Dear Clients,

The big change affecting your taxes this year is the passing of the One Big Beautiful Bill (OBBB) in July.  It made permanent the higher standard deductions that most people utilize.  Starting with last year, this carried over to the Montana tax return.  OBBB increased the portion of the itemized deduction that involved the state and local taxes (SALT) paid, from $10,000 to $40,000.  This may allow a few more people to itemize their deductions.  I have included an updated deduction form or you may list the totals on your own paper – please do not provide receipts for us to total.  You may use this form to report any changes to your dependents also.

If you are uncertain if you itemized in the past, look at your last year’s Federal tax return and look for a Schedule A. 

There are a few items that were part of OBBB that will save some people tax dollars.  Two of the major ones are the deduction for people who receive tips or get paid overtime.  If you fall into this category, your employer must provide you information required for filing your tax return.  Another big change is for people over 65.  They may get up to a $6,000 deduction per person (limited if income is over $75,000 single or $150,000 married jointly – filing separately gets nothing).  Some charitable donation deductions may give you a tax break even when you don’t itemize.  A deduction for interest on new car loans on certain new (not used) cars purchased in 2025, assuming your income is not too high.

The IRS is proposing to stop accepting checks for estimates and regular taxes or issuing refunds.  Most of you already have refunds deposited electronically and this will just require all of you to do that.  We know that payments can possibly be done through the tax software, but you will lose some control and you may want to consider looking at doing this through the IRS.GOV website. 

We will continue to offer various ways for you to give us your tax documents.  Please feel free to include any notes, comments, or questions you may have, and I will call you or enclose a written answer with your tax return.  If you are emailing us documents, we recommend that you upload them through ShareFile.  Please contact us and we will provide you with our private link

I will call you if I have any questions about your documents.  If youfeel it necessary to talk to me in person, please call for an appointment.

We will endeavor to complete your tax return within 14-21 business days.  It is vital that we receive ONLY the required documents like W-2’s, 1099’s, and any other income or direct deductions, so we don’t have a lot of papers to mail back to you or to sort through.  Please remember to let us know if and when your estimated tax payments were made.

Be aware that any tax information brought in after March 20th could result in an extension.  The extension is only an extension of time to file, NOT an extension of time to pay your taxes.  The IRS and the State of Montana will charge interest and penalties if payments do not accompany the extension form if you owe.  I can create the accompanying payment form, if you so desire.

I want to thank you all for helping me complete another successful year in business.  All of us look forward to seeing you in 2026.

Sincerely,

Terry L. Atwood, CPA