In part one of this post, we outlined efforts by the IRS to crack down on paid tax preparers whom the agency considers incompetent or deceitful. The penalties that the IRS can seek against return preparers are both civil and criminal. But as we noted, the agency’s main enforcement program […]
The sheer complexity of the U.S. tax code causes many taxpayers to seek assistance from a paid tax return preparer. Most preparers do a creditable job. Many do outstanding work. But the IRS has long been concerned about incompetent or untrustworthy preparers. The concern is that such preparers can harm […]
In part one of this post, we noted that criticism of the IRS’s whistleblower program is heating up again. Not surprisingly, one of most vocal critics is long-time IRS gadfly Charles Grassley, a U.S. senator from Iowa. In this part of the post, let’s look in more detail at what […]
The IRS has a program to reward those who blow the whistle on unpaid taxes by others. It offers financial incentives to disclose tax evasion, especially within large organizations. For years, critics have contended that the program is not as effective as it should be. One such critic, Sen. Charles […]
It’s been awhile since we last discussed the issue of worker classification on this blog. But the question of whether a worker is properly classified as an independent contractor – thus enabling the employer to avoid payroll taxes – remains a lively one in Texas and across the country. In […]
This is an update to a post we did earlier in the week on the trial of former Swiss banker whom U.S. authorities had charged with criminal conspiracy for allegedly helping Americans evade taxes on undisclosed foreign accounts. As we noted in our November 3 post, Raoul Weil, a former […]
The Internal Revenue Service has made changes in order to help with the Ebola outbreak in West Africa, by removing a potential tax angle that might discourage some workers from giving under workplace leave-donation programs. According to the tax code, employees are often able to arrange for their employers to […]
A little under a year ago there were more than 100 Swiss banks clawing their way into the U.S. Justice Department’s no prosecution agreement. The deadline to sign up was New Years’ Day 2014. Banks who were able to meet the deadline were guaranteed no conviction or closure, no disgrace, […]
The former head of UBS AG (UBSN)’s global wealth-management business, Raoul Weil, referred to accounts hidden by U.S. clients from the Internal Revenue Service as “toxic waste,” at his tax-conspiracy trial. Martin Liechti, a former UBS banker cooperating with prosecutors, told federal jurors in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, that Weil became […]
While Pfizer Inc.’s CEO acknowledged Tuesday that the U.S. Treasury Department’s recent crackdown on inversions has diminished the deal’s appeal, the drug maker has yet to rule out an acquisition that would lower its tax bill. New York-based Pfizer explored deals with AstraZeneca PLC and Actavis PLC this year that […]