Tax Staff Essentials, Level 2

Tax Staff Essentials, Level 2: Experienced Staff (49 CPE Credits) is designed for junior tax staff who want to take on a wider variety of firm engagements and establish a supervisory role within the firm. Level 2 will broaden your tax knowledge in the areas of multistate taxation, C Corporations, accounting methods and periods and choice of entity. Key subject matters covered include Inventory Valuation and Property Transactions which will be essential for servicing more complex clients. The Tax Staff Essentials courses establish a strong set of skills necessary to grow the abilities and confidence of junior and senior level staff, allowing them to work with greater independence and expand their role in your firm.


Note: This course has been updated for the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) of 2017 ("Tax Reform"). Included with your course, you will have free access to a specially-prepared Course Supplement that provides an explanation of the key provisions of TCJA (including topics not covered in your course).


Courses Included:





Tax Research II

Multistate Taxation

Tax Accounting for Inventories

Taxation of Property Transactions

Intermediate Individual Taxation

Taxation of Corporations

Accounting Methods and Periods

Choice of & Formation of Entity



This comprehensive, integrated curriculum provides tax training for four different experience levels and is available in four different formats: Online, On-site, Tax Schools and Webcasts.


Key Topics





New individual income tax rates

New corporate tax rates

New pass-through income rules

The qualified business income (QBI) deduction

New rules for certain credits and deductions

C Corporation formation and Section 1244 Stock

Corporate net operating losses

Salaries, employee benefits, and retirement plans

Taxation of property transactions under IRC sections 1231, 1245, 1250

LLC formation and Check-the-Box rules

Partnership and LLC profit and loss allocations

Multistate Income apportionment and allocation

Nexus, UDITPA, MTC

Section 263A, Inventory methods

Choosing an Accounting Method

Accounting Method changes



Learning Objectives





Identify the benefits of forming a corporation

Understand reasonable compensation issues with respect to a Closely Held Business

Analyze the best retirement plan recommendation for a corporation

Describe how partnerships and LLCs opting to be treated as partnerships will report their federal taxable income to the IRS

Determine the tax basis of assets transferred to a partnership or LLC at formation

Explain the deferral of realized gain or loss on a like-kind property exchange

Recognize the potential impact of depreciation recapture

Explain the allowable inventory valuation methods for tax purposes and how to choose the most beneficial in various scenarios

Estimate the tax value of ending inventory under the chosen method

Understand and apply the basic rules for a change in accounting method

Prepare the Federal Form 3115 – Application for Change in Accounting Method and understand how and when this form should be filed by the taxpayer

Understand the key principles of multistate taxation

Distinguish differences between apportionment and allocation of income

Develop basic approaches to state income tax planning with emphasis on the latest developments in economic nexus



Credit Info 





CPE CREDITS: Online: 49.0 (CPE credit info)

NASBA FIELD OF STUDY: Taxes

LEVEL: Intermediate

PREREQUISITES:  Tax Staff with 1-3 years of experience

ADVANCE PREPARATION: None

DELIVERY METHOD: QAS Self-Study

COURSE ACRONYM: TSE.Level 2



Online Access Instructions


A personal pin code is enclosed in the physical packaging that may be activated online upon receipt. Once activated, you will gain immediate online access to the product.


System Requirements


AICPA’s online CPE courses will operate in a variety of configurations, but only the configuration described below is supported by AICPA technicians.


A stable and continuous internet connection is required. In order to record your completion of the online learning courses, please ensure you are connected to the internet at all times while taking the course. It is your responsibility to validate that CPE certificate(s) are available within your account after successfully completing the course and/or exam.


Supported Operating Systems:





Macintosh OS X 10.10 to present

Windows 7 to present



Supported Browsers:





Apple Safari

Google Chrome

Microsoft Internet Explorer

Mozilla Firefox



Required Browser Plug-ins:





Adobe Flash

Adobe Acrobat Reader



Technical Support: Please contact service@aicpa.org.