As the September 15 tax extension deadline looms, many business owners will start planning for 2016 and the many challenges that exist in running a business.  Among the biggest headaches continues to be the Affordable Care Act (ACA) – no wonder that it landed as the number one issue on Accounting Today’s list.  Many businesses and individuals still aren’t sure how to comply and how the various provisions affect them.

Number five on the list is becoming a bigger issue – identity theft.  In today’s digital world, it’s almost impossible to safeguard one’s information.  As it relates to taxes and the IRS, we are not immune.  The IRS was breached earlier in the year, and over 100,000 accounts were hacked.

Another issue that has been very common the past few years is the inability of Congress to extend the Section 179 deduction, R&D credit, and various other tax credits in a timely fashion so companies can plan. However, the Treasury Department has proposed prospective regulation with regards to the definition of internal use software for the R&D tax credit.