As published in the Winter Park/Maitland Observer, Thursday Jan. 3, 2012 Edition Offers... Read More »
IRS Extends Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Initiative – OVDI 2012
The IRS has just announced that it will give offshore account holders another chance to avoid criminal prosecution and limit penalties. Call or email us today for a free consultation about the extended Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Initiative (OVDI). This is a great opportunity for taxpayers to avoid serious IRS problems.
Read Full Article Categorized in: Voluntary disclosureSCOTUS to Hear Health Care Mandate Challenge
The United States Supreme Court has granted certiorari in Florida v. Department of Health and Human Services. The main issue before the court is, [W]hether the Affordable Care Act‘s mandate that virtually every individual obtain health insurance exceeds Congress‘s enumerated powers and, if so, to what extent (if any) the mandate can be severed from the…
Read Full Article Categorized in: News, Supreme Court, Tax PolicyTax Alert: US Puts More Pressure on Swiss to Disclose Names of US Investors
Jack Townsend reports that the U.S. is redoubling it’s efforts to get Switzerland to disclose the names of its American offshore investors: In the continuing game of chicken between the Swiss government (perhaps better described for this purpose as the Swiss financial system) and the rest of the civilized world (at least the part that…
Read Full Article Categorized in: Announcements, International Taxation, Tax CrimesIRS Says Brain Injury Not Reasonable Cause for Failure to File, Tax Court Disagrees
IRS penalties are supposed to be assessed against a taxpayer only when his non-compliance is due to willful neglect rather than reasonable cause. Serious, debilitating health problems are almost always considered to be reasonable cause. Joe Kristan found a recent Tax Court decision overruling the IRS’s finding that a taxpayer’s brain injury was not sufficient to excuse the late filing of her tax returns:…
Read Full Article Categorized in: Court Cases, IRS PenaltiesIRS Penalties: How to Eliminate Them
The IRS assesses penalties against taxpayers for, among other things, the following: late filing of a tax return; late payment of tax; the negligent preparation of a tax return; the substantial underpayment of tax; and civil fraud. Penalties range from 5 percent per month in the case of late filing of a return to 75…
Read Full Article Categorized in: Blog Posts, PenaltiesTop 10 Most Challenged Tax Issues
National Taxpayer Advocate Nina Olson has issued her annual report on the most frequently litigated tax issues: Internal Revenue Code § 7803(c)(2)(B)(ii)(X) requires the National Taxpayer Advocate to identify the ten tax issues most often litigated in the federal courts, classified by the types of taxpayer affected. Through analysis of these issues, the National Taxpayer Advocate…
Read Full Article Categorized in: Back Taxes, Blog Posts, IRS Procedure, Penalties, Tax CourtIRS Offers New Voluntary Disclosure for Offshore Tax Violaters
Jack Townsend reports that the IRS has announced a new special voluntary disclosure program: For now, I will just link to the announcement here and provide only the bullet points I see with no (or very limited) editorial comment: 1. The deal is available through 8/31/11. (Note, however, taxpayers must “file” the required amended income tax…
Read Full Article Categorized in: International Taxation, Voluntary disclosureIRS Audits: Why You Shouldn’t Represent Yourself
The IRS has the legal right to audit any tax return it so chooses for any reason it chooses. The threat of an audit is what makes most taxpayers take seriously their obligation to comply with the letter of the law. The odds of being audited are generally very low, therefore, if you get an…
Read Full Article Categorized in: IRS Audits, IRS Penalties, IRS ProcedureCalifornia Sues Roni Deutch for “Heartless” Pennies on the Dollar Tax Scheme
If you’re an insomniac you may recognize Roni Deutch from her ubiquitous late night infomercials promising taxpayers pennies on the dollar settlements with the IRS: Joe Kristan writes about yet another lawsuit against Deutch: California’s Aspiring GovernorAttorney General Jerry Brown has sued Attorney Roni Deutch, who blogs as the “Tax Lady,” for “swindling” taxpayers who hire her to get…
Read Full Article Categorized in: News, Offers in Compromise, Regulation of Tax PreparersTax Return Standard: Substantial Authority v. More Likely Than Not
From Paul Caron: Bret Wells (Houston) has posted Adopting the More Likely Than Not Standard for Tax Returns, 127 Tax Notes 451 (April 26, 2010), on SSRN. Here is part of the abstract: Under current law, a taxpayer may generally take a tax return position without penalty or disclosure if there is substantial authority that…
Read Full Article Categorized in: IRS Audits, IRS Penalties, Regulation of Tax PreparersTax Professionals Upset about Tax Court’s Decision in Canal v. Commissioner
According to Sam Young of Tax Analysts several tax professionals have expressed concern over the Tax Court’s recent decision in Canal Corporation v. Commissioner: In an e-mail to Tax Analysts, Blake D. Rubin, Andrea M. Whiteway, and Jon Finkelstein of McDermott Will & Emery LLP argued that the court misconstrued section 6662 in upholding the accuracy-related…
Read Full Article Categorized in: Court Cases, IRS PenaltiesTax Court Says Price Waterhouse Sold it’s Professional Tax Opinion for $800,000
In Canal Corp. v. Commissioner, 135 T.C. No. 9 (Aug. 5, 2010), the Tax Court found a corporation liable for a $37 million accuracy-related penalty under §6662(a) even though it had obtained a tax opinion from Price Waterhouse Coopers (PWC). Judge Diane Kroupa issued a scathing rebuke of PWC which should be viewed as a shot across the bow of…
Read Full Article Categorized in: Court Cases, Ethics, IRS PenaltiesNewsflash to TIGTA: Revenue Raising is not a Proper Goal of IRS Penalty Regime
Paul Caron reported last week that the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA) has released Accuracy-Related Penalties Are Seldom Considered Properly During Correspondence Audits (2010-30-059) in which it states (emphasis is mine): The IRS must take additional steps to ensure that accuracy-related penalties are appropriately considered when assessing correspondence audits…. A TIGTA review of 229 correspondence audits…
Read Full Article Categorized in: IRS PenaltiesGeithner Tax Defense Doesn’t Work for the Small People
Everyone knows about the sweetheart deal the IRS gave it’s current boss, Secretary of Treasury Timothy Geithner. Before he became Secretary of Treasury, Geithner, a financial wunderkind, failed to comply with federal tax laws and was assessed additional taxes, interest and penalties. Geithner was later relieved of the penalties based, at least in part, on his contention that his…
Read Full Article Categorized in: Court Cases, IRS PenaltiesSwiss Parliament Ratifies U.S. Disclosure Agreement; Too Late for Voluntary Disclosure Program
Linda Beale reports that the Swiss Parliament has ratified the U.S.-Swiss agreement providing for the release of U.S. account-holder information on about 4,500 accounts: It is likely that the names will start flowing very soon, which moves the ball back to the U.S. The voluntary disclosure program that provided some assurance of limited penalties has ended. But…
Read Full Article Categorized in: Individual Taxation, International Taxation, Tax Crimes