The tax system is ultimately based on trust. To be sure, the IRS is often aggressive in auditing and investigating taxpayers for failure to file taxes or for alleged errors. So are revenue agents in Texas and other states. For the most part, however, the government depends on voluntary compliance […]
When a business fails to pay its payroll taxes in to the government, it’s a recipe for trouble. As we noted in our July 2 post, the penalties for not paying these employment taxes in to the Social Security trust fund can be substantial. For starters, there may be an employment […]
Common sense sayings often point to an undeniable deeper truth. Consider, for example, the well-worn phrase, “There’s no such thing as a free lunch.” In the tax arena, it might seem at first glance that the Taxpayer Advocate Service is the exception that proves the rule. After all, the TAS […]
The phrase “IRS audit” carries connotations that differ from taxpayer to taxpayer. If you’ve done all you can to file flawless tax returns, notice of an audit might seem like an outrage. Yet a different feeling – one of anxiety – could come if you fear you might have been […]
Summons. The word itself is enough to get virtually anyone’s attention, regardless of how much he or she knows about the law. That is entirely understandable. After all, the word “summons” is a long-standing legal term for requiring someone to appear in a court proceeding. In the context of tax […]
Given the complexity of so many tax laws, paid tax preparers are vital to many people and businesses. Recognizing this, the IRS has been pushing for the past three years to initiate a competency testing program for preparers. The agency naturally hopes that orderly regulation of preparers will make the […]
The term “tax shelter” is sometimes used pejoratively to refer to improper attempts to avoid tax. Such statements fail to make the crucial distinction between tax avoidance, on the one hand, and tax evasion on the other. Tax avoidance is perfectly legal. After all, few people want to pay more […]
It isn’t only tax fraud that can result in criminal tax charges. Failure to file an income tax return at all can do so as well. From time to time, the defendants in such cases are high-profile people. A recent example is the actor Wesley Snipes, star of “White Men […]
Historically, privacy was always a basic feature of Swiss bank accounts. The premise was that no government had the right to know the contents of accounts or other information about their holders. Today, however, the privacy protections that formerly came with Swiss and other foreign accounts are changing profoundly. The […]
When the IRS says you have unpaid income taxes, several different scenarios can ensue. It may be that the agency is in error, and that aggressive tax litigation can resolve the dispute in your favor. In other cases, the result can be tax debt and possibly civil penalties. Some cases […]