If the IRS fails to mail a collection notice to the taxpayer or if it mails a required collection notice to a taxpayer using the wrong address, should the taxpayer be able to get a court ruling invalidating the IRS’s subsequent collection efforts? Congress added several notice requirements to help protect taxpayers from unlawful IRS…
Tax Articles
Court Considers Whether Moneygram is a Bank that Makes Loans
There are tax laws that provide significant tax advantages to banks. One of these laws allows banks to deduct capital losses against ordinary income. This allows banks to deduct losses immediately when others might have to carryover the loss to other tax years. There are other tax laws that are specific to banks. These laws…
IRS Wage and Salary Levy Exemptions for 2017
The IRS recently issued Publication 1494, Tables for Figuring Amount Exempt From Levy on Wages, Salary, and Other Income – Forms 668-W(ACS), 668-W(c)(DO) and 668-W(ICS), for 2017. This publication provides the amount of wage and salary that are exempt from the IRS’s levy. The monthly wage and salary amounts for 2017 are as follows: Exemptions…
Reportable Transaction Penalty, Full Payment Required
Tax matters can be litigated in a number of different courts. One of the advantages of bringing suit in U.S. Tax Court is that the tax does not have to be paid prior to bringing suit. For tax matters litigated in the U.S. District Courts or the Court of Federal Claims, the tax has to…
Can IRS Cure Defective Summons With Second Summons?
The administrative summons is one of the IRS’s primary tools for obtaining information from taxpayers and third parties. There are very few requirements that the IRS has to satisfy in issuing IRS summons. In Maxcrest Limited v. United States, Case No. 15-mc-80270-JST, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California addressed whether the…
Lost IRS Notice Was Timely, Despite IRS Not Following Procedures
There are a number of dates that must be met when it comes to taxes. Many of these dates are triggered by some action by the IRS. This raises the question as to what happens if the taxpayer is not aware that the IRS took the action and the IRS destroys the primary evidence that…
TIGTA Suggests IRS Follow Transfer Pricing Roadmap
Transfer pricing is and has been the most significant and difficult issue the IRS audits. The audits are typically closed with the IRS agents proposing unreasonably large adjustments and IRS appeals sustaining a very low percentage of the adjustments. The IRS has not been very successful in litigating transfer pricing cases either. As a result,…
Stay-at-Home Mom Not Liable for Trust Fund Recovery Penalty
The IRS has the ability to assess a trust fund recovery penalty against those who are responsible for withholding payroll taxes for employees if they fail to withhold and pay over the taxes to the IRS. Then penalty is equal to the amount of the withheld but unpaid tax. Liability for the penalty falls on…
Does Changing Roof Mean No Facade Easement Deduction?
Donating the rights to change the facade of a building can qualify for a charitable tax deduction. The donation helps ensure that the historical significance of the building is not compromised. But what if you retain the right to change the roof to the building? Can you still qualify for a facade easement deduction? The…
TIGTA Questions IRS’s Future State Reorganization
IRS has the power to decide who gets what, when, and how when it comes to federal taxes. Many of these decisions are made by IRS employees as part of examining tax returns. This is why we are all watching the IRS reorganize its audit function. The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (“TIGTA”) recently…