that students develop understanding of the mechanical operation as well as the intellectual aspects of individual income tax preparation.As a writing intensive course, this course will also prepare the students to properly create, revise, and document communications required in the business world. These communications will typically be prepared in a memo format, and will require proper documentation of all sources. The ability to communicate through an appropriate business memo will be taught through lecture as well as numerous opportunities to revise and correct graded work. Because of the documentation requirements, the students will also develop tax research skills. The research skills will extend to cover topical tax assignment, code based research questions, and policy (legal precedence) research projects. The focus of the memo writing assignments is to develop the ability…