When your tax returns are filed, the IRS matches the names and Social Security numbers of the filer, spouse and dependents to their records. If the names and numbers do not match, the return will be rejected which could cause a delay in receiving your refund and require paper filing instead of electronic.

One of the most common reasons for mismatching is a name change that has not been filed with the Social Security Administration (SSA). For example, if a woman marries and changes her name to her spouse, but does not notify the SSA, the return will be rejected. Similarly, if you have divorced and changed your name back to a previous name, the SSA needs to be notified. Another situation occurs when you adopt a spouse's child and the child's name is changed.

Any time a taxpayer or dependent changes his or her name you need to file form SS-5. The form is available on the SSA website. Or, you can call 1-800-772-1213 or your local SSA office to obtain the form. You will receive a new card with the name change, but the number stays the same.

At the end of 2011, the State of Michigan issued bonds to repay federal loans for unemployment benefits and restore solvency to the Unemployment Trust Fund. In order to repay these bonds, Michigan has added a new component to their unemployment tax rate calculation, the Obligation Assessment (OA). All Michigan employers will receive their new unemployment tax rate determination letters soon and should note their OA factor applied. The OA is not a separate tax bill and will simply result in additional unemployment taxes being paid each calendar quarter.

The OA uses the employer's experience rate and a base assessment of $42 per employee (for 2012), so the rate charged to each employer will be different. The 2013 OA was recently estimated to use a base assessment of $63 per employee. The State of Michigan has estimated that the OA will be applied for approximately ten (10) years in order to repay the bonds issued. The trade-off of higher unemployment taxes is a reduction in Federal unemployment taxes (FUTA). Michigan was a "credit reduction" state for the years 2009-2011. Michigan employers paid $21, $42, and $63 per employee in additional FUTA for those years, respectively. Beginning in 2012, FUTA will be reset to its' original rate.

Employers using a payroll service should be looking for the 2012 rate determination notice from the State of Michigan and forwarding it to their service provider. Those employers preparing their payroll in-house should make sure to update their system to use the new rate. The other item to keep in mind is that the State of Michigan also increased the taxable wage base for unemployment taxes for 2012 from $9,000 to $9,500 for each employee.

Whether you are an employee or self-employed and you use a portion of your home for business, you may be able to take a home office deduction.  

In order to claim the deduction, your home office must be used regularly and exclusively in a trade or business activity. If the area is used for both business and personal purposes you will not meet the criteria of the exclusive test. The exclusive test does not have to be met if you use part of your home to store inventory or product samples or as a daycare facility.

Your home office must be your principal place of business or a place to meet with patients, client and customers in the normal course of business. Using your home for occasional meetings is not sufficient to meet this requirement. Your home office does not have to meet either of these conditions if is a separate structure not attached to your home.

If your employer provides an office or work space somewhere else and does not require you to work from home, you as an employee will not be able to take a home office deduction because it must be for the convenience of your employer.

Generally, the amount you can deduct depends on the percentage of your home used for business. Expenses attributable to business use that you could deduct even if the home were not used for business, such as home mortgage interest and real estate taxes are fully deductible.   Deduction for other certain expenses will be limited if your gross income from your business is less than your total business expenses.