Long Term Care planners can cash in at tax time

Tax season is here, which means Americans everywhere are looking to maximize their tax benefits before filing their returns. Yet, many consumers don't realize that long-term care insurance, designed to protect assets and independence, is one of the most tax-advantaged products on the market. Individuals, business owners and human resource professionals who want an understanding of both federal tax incentives as well as state incentives will want to have the 8-page e-guide "Tax Breaks & Incentives for Long Term Care Insurance." Updated for 2015, it includes information on tax incentives, Health Savings Accounts, and the Partnership Program. It is available online at www.newmanlongtermcare.com/tax .

"This guide includes information for individual taxpayers and business owners. Whether you're looking for information on whether long term care (LTC) insurance is allowed in a cafeteria plan (no), if it is an acceptable expenditure for a Health Savings Account (yes), or whether Partnership programs are available in your state (yes in most states), the answers are in the Guide," said Deb Newman, owner and founder of Minnesota-based Newman Long Term Care. Newman's insurance agency offers long term care insurance solutions from a variety of insurance carriers, to consumers in all 50 states.  

To reward people who responsibly plan with long-term care insurance, the government provides numerous tax incentives on both federal and state levels.  Here are just some of the perks Uncle Sam offers that are outlined in the tax guide:

Individual Tax Incentives

 

• In 1997, the federal government began offering tax-qualified policies to encourage people to buy long-term care insurance. Under a tax-qualified policy, insurance premiums qualify as itemized deductions on federal tax returns and benefits are received tax-free.
  
   
• Many states offer tax deductions or tax credits for long-term care policyholders.
  
   

Incentives for Businesses

 

• There are also tax advantages for businesses that buy long-term care insurance. Premiums for tax-qualified policies paid for employees, their dependents, spouses and retirees are 100 percent deductible as a business expense for C corporations. 
  
   
• All or a portion of premium expenses for tax-qualified policies are also deductible for sole proprietors, partners of partnerships, members of Limited Liability Companies and shareholders or employees of S corporations.
  
   
• Employees receive benefits from employer-provided long-term care policies tax-free.

Newman states, "As a business or as an individual, now is the time to evaluate this important planning tool. Long-term care insurance offers protection that no other insurance can provide and with the tax incentives currently in place, it makes economic sense as well. This guide gives you an overview on how you might best plan to pay your insurance premiums from a tax standpoint."

For more information on any aspect of long term care insurance, or to receive the e-guide "Tax Breaks & Incentives for Long Term Care Insurance" from Newman Long Term Care, visit www.newmanlongtermcare.com/tax or call (800) 625-9267.