Category Archives: IRS

Berkshire Hathaway Wins One for the Big Guy

Posted on October 28, 2005 by Russ

Let’s say that your small corporation borrows some money. Let’s further suppose that you that that borrowed money and then purchased dividend paying stocks with that money. You can’t deduct those dividends. It’s considered a form of double-dipping, as you … Continue reading →

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PayPal Record Subpeoned

Posted on October 22, 2005 by Russ

The IRS is attempting to find some foreign credit card holders who used PayPal to evade taxes. According to this story in the San Jose Mercury News, the IRS wants to find tax evaders who are using PayPal to illegally … Continue reading →

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A Penny Saved Leads to Tax Court

Posted on October 11, 2005 by Russ

Well, 48 pennies. Most tax software rounds off numbers to whole dollars. Indeed, the IRS suggests taxpayers do this in their instructions to Form 1040: “You may round off cents to whole dollars on your return and schedules. If you … Continue reading →

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New IRS Form 944 for Very Small Businesses to Replace Form 941

Posted on October 5, 2005 by Russ

For the very small business owner, the IRS will introduce in 2006 a new form, Form 944. You can view a draft version of the form here. The new form is for businesses who pay $1,000 or less in employment … Continue reading →

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Did Your Estimated Payment End Up in the Bay?

Posted on September 19, 2005 by Russ

There are traffic accidents and then there are traffic accidents. A courier transporting approximately 30,000 1040-ES payments lost his load on the San Mateo Bridge…and the payments fell into the San Francisco Bay. The accident occurred on September 11th and … Continue reading →

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IRS Mileage Rate Increases

Posted on September 11, 2005 by Russ

IRS Commissioner Mark Everson announced on Friday that the standard mileage rate would increase to 48.5 cents/mile from 40.5 cents/mile, effective September 1st. Other mileage rates: Moving expenses: $0.22/mile, up from $0.15/mile Charitable work: $0.14/mile (set by statute). Hat tip: … Continue reading →

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IRS Issues Priority Guidance Plan; Targets Include Poker Tournaments

Posted on August 17, 2005 by Russ

The IRS and the US Department of the Treasury issued their “Priority Guidance Plan”. A total of 254 projects are mentioned. The ones that the IRS has highlighted are: —Additional legal requirements for tax shelters; —Guidance on how to report … Continue reading →

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Deadline Day 2

Posted on August 15, 2005 by Russ

Today, August 15th, is the deadline for individuals who filed extensions to actually file their 2004 Federal tax returns. A second extension is available (until October 17th), but you need to have a reason (and have the IRS accept the … Continue reading →

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IRS Help Centers: How Valuable?

Posted on July 27, 2005 by Russ

The Orange County Register reports today (one time subscriprtion required) that the IRS cannot tell whether its 400 help centers help taxpayers. The report, from independent auditor J. Russell George, the Treasury Department’s Inspector General for Tax Administration, was disputed … Continue reading →

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New Rules on Tax Shelters for Accounting Firms

Posted on July 27, 2005 by Russ

The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board announced new standards for tax shelters yesterday. The Wall Street Journal reported on this in today’s editions. The rules, which must be approved by the SEC, state that firms will be prohibited from auditing … Continue reading →

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