Good question. Both are very different programs for very different circumstances. But first, let’s talk about the general.
If you’re considering either the Offer in Compromise program or the Installment Agreement, you clearly are in over your head in tax debt. It’s a tough place to be, for sure. For that reason, the first thing you should do is consult a qualified tax professional. He or she will analyze
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Snezana Berbic, 39, of Wethersfield, Conn., was sentenced to 12 months and one day of in prison, to be followed by three years of supervised release, after Bernic pleaded guilty to one count of making a false statement on a federal individual income tax return and one count of assisting another person in the preparation of a false federal individual income tax return.

Marla Nicole Wells, 38, of Union City, Ga., was sentenced to two years and six months on charges of conspiring to defraud the United States. Beginning in January 2002 and continuing to August 2004, Wells conspired with others to file tax returns for about 59 individuals, claiming refunds to which they were not entitled. The total losses amounted to $222,597. She also filed other returns claiming a total of $60,504.

Robert N. Shearburn Sr., 66, of Washougal, Wash., and formerly of Glendale, Ariz., was sentenced to 12 months in prison after pleading guilty to filing a false tax return.Shearburn admitted he had signed and filed a tax return for the year 2000 that he knew contained materially false information. Shearburn stated that he filed the U.S. Individual Income Tax Return that falsely reported his adjusted gross income was $58,806, his
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A dentist in Kenai, Alaska, has been indicted for using an elaborate offshore trust scheme to evade more than half a million dollars in income taxes.According to the indictment, Glenn E. Lockwood, a practicing dentist who owned the Kenai Dental Clinic, attempted to evade more than $575,000 in federal income taxes for calendar years 2000 to 2003. The indictment alleges that Lockwood created a corporation called Glenn E. Lockwood DDS,
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Two women from Montgomery, Ala., face significant jail time after pleading guilty to tax fraud.Rumekia L. Sanders and Felicia Shanta Jackson, both 29, pleaded guilty to one felony count charging them with conspiring to defraud the United States.
According to the plea agreement and information, in early 2005, Sanders and Jackson were employed by a tax preparation business in Montgomery. Following the instructions of the owner of the business, they caused
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When IRS agents contacted Gregory E. Pflum, 38, St. Marys, Kan., he responded by giving them materials supplied by lawyers and tax advisers who were part of a tax protester movement. Pflum challenged the tax system and told IRS officials he did not intend to pay income taxes.Now, Pflum has pleaded guilty to one count of attempting to evade income taxes by failing to file a tax return.
Pflum’s father, David
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A Miami businessman has been charged with four counts of tax evasion.The federal indictment alleges that Jorge Alberto Valdes has not filed an income tax return since 1992 and has earned substantial income from the sale of real estate upon which he has not paid income tax for the years 2001, 2002, 2003 and 2004. According to the charges, Valdes formed a company called Valjor Investment Group II and listed
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The owner of Oxnard, Calif.-based Haas Automation pleaded guilty this afternoon to a federal conspiracy charge related to a scheme in which tens of million of dollars in bogus expenses were put on the company’s books during a two-year period in an attempt to avoid the payment of more than $34 million in federal income taxes.Gene Francis Haas, 54, of Camarillo, pleaded guilty to the felony charge, agreeing to serve
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