The overlooked layer, in one read
This workstation sweeps a business — any business — for the savings that hide in plain sight: unclaimed deductions, unopened retirement capacity, an entity election never modeled, credits lost to a 28-day form, timing never priced. Every figure below is a modeled range on sample data; every characterization routes to the licensed professional who owns it.
Modeled savings on the board
—
Sum of triggered, above-floor checks + engine levers at current inputs. Gated for CPA review — nothing here is a filing position.
As of —
Evidence-backed today
—
Only items whose evidence object is verified count here. The gap between the two columns is the to-do list, not a promise.
Coverage (computed)
—
Verified-or-final items ÷ all tracked items. Computed from the item registry — never typed.
The four kinds of move (every lever is one)
Character Changes what kind of income it isentity · QBI
Timing Moves the year, not the amountdeferral · §179
Pocket Changes whose return it lands onfamily payroll
Jurisdiction Federal vs. state divergenceTX config
Timing moves always render present value beside face value — deferral, not free money.
Standing routed determinations
RHome office with a commercial shop — §280A(c)(1) admin testCPA
RReasonable comp if the S election runsCPA
RKids' wage reasonableness + real workCPA
R§280A(g) 14-day rental — minutes + market rentCPA
R§41 research credit — qualified study requiredCPA
Routed means the engine computed both branches and stopped. The professional decides; the register records it.
What this desk will not model: ERC claims, micro-captives, conservation easements, offshore pension schemes, fee-stripping without substance, wages papered without work, Augusta packages without minutes and market comps. The deliberate-NO list is part of the product.
The Sweep — overlooked & unclaimed
Sixteen checks, each with a trigger, a formula, a $100 materiality floor, and a gate. Cards that did not fire stay on the board with the reason — the professional sees what was considered, not just what was found.
default
default
default
default
default
default
Modeled (triggered, above floor)
—
Tax-effect sum at the marginal rate input. Gated for CPA review.
Evidence-backed
—
Counts only checks whose evidence object is verified in the vault.
Show the math & law
Vehicle (S2):
SE health (S3):
Home office (S1): simplified
De minimis (S5): Reg. §1.263(a)-1(f), ≤$2,500/item without an AFS; the annual election statement is the evidence. Modeled as a year-one timing effect vs. 7-yr MACRS — a timing move, PV applies.
§280A(g) (S7): ≤14 days home rental to the business; Sinopoli v. Comm'r, T.C. Memo. 2023-105 — minutes + market-rate comps or the number collapses. Stays routed.
Prior years (S10): Form 1040-X inside §6511 (3 yrs from filing / 2 from payment) — the clock is a derived calendar item.
Materiality floor $100; suppressed checks stay visible. Simplifications flagged: single marginal-rate input; state layer config (TX: no PIT).
miles × $0.725 (Notice 2026-10) vs. actual × business-use % — a method election with first-year constraints (Rev. Proc. 2019-46); depreciation component $0.35/mi tracked for basis. No contemporaneous log (§274(d)), no deduction.SE health (S3):
min(premiums, earned income) above the line, §162(l); $0 for any month eligible for an employer-subsidized plan.Home office (S1): simplified
$5 × min(sqft, 300) (Rev. Proc. 2013-13) — but with a commercial shop this qualifies only under the §280A(c)(1) administrative-office rule: routed, never defaulted.De minimis (S5): Reg. §1.263(a)-1(f), ≤$2,500/item without an AFS; the annual election statement is the evidence. Modeled as a year-one timing effect vs. 7-yr MACRS — a timing move, PV applies.
§280A(g) (S7): ≤14 days home rental to the business; Sinopoli v. Comm'r, T.C. Memo. 2023-105 — minutes + market-rate comps or the number collapses. Stays routed.
Prior years (S10): Form 1040-X inside §6511 (3 yrs from filing / 2 from payment) — the clock is a derived calendar item.
Materiality floor $100; suppressed checks stay visible. Simplifications flagged: single marginal-rate input; state layer config (TX: no PIT).
Gated for CPA review — checks propose, the CPA signs positions
Entity engine — three entities, one profit
The same operating profit rendered as a Schedule C, an S corporation, and a C corporation — side by side, never defaulted. The election is a routed determination; the comp band comes only from a signed comp study.
Schedule C (today)
—
Self-employment tax on the full profit: base = profit × 0.9235; OASDI 12.4% to the $184,500 wage base, Medicare 2.9% uncapped (§1402). Kids' wages stay FICA-exempt here.
As of —
S corporation (modeled)
—
Payroll tax on salary only; distributions bear no SE tax (§1368). Net of ~$3,500 admin (illustrative).
Modeled delta
—
Gross save minus admin minus the levers this election breaks (below). Never folded into any filing figure.
What the S election costs elsewhere — rendered, not hidden
−Kids' FICA exemption dies — a corporation is not a parent (§3121(b)(3)(A))—
RReasonable comp vs. the study band — below-band salary is the audit branchCPA · comp study
RQBI both ways: W-2 wages help the §199A wage limit; salary itself is not QBIrouted
R>2% shareholder health premiums must run through the W-2 (Notice 2008-1)routed
TXNo personal income tax; franchise/margin tax lineattorney/CPA
C corporation branch (the honest third column)
Entity tax 21% (§11) plus a dividend layer on cash out — for operating income the double tax usually exceeds the pass-through result, and this panel says so. The §1202 QSBS exception is named and routed out; it belongs to a Founder desk, not a generalist sweep.
Show the math & law
SE(p): base = p × 0.9235; tax = min(base, 184500) × .124 + base × .029 (+ .009 over the §3101(b)(2) threshold)payroll(w) = min(w, 184500) × .124 + w × .029 (+ .009 band) · net = SE(p) − payroll(w) − admin − kidsFICA(w)Authority: §§1402, 3121, 1362, 1366, 1368, 11 · Rev. Rul. 74-44 · Watson v. United States, 668 F.3d 1008 (8th Cir. 2012) · Notice 2008-1 · Form 2553 window (2 mo + 15 days; late relief Rev. Proc. 2013-30). Flagged simplifications: employer-half deduction noted not netted; combined employer+employee payroll shown as one figure.
Election suitability & reasonable comp — the CPA signs the method
Retirement stack — the with-staff honest render
Four non-spouse employees means the first honest line is: a solo-401(k) is not available here — coverage rules (§410(b)) reach every common-law employee. Every option below shows the owner's capacity and what it costs in staff contributions, side by side.
401(k) + safe harbor
—
Owner deferral (§402(g))$24,500
Employer profit-sharing to §415(c)—
Staff cost — 3% nonelective—
As of —
SEP-IRA — the uniform-% trap
—
Owner at 20% of net SE—
Staff mirror at the same %—
§408(k)(3): the owner's percentage IS every eligible employee's percentage. With staff, the SEP is rarely the answer — and this panel says so.
SIMPLE IRA — the small-shop branch
—
Deferral (TY2026)$17,000
+3% match on own comp—
Staff cost — 3% match if taken—
Deferral, not free money — the present-value twin
default
default
default
Face value of the 401(k) shelter at today's marginal rate—
Present value after tomorrow's tax on withdrawal—
Cash-balance tier: age-banded actuarial illustration only — actuary required; never summed into any headline. Nondiscrimination testing (§401(a)(4)) is the TPA/actuary's lane, never computed here. Startup credits from the Credits engine render plan cost net-of-credit and gross, both labeled.
Show the math & law
Earned income (Sch C)
= profit − ½ SE tax; employer piece = 20% × earned income (Sch C) or 25% × W-2 (S-corp — the Entity engine's choice propagates); owner total capped at §415(c) $72,000. Safe-harbor staff cost = 3% × staff payroll (§401(k)(12)). SEP: §408(k)(3) uniform percentage. SIMPLE: $17,000 + $4,000 catch-up 50+ ($18,100 variant for qualifying ≤25-EE plans) — Notice 2025-67, all TY2026. NPV twin: PV = sheltered × (m − r × (1+d)^−h).
Plan design → TPA · cash balance → actuary required · testing is the professional's lane
Income shifting — family payroll, both ways
The defensible family-shift set, each branch computed both ways. The paper is the deduction: job description, timesheets, wages actually paid to the child's own account, W-2s actually filed.
default
Children on payroll — sole-prop branch
—
FICA on wages (child under 18, parent's business)$0 · §3121(b)(3)(A)
FUTA (under 21)$0 · §3306(c)(5)
Child's tax under own standard deduction—
Kiddie tax does not reach earned income — §1(g) taxes unearned income only. Promoters blur this; the panel doesn't.
As of —
Same wages, S-corp branch — rendered beside it
—
FICA — a corporation is not a parent—
If the Entity engine's election runs, this branch is the live one. The cross-engine delta is already inside the Entity panel's honesty lines.
Spouse on payroll — the honest negative
−Spousal wages in a sole prop ARE FICA-taxable+15.3% cost
+What it buys: her §402(g) deferral room, plan coverage, SS creditsrouted
Cost and purchase side by side — a planning trade for the CPA, never a "savings." FUTA-exempt only (§3121(b)(3)(B)).
Shifting property income — the wall
RService income cannot be gifted — Lucas v. Earlhard stop
RChild's unearned income over $2,700 → parents' rate (§1(g), TY2026)kiddie tax
RFamily-partnership interests need §704(e) realityCPA + attorney
Show the math & law
Family delta (sole prop)
= wage × parent marginal − child tax − payroll cost (0); child tax uses the dependent standard deduction greater($1,350, earned + $450) capped at $16,100 (Rev. Proc. 2025-32). S-corp branch: − 15.3% × wage. Wage must be reasonable for real work (Denman line) — substance over paper. Evidence: GWK.evid.timesheets.
Wage reasonableness & substantiation — routed to CPA; property shifts add the attorney lane
Timing & deferral — this year vs next, priced
Timing moves change the year, not the amount. Every card here renders the reversal — the bill that comes due — on the same panel, and prices deferral at present value.
default
default
default
default
Cash-basis year-end pair
—
NPV twin — pay next year instead of now (dr = retirement-stack input)—
—
!Constructive receipt: income available is income taxed (Reg. §1.451-2)defer billing, not the check
12Prepaids ride the 12-month rule (Reg. §1.263(a)-4(f))CPA
As of —
Equipment — the plasma table, three ways
§179 / 100% bonus (year one, full)—
Straight MACRS 7-yr (year one)—
Acceleration delta — face value—
Timing value at present value—
§1245Recapture on later sale — ordinary income to the extent of depreciationrendered, not hidden
Bonus requires acquired and placed in service after 2025-01-19 (Notice 2026-11). Placed-in-service is an evidence-backed fact — invoice + install record.
Also on this axis
RInstallment sale (§453) on asset dispositions — gain deferralCPA
RAny accounting-method change rides Form 3115 (§446)CPA
Show the math & law
Year-end pair:
save = deferred × (rate_now − rate_next) — negative when next year's rate is higher, and the panel leads with that branch when it is. Equipment: §179 to $2.5M (phase-out over $4M, §179(b) per OBBBA) · bonus 100% (§168(k)) · MACRS 7-yr HY year-1 factor 14.29% (Rev. Proc. 87-57). Timing value PV: the accelerated deduction reverses as forgone depreciation over the recovery period; modeled here as delta × (1 − (1+d)^−h) proxy, flagged as a simplification.
Method elections, §179-vs-bonus ordering, and year-end execution — the CPA signs the method
Credits & elections — lost by calendar, not by law
The credit set a generalist business walks past. Two of these die on a filing clock — the calendar engine carries their deadlines as derived items.
§45E · retirement-plan startup credit
—
100% of startup costs, ≤$5,000/yr × 3 (≤50 EEs)—
§45T auto-enrollment$500 × 3 yrs
Employer-contribution credit (≤$1,000/EE, phased)routed · CPA
Feeds the Retirement stack so plan cost renders gross and net-of-credit, both labeled. SECURE 2.0 §§102/112.
As of —
§51 · WOTC — the 28-day credit
—
Modeled if certified — 2 screened hires≤$2,400 each
Form 8850 within 28 days of startor it's gone
Stays routed until the screening file (GWK.evid.8850) exists. This credit is lost by calendar, not by law.
§41 · research credit — routed hard
RFab process development may qualify (new techniques, tooling, prototypes)CPA + study
!Credit-mill studies are an IRS enforcement lane (Form 6765 detail)skeptic note
§174 domestic expensing restored (OBBBA §70302) — the interaction is the CPA's, not the panel's. Without a qualified study this card never leaves routed.
Not triggered — shown anyway
not triggered§45B FICA tip creditno tipped employees
not triggered§195 startup costsexisting business
Suppressed checks stay on the board so the reviewer knows they were considered.
Election checklist — elections are paper
De minimis safe harbor — annual statement with the return—
§179 — made on the return, per assetwith filing
S election (Form 2553) — from the Entity engine, if ratified2 mo + 15 d window
Prior-year credits missed → amended return inside §6511routed · CPA
Credit eligibility and every election — gated for CPA review
Structure map — who owns what, drawn
One household, one operating company, and the paper between them. Pocket moves demand substance and arm's-length paper — every arrow below has a ledger row and an evidence object.
The dashed box is a modeled alternative, not a fact. Legal facts carry dates; models carry gates.
Money ledger — every dollar's paper trail
Every related-party movement gets a row and a paper status. An unpapered movement is a finding waiting to happen — the ledger view refuses to hide one.
| Movement | Amount | Character | Paper | Status |
|---|
Status chips render item state from the registry — the console transitions them; this surface only proposes.
Characterizations on every row route to the CPA; the register is append-only
Evidence vault — evidence before badges
A lever stays modeled until its object exists. "Defensible" is a property of paper, not of software — the vault is where the paper lives.
The one verified item is seeded for the demo — in production, "verified" is a console-only state a professional sets with a basis memo.
Clients upload and propose; only the professional console verifies
Audit-defense file — prepared, never promised
What an examiner asks for, assembled before anyone asks. Each position names its statute, its evidence, and its current state.
| Position | Authority | Evidence object | State |
|---|
A defense file is the professional's own record, never a shield to hide behind. Positions here are proposed until a CPA ratifies with a basis memo.
Compliance calendar — derived, not typed
Every date below is computed from a rule and names its source item. A deadline nobody typed is a deadline nobody forgot to update.
| Date | Item | Derived from |
|---|
AI aide — it routes, it never advises
The aide explains what a panel models, finds the statute, and drafts the question for your professional. It does not tell you what to elect.
Sample exchange (demo)
You: Should I just switch to an S corp?
Aide: That's an election, so it's your CPA's call — but here's what the model shows both ways at your inputs: the payroll-tax delta, the admin cost, and the two levers the election breaks (your kids' FICA exemption and the health-premium W-2 mechanics). I've drafted the question with those numbers attached — want me to put it in the handoff packet?
You: Can I deduct my home office if I have the shop?
Aide: Only under the administrative-office rule — §280A(c)(1) flush language: exclusive, regular use for admin, with no other fixed location where you do it. That's a facts call, so the card stays routed. The simplified-method number if your CPA confirms is on the Sweep board.
The aide proposes questions and drafts packets — professionals ratify everything
This workstation organizes a business's deductions, elections, structure, and evidence. It is not a law or accounting firm and does not provide tax, legal, accounting, or investment advice. Every figure is a modeled range on fictional sample data; every characterization — home-office qualification, reasonable compensation, wage reasonableness, method and entity elections, credit eligibility — must be ratified by the licensed professional it routes to before any filing or action. Statutes cited for reference only. Demo · sample data · fictional people.