Sunburst Software Solutions Inc

Question:

In addition to needing to charge a fixed percentage (6%) of Sales Tax to each cusomer, I am also required to charge a 1 1/2% Discretionary Tax on the first $5000.00 of each invoice.  How do I accomplish this using QuickBooks?

Answer:

For the most part, QuickBooks does a good job of tracking taxable and non-taxable sales -- even taxable and non-taxable items on the same invoice.  However, when it comes to tracking sales tax with a fixed rate on a fixed dollar amount of an entire sale ---- in addition to sales tax on the entire sale --- well it fails miserably and causes a lot of frustration for QuickBooks Users who encounter a situation of this nature.

Try this workaround from the March 2010 edition of the QuickBooks for Contractors Newsletter.

When a contractor works on a construction project and he/she hires subcontractors; on of the things that he is required to keep on file is a CURRENT copy of each subcontractors Worker's Compensation Insurance Policy.

Keeping track of expiration dates of your Subcontractors Worker's Compensation Insurance and making sure that you always have a copy of their current policy on hand, can be a daunting task.

This eBook will provide you with complete instruction for setting up and maintaining a tracking system for Worker's Compensation Insurance expiration dates AND the same principals can be applied for tracking expiration dates of Subcontractor General Liability Insurance policies.

13 pages, pdf format.

A Newsletter reader wrote to ask..

Who Should I send a W-9 Form To?

1 page, PDF Format.  From the December 2008 Newsletter.

We've compiled a list of daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, and annual bookkeeping and accounting tasks to help you stay on track.

This list is geared for contractors and include items such as certified payroll reports, billing draws, Worker's Comp, and General Liability Insurance tracking reminders.

Excel format (so you can easily add other items).  From the December 2008 Newsletter.

 A newsletter subscriber wrote to ask the following question -

Do you know of a good method for indicating or tracking that a vendor bill is approved for payment?

Download this article to find 3 possible ways to accomplish this task.

1 page, PDF Format.  From the October 2008 QuickBooks for Contractors Newsletter

We are frequently asked ho to accrue sick, vacation, and/or comp time when using QuickBooks; because some contractors feel that the built in sick/vacation tracking in QuickBooks is not adequate.

From the March 2008 Newsletter.  14 pages with lots of screenshots.  .PDF format. 

This article discusses four common ways that contractors pay Prevailing Wage/Union Fringe Benefits and teaches you how to set QuickBooks up to handle them.

From the March 2008 Newsletter.  16 pages with lots of screenshots.  PDF format.

Note:  If you use our Certified Payroll Solution program and want to see how this setup flows into CPS, you should read this article instead .

The end of one year/the beginning of the next year is about more than just getting ready to file your taxes, issue W-2's, and prepare year end payroll tax returns--even though those are important items.

It is the same as when you clean out your file cabinets and pack away all the paperwork for the previous year; you should be cleaning out your QuickBooks Lists!  Wonder what I mean by that?

2 pages.  From the January 2008 Newsletter.

I recommend two key tips that will reduce the time and frustration of reconciling banks statements. This solution is based on the principle that we want the bank reconciliation window to match exactly what appears on the bank statement, and that data should be input accordingly. If you use the following method it will make the challenging task of reconciling bank statements much easier.

1 page.  From the April 2007 Newsletter.

As a contractor, one of the more important aspects of running your business is tracking the actual cost of your labor. Labor costs are compiled of:

• Gross wages – in the field and in the office
• Payroll Taxes
• Company paid benefits - whether they are Union Fringe Benefits or benefits that you as the employer choose to provide
• Workers' Compensation Costs
• Payroll Deductions
• Payroll Items for Sole Proprietorshps & Partnerships

Learn how to set up these various items and really make your job costing reports sing...

7 pages. From the September 2006 Newsletter.