Bozo Tax Tip #5: Procrastinate!

Posted on May 10, 2021 by Russ

Today is May 10th. The tax deadline is just seven days away.

What happens if you wake up and it’s May 17, 2021, and you can’t file your tax? File an extension. Download Form 4868, make an estimate of what you owe, pay that, and mail the voucher and check to the address noted for your state. Use certified mail, return receipt, of course. And don’t forget your state income tax. Some states have automatic extensions (California does), some don’t (Pennsylvania is one of those), while others have deadlines that don’t match the federal tax deadline (Hawaii state taxes were due on April 20th, for example). Automatic extensions are of time to file, not pay, so download the extension form and mail off a payment to your state, too. If you mail your extension, make sure you mail it certified mail, return receipt requested. (You can do that from most Automated Postal Centers, too.)

By the way, I strongly suggest you electronically file the extension. The IRS will happily take your extension electronically; many (but not all) states will, too.

But what do you do if you wait until May 18th? Well, get your paperwork together so you can file as quickly as possible and avoid even more penalties. Penalties escalate, so unless you want 25% penalties, get everything ready and see your tax professional next week. He’ll have time for you, and you can leisurely complete your return and only pay one week of interest, one month of the Failure to Pay penalty (0.5% of the tax due), and one month of the Failure to File Penalty (5% of the tax due).

There is a silver lining in all of this. If you are owed a refund and haven’t filed, you will likely receive interest from the IRS. Yes, interest works both ways: The IRS must pay interest on late-filed returns owed refunds. Just one note about that: The interest is taxable.

Posted in Tax Preparation | Tagged | Comments Off on Bozo Tax Tip #5: Procrastinate!

Bozo Tax Tip #6: Use a Bozo Tax Professional!

Posted on May 7, 2021 by Russ

Here’s another Bozo Tax Tip that keeps coming around. The problem is, the Bozos don’t change their stripes. In any case, here are some signs your accountant might be a Bozo:

– He’s never met a deduction that doesn’t fit everyone. There’s no reason why a renter can’t take a mortgage interest deduction, right? And everyone’s entitled to $20,000 of employee business expenses…even if their salary is just $40,000 a year. Ask the proprietors of Western Tax Service about that.

– He believes that the income tax is voluntary. After all, we live in a democracy, so we don’t have to pay taxes, right?

– Besides preparing tax returns, he sells courses on why the Income Tax is Unconstitutional or how by filing the magical $2,295 papers he sells you will be able to avoid the income tax.

– He wants you to sign over that tax refund to him. After all, he’ll make sure you get your share of it after he takes out his 50% of the refund.

– He believes every return needs at least three dependents, no matter whether you have any children or not.

If your tax professional exhibits any of these behaviors, it’s time to get a new tax professional.

Posted in Tax Preparation | Tagged | Comments Off on Bozo Tax Tip #6: Use a Bozo Tax Professional!

Bozo Tax Tip #7: Use a Foreign Trust to Avoid Taxes!

Posted on May 6, 2021 by Russ

By far the worst tax schemes in the view of the IRS are offshore (foreign) trusts. In fact, trusts of all sorts—domestic and foreign—are regularly abused.

First, not all trusts are bad. Many trusts serve a legitimate purpose, such as family trusts. (Family trusts are a device to avoid probate, and are used in many states. For tax purposes, these revocable trusts are ignored.) Survivors’ trusts are another useful vehicle. Grantor trusts, another asset protection vehicle, are useful. Special Needs Trusts are extremely useful. There are plenty of ‘good’ trusts.

But trusts set up to avoid income tax are abusive, and very much Bozo-like. Individuals and businesses have spent thousands of dollars trying to avoid taxes (in some cases, mid five-figure amounts)…and many times these tax structures have been challenged successfully by the IRS.

And those are the domestic trusts.

The foreign trusts are worse. These are usually organized just to avoid taxes and hide money. If you look at Schedule B on your tax return you’ll see that you are supposed to report your foreign trusts. They work great until the IRS finds out about them. Yes, you have to report moving money into them.

But I’m smarter than the IRS, and they’ll never catch my trust set up in Luxembourg, Liechtenstein, or the Isle of Man. Well, you will spend thousands to set up your trust, and if the IRS does catch on–and in these days where governments are exchanging tax information, this can (and does) happen–your foreign trust will have served only one purpose: It will have enriched the promoters who set it up.

Remember: If it sounds too good to be true it probably is. A trust set up to evade taxes is just that.

Posted in International | Tagged | Comments Off on Bozo Tax Tip #7: Use a Foreign Trust to Avoid Taxes!

Bozo Tax Tip #8: The Shell

Posted on May 5, 2021 by Russ

I was talking with a friend who is an attorney in the Midwest. She told me about an individual who decided to use ten layers of shell companies to hide his income. It worked so well that the Bozo had trouble accessing his income.

He was using the usual foreign shelter countries: the Cayman Islands (in the Caribbean), the Channel Islands (in the English Channel), the Isle of Man (in the Irish Sea), and Vanuatu (in the South Pacific). There was a land-based country in there, too: Panama. In any case, somehow the ownership got so messed up that one of the shells refused to deal with another.

My friend didn’t get involved to get the money situation resolved. No, she got involved because her client ended up going through a messy divorce, and her client’s now ex-wife happen to find one of the papers dealing with one of the shells companies. My friend’s a divorce attorney, and a good one, and she was able, with some help, find a lot of the hidden money. The judge was not as amused as I was hearing about the difficulties the man was having getting his money out. And neither was the IRS because he had “forgotten” to pay tax on a lot of income.

There are lots of good strategies for businesses to use to lower their taxes. Income balancing to C corporations can be a good strategy. Maximizing Section 179 depreciation is another. Retirement Accounts are another good strategy. There are many, many others. But hiding income in foreign jurisdictions is a very bad one, and if you get caught you are likely looking at a lengthy term at ClubFed.

Posted in International | Tagged | Comments Off on Bozo Tax Tip #8: The Shell

Bozo Tax Tip #9: Nevada Corporations

Posted on May 4, 2021 by Russ

As we continue with our Bozo Tax Tips–things you absolutely, positively shouldn’t do but somewhere someone will try anyway–it’s time for an old favorite. Given the business and regulatory climate in California, lots of businesses are trying to escape taxes by becoming a Nevada business entity. While I’m focusing on California and Nevada, the principle applies to any pair of states.

Nevada is doing everything it can to draw businesses from California. Frankly, California is doing a lot to draw businesses away from the Bronze Golden State. But just like last year you need to beware if you’re going to incorporate in Nevada.

If the corporation operates in California it will need to file a California tax return. Period. It doesn’t matter if the corporation is a California corporation, a Delaware corporation, or a Nevada corporation.

Now, if you’re planning on moving to Nevada forming a business entity in the Silver State can be a very good idea (as I know). But thinking you’re going to avoid California taxes just because you’re a Nevada entity is, well, bozo.

Posted in California, Nevada | Tagged | Comments Off on Bozo Tax Tip #9: Nevada Corporations

Bozo Tax Tip #10: Email Your Social Security Number!

Posted on May 3, 2021 by Russ

It’s time for our annual rundown of Bozo Tax Tips, strategies that you really, really, really shouldn’t try. But somewhere, somehow, someone will try these. Don’t say I didn’t warn you!

This is a repeat for the eighth year in a row, but it’s one that bears repeating. Unfortunately, the problem of identity theft has burgeoned, and while the IRS’s response has improved, that’s just an improvement from awful to mediocre.

I have some clients who are incredibly smart. They make me look stupid (and I’m not). Yet a few of these otherwise intelligent individuals persist in Bozo behavior: They consistently send me their tax documents by email.

Seriously, use common sense! Would you post your social security number on a billboard? That’s what you’re doing when you email your social security number.

We use a web portal for secure loading and unloading of documents and secure communications to our clients. As I tell my clients, email is fast but it’s not secure. It’s fine to email your tax professional things that are not confidential. That said, social security numbers and most income information is quite confidential. Don’t send those through email unless you want to be an identity theft victim or want others to know how much money you make!

If I send an email to my mother, it might go in a straight line to her. It also might go via Anaheim, Azusa, and Cucamonga. At any one of these stops it could be intercepted and looked at by someone else. Would you post your social security number on a billboard in your community? If you wouldn’t, and I assume none of you would, why would you ever email anything with your social security number?

A friend told me, “Well, I’m not emailing my social, I’m just attaching my W-2 to the email.” An attachment is just as likely to be read as an email. Just say no to emailing your social security number.

If you’re not Internet savvy, hand the documents to your tax professional or use the postal service, FedEx, or UPS to deliver the documents, or fax the documents. (If you fax, make sure your tax professional has a secure fax machine.) If you like using the Internet to submit your tax documents, make sure your tax professional offers you a secure means to do so. It might be called a web portal, a file transfer service, or perhaps something else. The name isn’t as important as the concept.

Unfortunately, the IRS’s ability to handle identity theft is, according to the National Taxpayer Advocate, poor. So don’t add to the problem—communicate in a secure fashion to your tax professional.

Posted in Tax Preparation | Tagged | Comments Off on Bozo Tax Tip #10: Email Your Social Security Number!

IRS Reminds Taxpayers of April FBAR Deadline. So What!

Posted on April 9, 2021 by Russ

The IRS sent out a press release this morning noting the FBAR deadline remains April 15th.  The FBAR is the Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FinCEN Form 114), and must be filed if you have $10,000 aggregate in one or more foreign financial accounts at any time during the year.  My reaction is “Who cares.” And this is a deadline you can ignore (for now).

The penalties for willfully not filing the FBAR are very significant.  They start at $100,000 or half the balance in each account, whichever is greater.  I absolutely am not encouraging individuals to get in trouble with the FBAR.

But the IRS press release left out a significant issue vis-a-vis the April 15th deadline for the FBAR: There is an automatic extension until October 15th.  There are no penalties and no issues at all with filing the FBAR between April 16th and October 15th.  Indeed, the FinCEN automatic extension is how I (and most tax professionals) would like to see IRS deadlines work: automatic extensions for filing (but you have to pay the tax, if any, on the due date).  But I digress.

So if you have an FBAR filing requirement and you are not ready to file, relax.  You have six more months to get the FBAR filed—a fact the IRS left out of its press release.

Posted in FINCEN, IRS | Tagged , | Comments Off on IRS Reminds Taxpayers of April FBAR Deadline. So What!

If You Used Poloniex and Did Not Report Your Crypto…

Posted on April 2, 2021 by Russ

…now is a very good time to amend your tax returns to include those cryptocurrency gains and losses.  The Department of Justice announced that a federal court in Massachusetts ordered Circle Internet, the former parent company of Poloniex, and Poloniex to provide a list of all U.S. taxpayers who conducted at least $20,000 of transactions from 2016 through 2020.  This is a “John Doe” summons, and is the same tactic the IRS used to get this information from Coinbase.

I would expect it will be at least 30 days before the information releases the Department of Justice, and then several more weeks (to months) before the IRS starts comparing the lists of individuals with Poloniex transactions to filed tax returns.  If you forgot to include Poloniex sales on your tax returns (or if your actions were more deliberate), you have a window to act.  It is almost always better to come clean to the IRS before they send you a notice.

Posted in Cryptocurrencies, IRS | Tagged , , | Comments Off on If You Used Poloniex and Did Not Report Your Crypto…

25 Million (and Counting)

Posted on April 1, 2021 by Russ

Today is April Fool’s Day.  I wish this post were a joke–and I guess in one way it is.  Unfortunately, what I’m reporting is true.

Yesterday, National Taxpayer Advocate Erin Collins told a webinar that 25 million tax returns need a human to process.  Some returns must be filed on paper (for example, split-interest trust returns, Form 5227), other returns fall out of processing due to errors in processing, and some taxpayers choose to file paper returns.  The IRS Covid operations page says there are 9.2 million returns as of March 15th needing to be processed–some received as far back as July 2020.  Most likely, Ms. Collins’s remarks mean another 16 million returns fell out of processing and are awaiting a human to push them through the system.

What does this mean?  If you have to paper-file something with the IRS, or if you file an amended return with the IRS (all amended returns are reviewed by a human), you should expect it to take many months–maybe a year–to be processed.  If you file your return electronically, there’s about a 90% chance it will be processed just fine.  However, if your return is one of the 10% or so that falls out of processing, your return could sit in a virtual stack for months.  What’s worse is there is nothing you can do about this. 

The reality is that until IRS operations fully resume at their Service Centers (I expect that to happen late this summer), the backlogs will only grow.  Commissioner Rettig’s remarks that (paraphrasing) things are fine are disingenuous at best and outright lies at worst.  The IRS remains broken, and we’re all suffering as a result.

 

Posted in IRS | Tagged | Comments Off on 25 Million (and Counting)

More IRS Correspondence Follies

Posted on March 25, 2021 by Russ

Two more examples came in yesterday’s mail regarding the IRS’s troubles with correspondence.  First, clients received an Automated Underreporting Unit (AUR) notice in late December (2020) regarding income allegedly not included on their return.  It was included, and we faxed a reply a few days later to the IRS.  In yesterday’s mail the IRS reissued the same notice.  All of the content is identical.  The only changes are the date of the notice and the “AUR Control Number.”  Here’s how I began my response:

First, this notice appears to be identical to the CP2000 for Tax Year 2018 dated December 21, 2020 that I responded to on December 30, 2020.  Because everything on this notice is identical, my response is also identical.

Besides wasting my time, this just adds to the backlog of correspondence the IRS must weed through.

Second, an ongoing major issue is that the IRS has been issuing Notices of Deficiency before they read responses to AUR notices.  Taxpayers are forced to file Tax Court petitions to preserve their rights, adding more backlog into the system.  Clients of mine are impacted by this (they received an AUR notice in November, timely replied (and we have proof the IRS received the reply), and then received a Notice of Deficiency.  We replied to that with the hope (almost certainly forlorn) that the IRS might respond to the reply prior to the last date to petition Tax Court.  In yesterday’s mail there was a letter from the IRS acknowledging they received that most recent reply, but that they need more time to respond.  Given what we’re seeing, I strongly suspect my clients will be filing a Tax Court petition in a few weeks.

IRS correspondence remains broken.

Posted in IRS | Tagged | Comments Off on More IRS Correspondence Follies