Massachusetts voters approved a 4% surtax on individual income above $1M, effective 2023. This brings the top MA rate to 9%. Strategies to minimize it include: timing income across years to stay below $1M, maximizing retirement contributions (which reduce AGI), charitable remainder trusts, and installment sales for business exits. We plan around the threshold proactively.

Yes — Massachusetts offers its own R&D credit at 10% of qualifying R&D expenditures (15% for biotech companies meeting certain criteria). It can be carried forward 10 years. Combined with the federal R&D credit, Boston biotech companies can recoup a significant portion of their research spending. We evaluate eligibility for every life sciences client.

Massachusetts does not follow federal bonus depreciation rules (100% immediate expensing). For federal purposes, you may deduct a large asset purchase fully in year one; for Massachusetts, you must depreciate it over its useful life. This creates different federal vs. state deductions — something we account for in all MA business tax filings.

Qualified scholarship income used for tuition and fees is generally not taxable. However, stipends and fellowships used for living expenses, research, or other purposes ARE taxable as ordinary income — federally and under Massachusetts. Additionally, international fellows may owe US tax subject to treaty provisions. We handle academic fellowship tax for Boston's university community regularly.