To Software Or Not To Software?
When tax season comes, you’ll probably do an online search for free tax software and more chances than not, you’ll find plenty of free or low-cost options—even the IRS offers free software for certain taxpayers.
When tax season comes, you’ll probably do an online search for free tax software and more chances than not, you’ll find plenty of free or low-cost options—even the IRS offers free software for certain taxpayers.
Did you know that the IRS does not currently have any guidelines for who can prepare your tax returns? That can make it a challenge for the 56% of American taxpayers who hire someone to prepare their income taxes. How can you know you’re getting the expertise you’re paying for?
The IRS has recognized that it would be impossible to catch every taxpayer with outstanding obligations to the IRS. Therefore, when a significant area of noncompliance is determined by the IRS, it uses Voluntary Disclosure Programs (VDP) as a way to entice taxpayers to voluntarily come forward and disclose non-compliance without the fear of criminal prosecution and/or draconian penalties.
The IRS has reduced its training budget by more than 85 percent in an effort to cut agency-wide costs. In 2013, the IRS spent $250 per employee on training; in 2009, they spent $1,450 per employee.
All fifty states have worker classification laws. Most states (like the IRS) will fall back on the common law standards that revolve around behavioral and financial control, in addition to the type of defined relationship at the onset of employment and throughout the employment term.
Audit Technique Guides are particularly useful to tax practitioners because they provide a strong foundation when advising clients of audit risk and they point out common areas for mistakes, provide a brief but inclusive overview about typical business practices within a market segment, and are perpetually being updated and changed.
The Secretary of Treasury, Jacob Lew, signed off on changes to the current inversion tax rules in the Internal Revenue Code. These new rules are not retroactive and only affect either pending or future inversions.
Some taxpayers with undisclosed offshore accounts are attempting to either enter the Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program (OVDP), indicating willful failure to disclose accounts, or adhere to the Streamlined Filing Compliance Procedures (SFCP), indicating non-willful failure to disclose accounts, without the aid of an experienced attorney. The reasons below outline why willfulness determination should be entrusted to an attorney.
There is still time! With less than two weeks left in 2014, many taxpayers aren’t even thinking about ways that they can lower their tax liabilities for 2014 and beyond. Five Stone Tax Advisers has compiled some last minute items for all taxpayers to review in an effort to help minimize tax liability for 2014 and maximize financial growth.
Today’s clients expect and deserve proactive, knowledgeable practitioners who understand not only the technicalities of accounting and law, but also the nuances of their individual clients’ businesses and sometimes personal finance situations.
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