What Are the Tax Consequences of Employee Gifts?
Sarah B
The holidays are a time for gratitude, and many employers show appreciation by giving gifts to their staff. Different types of gifts can have different tax consequences. So whether it’s a gift card, a holiday turkey or a year-end bonus, it’s important to know how the IRS will treat the gift.
“Achievement awards” are deductible by the employer and tax-free to the employee if certain rules are met, including that the gift be of tangible personal property. So are “de minimis” gifts, such as that holiday turkey. But year-end bonuses are taxable. Contact the office if you have questions about the tax implications of employee gifts.
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December 15 Calendar-year corporations: Pay the fourth installment of 2025 estimated income taxes, completing Form 1120-W for the corporation’s records. Employers: Deposit Social Security, Medicare and withheld income taxes for November if the monthly deposit rule applies. Employers: Deposit nonpayroll withheld income tax for November if the monthly deposit rule applies. January 12 Individuals: Report December 2025 tip income of $20 or more to employers (Form 4070).
Have you been claiming the standard deduction the last few years? If so, you may want to rethink that for 2025. The expanded state and local tax (SALT) deduction may cause your total itemized deductions to exceed the standard deduction and itemizing to make sense. In that case, you might benefit from accelerating more SALT expenses and other itemized deductions into 2025. Examples include qualified medical and dental expenses (to the extent that they exceed 7.5% of your adjusted gross income), home mortgage interest (generally on up to $750,000 of home mortgage debt on a principal residence and a second residence) and charitable contributions. Contact the office to discuss whether this strategy may be right for you.