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Tax

Baker Tilly provides tax services for colleges, universities, and research institutions located throughout the United States.

Our tax professionals help to navigate the complexities of Federal and state compliance requirements. Specifically, we assist with unrelated business income tax assessments, expense allocations, tax structures, and IRS audits. Baker Tilly higher education-focused tax professionals work alongside auditors and consultants to ensure a seamless and integrated approach to fulfilling tax reporting obligations, including deploying diagnostic tools that help institutions identify and analyze potential tax exposures.

Client experience: Private university benefits from tax guidance
Institutional challenge A private university needed tax guidance to establish a campus subsidiary in a foreign country, including payroll issues related to expatriate employees and foreign tax reporting requirements. The client needed a team of tax professionals specialized in the higher education field, experienced in international expansion projects, and with multi-lingual capabilities. Capabilities provided Baker Tilly comprised a team of specialists with expertise in higher education, international capabilities, and multi-lingual skills to review the payroll and corporate tax reporting needs of the university in the foreign country. Baker Tilly analyzed the payroll structure of the expatriates performing duties in another country, including performing preliminary and final tax calculations according to various scenarios, reviewing compensation packages and employee contracts, analyzing split wage allocation scenarios, calculating hypothetical tax calculations, and drafting the tax equalization policy for the university. The Baker Tilly team acted as a liaison and collaborated with Baker Tilly affiliates globally to establish a tax strategy to maximize tax efficiencies and comply with foreign and domestic tax requirements. Results The university was able to establish equitable compensation packages for its professors who were performing duties in a foreign country. Further, the local Baker Tilly firm was able to provide guidance regarding local tax issues for both the university and the U.S. employees providing services in that country. As a result, the university established a tax compliance process and strategy that maximized tax efficiencies and met the requirements in the United States and the foreign country in which the campus was established.
Additional tax capabilities
Conducting various IRS risk assessments or mock IRS audit services, including any of the following: Lobbying and political activities Executive compensation and the rebuttable presumption of reasonableness Governance Practices Transactions with interested or disqualified persons Excess benefit transactions Private business use Tax sheltered annuities Consulting about acquisitions and joint ventures, including performing due diligence Employee benefit plan filings (e.g., Form 5500) Exempt status application preparation and consulting Foreign transaction reporting and foreign bank account reporting Gift acceptance policies/reporting International tax filings, planning, and representation Preparation of Form 990, 990-T, 990-PF, and state unrelated business income tax returns Regulatory and state filings (e.g., State Attorney General and Secretary of State) Related for-profit, partnership, and trust filings Representation and interaction with the IRS and other taxing authorities State and local tax assistance, (e.g., sales and use tax, payroll tax) Unrelated business income tax (UBIT) analysis, planning, and consulting Sale of products to the general public Advertising Debt-financed property Rental activities S-Corporation stock Investment partnership activity Research activity Travel tours Recreational Facilities Summer camps Sponsorships Royalty arrangements