Montauk
Tax preparation and planning in Montauk, NY
Montauk is a working commercial fishing port, and fishing returns have their own shape.
What you get
- Every federal form you are likely to need
- New York State, New York City and Yonkers
- Planning done before year end
- Prior years brought current
The MyCleverCPA team
- 25+ years in regulated finance, compliance and audit
- Tax work led by a CPA. Jillian Sinel holds the CPA and the CAA
- Hamptons Office at 30 Lincoln St, Sag Harbor, NY 11963
In Montauk
Tax preparation and planning for Montauk
Vessel depreciation, crew shares, fuel, gear and a season that concentrates income into a few months. Charter operators, processors and the dock restaurants all file around the same calendar, which makes estimated payments a planning exercise rather than a formula.
The house, if there is one, is usually a rental for part of the year, and that brings the East End rental rules with it.
Scope
What is included in tax preparation and planning
The same work wherever you are. Scoped to what you actually need.
Individual returns
- Form 1040 and the schedules behind it
- Schedule C for self-employed filers
- Schedule E for rental property
Business returns
- Form 1120 and Form 1120-S
- Form 1065 for partnerships and LLCs
- K-1s issued to owners and partners
State and city
- New York State and New York City returns
- The Yonkers resident surcharge and nonresident earnings tax
- Returns in other states where you have nexus
Planning and cleanup
- Estimated payments calculated rather than guessed
- Amended returns, Form 1040-X
- Prior-year and delinquent returns
Returns we prepare
- Individual income tax, Form 1040
- C corporation returns, Form 1120
- S corporation returns, Form 1120-S
- Partnership and LLC returns, Form 1065
- Self-employed and Schedule C filers
- Rental property and Schedule E
- Multi-state returns
- Amended returns, Form 1040-X
- Prior-year and delinquent returns
- Extensions
- Estimated tax calculations and payments
- Capital gains and investment reporting
- Cryptocurrency reporting
- Real estate tax matters
- Foreign income and international reporting
- FBAR and foreign account reporting
- ITIN applications and renewals
Local tax
Commercial fishing is its own tax problem
Fishing is a genuine specialty and almost nothing written for general small business applies cleanly to it. Crew share arrangements raise the question of whether crew are employees or self employed, and getting it wrong is expensive on both sides. Vessels are depreciated over their own schedules, and the line between capitalizing an engine rebuild and expensing a repair is where most of the money sits. Fuel, bait, ice, dockage and offload costs all behave differently.
The two that general preparers miss: income that swings hard from year to year, which brings net operating losses and volatile estimated payments into play rather than a steady quarterly rhythm; and permits and quota, which are intangible assets with their own acquisition, amortization and disposal treatment. A fishing right is not gear.
Charter and party boat operators have a different problem again: a season rather than a year, Coast Guard licensing costs, passenger vessel insurance and deposit timing. The motels and restaurants bring seasonal payroll, tip reporting and the FICA tip credit, and occupancy tax questions that are worth confirming with Suffolk County directly rather than assuming.
On rentals, Town of East Hampton rules apply: lettings under two weeks up to twice in six months, with a registry number required in advertisements and penalties from $3,000 to $15,000 for failing to register. The 2.5% Peconic transfer tax applies with the $400,000 improved residential allowance capped at $2,000,000 of consideration.
Zone 2 for MCTMT at 0.34%, and the self employment threshold rising from $50,000 to $150,000 for 2026 takes a good number of Montauk’s self employed fishermen and tradespeople out of that tax entirely this year.
How it works
How tax preparation and planning runs
Four stages. Most of the value sits in the first two, before anything is filed.
Read the last few returns
Prior returns show the missed elections, the defensive positions and whether the entity still fits.
Confirm the records
A return is only as good as the trial balance sitting behind it.
Plan before year end
Entity, compensation, retirement and timing decisions, while they can still change the number.
File and stay reachable
Returns prepared and filed, and someone who answers in August when a notice turns up.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
Are my crew employees or self employed?
It depends on the arrangement rather than on what the industry customarily calls it. Crew share does not by itself settle the question, and the answer drives payroll tax, workers compensation and what you can deduct. It is worth resolving deliberately, because reclassification after the fact is costly.
How are permits and quota treated?
As intangible assets rather than equipment, with their own treatment on acquisition, amortization and sale. They are frequently the most valuable thing a fishing business owns and the most commonly mishandled on a return.
My income swings wildly year to year. Is there anything to do about it?
Several things. Net operating losses can be carried forward against better years, estimated payments can follow actual earnings through the annualized method rather than four flat installments, and retirement plan contributions can be timed to the strong years. It needs planning during the year rather than at filing.
I run a motel. What about occupancy tax?
Suffolk County operates a hotel and motel occupancy tax, and whether and how it reaches a particular operation is worth confirming with the County directly. We would rather check it for your situation than give you a rate that may not apply.
When is the right time to switch accountants?
Any time other than April. Moving mid-year gives us room to fix the books and act on what we find before the year closes. Moving in filing season means we file what already happened and start planning for next year.
Can you file returns for previous years I missed?
Yes. Prior-year and delinquent returns are routine. Filing voluntarily before the IRS contacts you nearly always produces a better outcome than waiting, both on penalties and on what options remain open.
Do you handle crypto?
Yes, including exchange activity, staking and the reporting that follows. Bring whatever transaction history you can export. Reconstructing it later costs more than keeping it as you go.
I live outside New York City but work in Manhattan. What do I owe the city?
As a nonresident, no New York City resident income tax. The nonresident earnings tax was repealed in 1999 and the partial version was struck down in 2000. But if you carry on an unincorporated business within the city, the Unincorporated Business Tax can still apply regardless of where you live. Westchester residents with city clients are the usual case.
Do you do foreign income and FBAR?
Yes. Foreign income, international reporting and FBAR filings for foreign accounts. The penalties for missing an FBAR are disproportionate to the effort of filing one, so it is worth checking even if you think you are under the threshold.
Also in Montauk
Our other services here
Bookkeeping and accounting
Fishing businesses cannot reconstruct a season in April.
Bookkeeping and accounting in MontaukTrust and estate tax
A Montauk estate may include a vessel, a permit and a business alongside the house.
Trust and estate tax in MontaukNonprofit accounting
Marine, environmental and emergency service organizations do the nonprofit work in Montauk.
Nonprofit accounting in MontaukIRS representation
Fishing businesses get examined on crew share treatment and on cash.
IRS representation in MontaukTalk to us about tax preparation and planning in Montauk
Book a time online, or call the Hamptons office directly.
Nearest office
Hamptons Office
30 Lincoln St, Sag Harbor, NY 11963
Phone
Office hours
Sunday to Friday, 11am to 8pm Eastern.
Closed Saturday.