Category Archives: IRS

The Most Ridiculous Tax Ever

Posted on July 15, 2013 by Russ

Suppose you have a Section 105 Health Reimbursement Arrangement. Do you know that you have a tax deadline approaching in just 16 days? Jason Dinesen has an excellent post on this. A Health Reimbursement Arrangement (HRA) is a common method … Continue reading →

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I’m Shocked to Find Another Enrolled Preparer Committed Tax Fraud

Posted on July 14, 2013 by Russ

Not really. The IRS would like the public and Congress to believe that if every preparer were regulated by the IRS that preparer tax fraud would magically vanish. The reality is that as long as money is involved in an … Continue reading →

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National Taxpayer Advocate Report: Identity Theft, OVDP, and ITINs Among the Major Issues

Posted on June 30, 2013 by Russ

Nina Olson, the National Taxpayer Advocate, issued her annual report to Congress this past week. She also included a special report on “Political Activity and the Rights of Applicants for Tax-Exempt Status.” Here are some of the other issue she … Continue reading →

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IRS Scandal Update: Washington & Austin

Posted on June 30, 2013 by Russ

The more that comes out of Washington, the more I’m beginning to think that IRS management is deliberately dragging their feet in revealing information. We still don’t know what happened, but there have been developments this week. Liberals attempted to … Continue reading →

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Mandatory efiling of FBARs Effective July 1st

Posted on June 28, 2013 by Russ

Effective July 1st, all FBARs–Form TD F 90-22.1, Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts–must be efiled. You must use the BSA efile system to efile FBARs. This includes amended FBARs. (One exception would appear to be individuals coming into … Continue reading →

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DOMA Done, But Don’t File that Joint Return Just Yet

Posted on June 26, 2013 by Russ

The US Supreme Court ruled today that the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) was unconstitutional. That makes it appear that same-sex couples should be able to file joint tax returns. There’s only one problem: The IRS computers likely would … Continue reading →

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Loving Appeal to be Heard on September 24th

Posted on June 26, 2013 by Russ

The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia set oral arguments for September 24th in the IRS’s appeal of Loving v. IRS. This is the case that stopped the IRS’s scheme to regulate unenrolled tax professionals. While the … Continue reading →

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FBAR Deadline Is Now

Posted on June 24, 2013 by Russ

Almost every tax form uses a postmark deadline. For example, if you mail your tax return on April 15th (using certified mail, return receipt requested, of course), and the post office sends your return to Fresno via Fargo so it … Continue reading →

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Onwards and Upwards into the 20th Century!

Posted on June 21, 2013 by Russ

Not to sound like a broken record, but if today is a vision of the future, boy, do I want the past. I have another new client and needed to order transcripts. I called the IRS Practitioner Priority Service (PPS) … Continue reading →

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When 68 Minutes of Hold Time Is an Improvement

Posted on June 20, 2013 by Russ

So after the debacle on Tuesday I called back yesterday afternoon. The hold time was far better: 68 minutes. That’s almost a 7% improvement! On the other hand, the representative I spoke with was quite helpful. Indeed, most of the … Continue reading →

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