For Businesses

Services for Businesses

Consulting

  • Planning a deal?  Running the numbers to see if it makes sense?  Most consultants, especially those not within Hawaii, will consider federal income tax but might not know about state tax.  You certainly don’t want to close the deal and then find an unplanned 4.5% exposure for Hawaii General Excise Tax.
  • Have a question about individual revenue items?  Most attorneys and accountants will know the basics, but might not know about some of the more complex rules.
  • In that deal, is the issue really important?  If so, consider getting a private letter ruling from the State Department of Taxation.  It’s not as simple as just writing a letter; there are procedures that need to be followed.  I’ve done several of these.
  • What if the question isn’t about General Excise Tax?  I have experience with most state taxes, federal income tax, and some unusual federal excise taxes.  In most of my career I needed to be a fireman, solving problems while the rest of the office was concentrating on getting tax returns out the door.

Tax Clearance Issues

  • If your business is marked as “Not Compliant” by Hawaii Compliance Express and you need help FAST to keep your opportunity to bid on (or get paid from) a state or county project, help is here.  I have worked on this kind of problem for many years.

Tax Audit Defense

  • Revenue authorities giving you grief?  I have been helping companies defend tax audits for a good twenty years.  I can easily work with your existing accountant or legal team.

Diagnostic Reviews (FREE)

  • Free?  Yes!  I spend about half a day with your business.  I look over general excise, net income, state unemployment, and other returns.  If I don’t find any issues, you don’t owe me a dime.  If I do and you realize a refund, we share.  That way we both win!

State Tax Incentives

  • Alternative Energy Credits

    • Over the past few years I have worked a lot with federal and state alternative energy credits.  Don’t be confused by the alphabet soup the installers use.  I can help you make sense out of PPA (power purchase agreement), FIT (feed-in tariff), and CGETC (Capital Goods Excise Tax Credit — which usually does NOT apply in this setting).

  • Enterprise Zone Incentives

    • If a business employs people in certain designated zones and commits to maintain or increase the number of employees, it may be eligible for incentives that include a general excise tax exemption and an income tax credit based on state income tax and unemployment insurance liability.  The designated zones might not be where you would expect; downtown Honolulu is in a zone, for example.  Might this be a possibility for your business?  It’s not automatic.  You have to apply for it to get it, and we can help there.