Taking Some Bites Out of Tax Crime

Posted on July 25, 2020 by Russ

Many cities have cuisines that they are noted for. New Orleans is famous for the excellent Cajun food. I think of seafood and lobster with Boston. And cheesesteaks–a mixture of chopped steak with grilled onions and cheese on a roll–goes with Philadelphia. One cheesesteak restaurant allegedly had a unique (and illegal) way of making a profit.

Tony Luke’s is one of the 21 best cheesesteak restaurants per Eater of Philadelphia. Its flagship location is in South Philly, near the stadiums. But that’s not why I’m writing this post. Instead, let’s look at some not-so-good ideas on ways of improving profitability.

First, we can deposit just some of the daily receipts into the bank account and use the other cash for paying employees off the books and using the money for personal expenses. Second, paying our employees off the books saves on payroll taxes. Third, when you think the scheme may be caught we’ll amend the prior tax returns to correct the income but we’ll add phony expenses to keep the profitability low. Sure, these methods are illegal but no one will know.

And that’s what the owners of Tony Luke allegedly did. And we’re talking millions of dollars of income ($8 million was allegedly hid from the IRS), and a long-running scheme that ran for 11 years. As I’ve mentioned in the past, if you want to head to ClubFed one of the easiest methods is to deliberately defraud the US on payroll taxes. It appears that’s what happened hear, along with major tax evasion. If the owners are found guilty, they’re looking at plenty of time to reconsider their actions.

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Phony Donations Yield Real Tax Evasion and Tax Fraud

Posted on July 23, 2020 by Russ

Have I got a deal for you! You can give me a donation of, say, $500,000, and I’ll give you $450,000 back! Yet get a write-off on your tax return for all $500,000 but you really only spent $50,000. Isn’t that great?

Yes, if it were legal it would be super. But it’s not, and the story here is one that apparently spans decades, involves an unrelated shooting incident that stunned the nation, and a still ongoing investigation into others.

Yisroel Goldstein is the former director at Chabad of Poway (California). You may remember that name from the horrible shooting that occurred at his synagogue in April 2019. Rabbi Goldstein lost parts of his hand in the shooting. One congregant was killed and two others were injured in the attack. After the shooting Rabbi Goldstein met with President Trump at the White House and Vice President Pence visited the synagogue.

But what we didn’t know was that the IRS and Department of Justice had been investigating the rabbi for two years preceding the shooting. So what was the fraud?

It’s a scheme known as the 90-10 fraud. Rabbi Goldtein collected $6.2 million in donations. He returned 90% of that to the donors with phony receipts; meanwhile, he kept 10% (or around $620,000) for himself. That resulted in a tax loss of $1.5 million over the last 8 years. That’s bad, but the scheme actually dates back decades: One taxpayer began participating in this scheme in the 1980s!

Rabbi Goldstein pleaded guilty last week, along with five other individuals. Given that at least 20 taxpayers total were involved in this (and only six have pleaded), it’s quite possible more indictments are coming. Rabbi Goldstein is cooperating with the IRS and Department of Justice in the ongoing investigation.

The DOJ is expected to recommend that Rabbi Goldstein be sentenced to probation because of his work in the shooting. The five others benefited with phony deductions and one conducted his own Ponzi scheme. All six have agreed to pay restitution.

There is no free lunch as far as making donations. If you donate to a church or synagogue, you actually have to donate the funds; kickback of the money is not allowed.

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Bozo Tax Tip #1: Move Without Moving!

Posted on July 13, 2020 by Russ

Nearly nine years ago, we moved from Irvine, California to Las Vegas. The home in Irvine was sold, a home was purchased in Las Vegas, and the belongings went from the Golden State to the Silver State. Cars were re-registered, doctors changed, and no one would say that we didn’t become Las Vegas residents.

But some people like to have it both ways. Nevada’s income tax rate is a very round number (0%), while California’s maximum income tax rate is a ridiculous (in my opinion) 13.3%. That certainly could drive individuals to move in name only. California’s Franchise Tax Board (FTB) realizes that, and they (along with New York State) lead the country in residency audits.

If you really do relocate, a residency audit is a minor annoyance. But let’s say you reside in Silicon Valley, and you buy a home in Reno but keep your home in Los Altos. Did you move? Or did you just move in name?

The Bozo strategy is the latter: moving in name only. I’ll just have that little home in Reno, spend the ski season in Nevada but really continue to live in Los Altos.

In a residency audit, the FTB will look at where you’re actually spending time, where you’re spending money (if eight months of the year you’re patronizing businesses in Silicon Valley, it doesn’t look like you really moved), and a variety of other factors. ( The FTB has an excellent Residency and Sourcing Manual that explains California laws on the subject.)

Given the current pandemic, state revenues are being squeezed. The one government agency where increasing employees increases revenues is the tax agency (especially employees in audit). While I expect to see states cut employees, I’ll be surprised to see anything but minor cuts in tax agencies. We’re also likely to see an increase in audits looking at telecommuting issues. In any case, if you move in name only you’re painting a target on your back for a residency audit.

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Bozo Tax Tip #2: They Shoot Jaywalkers, Don’t They?

Posted on July 12, 2020 by Russ

I have, unfortunately, become quite competent in the Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts. That form is better known as the FBAR. It used to have the form number TD F 90-22.1 (yes, it really did) but now goes by Form 114. The form must be filed online through the BSAefiling center of FINCEN, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.

You must file an FBAR if you have $10,000 aggregate at any time during the year. The report for 2019 is due October 15th (it has a due date of April 15th with an automatic extension to October 15th).

The form is fairly simple and straightforward: Note every foreign financial account you have with name, address, account number, and maximum balance at any time during the past year. Let’s say you have one foreign account, a bank account at the Royal Bank of Canada. You would take your maximum balance and convert it to US dollars from Canadian dollars (you should use the Fiscal Service’s year-end exchange rates to determine the balance in US dollars no matter when the high balance was). The form must be electronically filed and is filed separately from your tax return.

The penalties for not filing it are quite high. Willful non-filing has a minimum penalty of $100,000 or half the balance in the account–and that’s per account! There’s also possible jail time.

So what must be reported:
– Foreign Bank accounts;
– Bank accounts outside the US of a US financial institution;
– Foreign financial accounts where all you have is signature authority;
– Foreign securities accounts;
– Foreign mutual funds;
– Foreign life insurance with a cash or annuity value; and
– Online gambling accounts if outside the US.

There are others, too.

The IRS does have a chart that lists most things that need reporting on the FBAR and Form 8938. Form 8938 is the “cousin” of the FBAR; this form needs to be filed if you have larger balances in foreign accounts.

Millions of FBARs are filed each year. When I started in tax, filing an FBAR was a huge audit red flag; that’s no longer the case. There are just too many FBARs filed. Do note that if you have an FBAR filing requirement you must note that in question 7 at the bottom of Schedule B.

To end this with some humor, one of my pet peeves in dealing with taxes is that there are three different sets of abbreviations for foreign counties used in tax. The FBAR has one set; question 7 at the bottom of Schedule B has another set, and Form 8938 has a third set. Some countries are noted identically while others are not. On one of of the abbreviations Curacao is “CU” while that means Cuba in another.

In any case, the FBAR is no laughing matter. The IRS’s mantra here is to shoot jaywalkers. Don’t become such a person: If you have an FBAR filing requirement, file it! Again, the FBAR is effectively due on October 15th.

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Bozo Tax Tip #3: Lie to Your Tax Professional

Posted on July 10, 2020 by Russ

Like almost all tax professionals, we use an Engagement Letter. The Engagement Letter has grown from one page to three pages. Some of this relates to items that my attorney wants on the document; some of the growth is from my insurance company. However, most of it is from IRS rules. One item that has been in every one of my Engagement Letters is the following:

You agree that you have provided us with and will provide us with all requested documents, that the information is and will be accurate and truthful, and that you will answer all of our questions fully so that we can properly prepare your returns.

Most tax professionals have similar language in their Engagement Letters. If we are to best prepare your tax returns, we have to know what’s going on. I’ve been told by my physician clients that their patients often don’t tell them the entire story. I can’t imagine doing that; how is my doctor going to do prescribe the best treatment if he only has half the picture? Tax professionals are no different; we can’t properly prepare your returns if we only have half the picture.

But if you want a tax return that’s inaccurate, and doesn’t have all the deductions and/or credits you’re entitled to, go ahead and deceive your tax professional. Don’t say I didn’t warn you!

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Bozo Tax Tip #4: Procrastinate!

Posted on July 9, 2020 by Russ

Today is July 10th. The tax deadline is just five days away.

What happens if you wake up and it’s July 15, 2020, 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. Automatic extensions are of time to file, not pay, so download and mail off a payment to your state, too. If you mail your extension, make sure you mail it certified mail. (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; most (but not all) states will, too. You can pay the IRS electronically, and more and more states offer this as well. (Those that don’t offer it directly through tax professionals almost always have it available on their web sites.)

But what do you do if you wait until July 16th? 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.

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Bozo Tax Tip #5: Who Needs to Pay Employment Taxes?!?

Posted on July 8, 2020 by Russ

This Bozo Tax Tip—and do remember, these are things you really, really, really shouldn’t try—is aimed at the business owner who is having troubles. Business owners, unlike the federal government, can’t just print money. So let’s assume our hypothetical business owner has payroll tomorrow but doesn’t have the money for everything. What should he do?

Well, one strategy is to not remit the payroll taxes. Sure, they’re “trust fund” taxes but the government can print money and I can’t, so they’ll just let it slip by. And my state government won’t care either, right?

The above strategy is likely one of two quick and easy ways to get on the road to ClubFed. The IRS doesn’t like it when trust fund taxes don’t make it to the government. The penalties are substantial. The liability goes to the owners (and check signers) of the business. IRS Criminal Investigation will investigate this. Don’t do this!

One of my clients recently was interviewed about such a case. He was paid, but apparently the IRS wasn’t. It’s not hard for the IRS to find out about this: After all, every employee is going to file a tax return claiming withholding but the IRS won’t find it. That’s exactly what happened in this case. I suspect that very soon two nice looking individuals (accountants with badges and guns; now that’s a scary thought) will be knocking on a door and saying, “You have the right to remain silent….”

Business troubles aren’t fun. However, if you don’t pay the IRS your employment taxes you will find your troubles multiplying.

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Bozo Tax Tip #6: The $0.55 Solution

Posted on July 7, 2020 by Russ

With Tax Day fast approaching it’s time to examine yet another Bozo method of courting disaster. And it doesn’t, on the surface, seem to be a Bozo method. After all, this organization has the motto, Neither rain nor snow nor gloom of night can stay these messengers about their duty.

Well, that’s not really the Postal Service’s motto. It’s just the inscription on the General Post Office in New York (at 8th Avenue and 33rd Street).

So assume you have a lengthy, difficult return. You’ve paid a professional good money to get it done. You go to the Post Office, put proper postage on it, dump it in the slot (on or before July 15th), and you’ve just committed a Bozo act.

If you use the Postal Service to mail your tax returns, spend the extra money for certified mail. For $3.35 you can purchase certified mail. Yes, you will have to stand in a line (or you can use the automated machines in many post offices), but you now have a receipt that verifies that you have mailed your return.

About thirteen years ago one of my clients saved $2.42 (I think that was the cost of a certified mail piece then) and sent his return in with a $0.37 stamp. It never made it. He ended up paying nearly $1,000 in penalties and interest…but he did save $2.42.

Don’t be a Bozo. E-File (and you don’t have to worry at all about the Post Office), or spend the $3.35! And you can go all out and get a return receipt, too (though you can now track certified mail online). (NOTE: Because many IRS offices are closed, this year we’re recommending against using return receipt–there may be no one at the IRS office you’re mailing the return to sign the receipt.) For another $1.45, you can get the postal service to e-mail the confirmation that the IRS got the return (for the OCD in the crowd). There’s a reason every client letter notes in the instructions of mailing a return, “using certified mail.”

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Bozo Tax Tip #7: Nevada Corporations

Posted on July 6, 2020 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.

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Bozo Tax Tip #8: Amend Rather than Extend

Posted on July 5, 2020 by Russ

Last week I spoke with one of my clients, Liz, who wanted to file her return immediately. She’s getting a large refund, and she’d like it now. The problem is she participates in ten partnerships, and one of those ten K-1’s hasn’t shown up. (Owners of partnerships and S-Corporations along with beneficiaries of trusts use the K-1s to report their share of the entity’s/trust’s income on their tax return.) She asked, “They sent an estimate of the income; can’t I use that?”

Perhaps she read the disclaimer on the estimate (more likely, she didn’t): “The actual amount of income could be more or less than what is shown on the estimate.” It’s good enough for an extension, but not good enough for a return.

“Well, I’d still like to file the return,” she said. I told her there were two problems. First, it’s a certainty you’d be amending the return and you want to extend rather than amend. Every amended return is looked at by a human–one who has the power to send your return to Examination (audit). Second, I can’t file a return that’s knowingly wrong and this return would be. The numbers are not final, and likely would change. I couldn’t sign tghe return.

I then mentioned, “Do you remember our conversation last year when you invested in these partnerships, that you would likely have to file extensions because some of the K-1s wouldn’t be received by the tax filing deadline?” There was a long pause…but she said, “I could really use that money.” I told her that there was one benefit of filing after the tax deadline: She would receive interest on her refund. Eventually she agreed to file an extension.

Investing in businesses can be a good way of making money, and I know Liz’s investment prowess is far greater than mine. But for her to file without all the K-1s in hand would be a very Bozo action.

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