Just last week, the IRS Criminal Investigation (CI) released its Annual Report for 2012 showing strong increases in enforcement actions and IRS penalties imposed on convicted tax criminals for the year ending Sept. 30, 2012. According to the IRS bulletin announcing the report’s release, the criminal investigation division investigates potential criminal violations of the Internal Revenue Code and related financial crimes in a manner to foster confidence in the
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This was a busy week in tax relief and IRS news. The stories that caught our attention ranged from how long to keep IRS tax records, to celebrity tax woes and finding tax debt solutions to the pro’s and cons of IRS prepared returns.
This week started with a helpful post titled: Tax Relief Tips for How Long to Keep IRS Records. A general rule of thumb guideline suggests that
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Recently, I have been asked for my thoughts on the IRS’ proposal to pre-filled tax returns. Under a proposed system, the IRS would pre-fill taxpayers’ returns with the data employers and financial institutions have already reported. I came across a Forbes article titled: “Are IRS Prepared Tax Returns the Solution to our Tax Woes?“ that presented a decent overview of what such a system would mean for taxpayers, tax preparers and
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Every year after the tax day, clients inquire as to what tax documents they need to keep and for how long. Last tax season I wrote a blog post on the subject, inspired by a Forbes article by Tax Girl, Kelly Phillips Erb titled: “How Long Should You Keep Records after Tax Day?” I thought the information would be helpful for those who may be wondering what documents to hold
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Just because the April 15 tax deadline passed doesn’t mean people who owe back taxes should stand idly by. It’s time to “man up” to the challenge and resolve your IRS tax issues with the help of an expert tax resolution professional. But who do you choose? On a video episode from the Midday Sunday Fox 11 with host Tony Valdez program, I explain how the tax resolution industry has
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It’s the day after tax day and for those taxpayers who don’t intend on filing a tax return, you may want to reconsider. Not filing means you will be facing significant IRS tax issues. Failure to file is considered a misdemeanor that can be punishable up to $10,000 per year and one year in jail. In fact, IRS penalties are more severe for non-filing than for non-payment. If it sounds
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Happy Friday! Countdown to tax day: 4 days
Last minute tax filers take note: the most common reasons for refund delays are because of preventable mistakes on the tax return. I thought information from this previous post and interview archive from the Midday Sunday Fox 11 with host Tony Valdez program could provide some help for those still scrambling to finish their tax returns. The trick to avoiding errors on your
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Just ten days until April 15! On the run up to tax day, we do our best to provide tax relief tips for last minute taxpayers. The tax news topics covered this week include: the annual IRS Data Book release, the official release of the 2013 IRS Dirty Dozen List, a little tax relief humor at Uncle Sam’s expense, tips on filing and tax payments.
Tax Help Tips on Filing and
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With just 13 days until Tax Day, I thought many of you might need some tax relief humor. The article from @TodayMoney titled: “Happy birthday, modern tax system: 100 toasts and roasts“ could be just what the accountant ordered if you are agonizing over preparing your taxes. Here are some historical points of interest from the article about how our current tax system came into existence:

The current tax system was formalized
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The IRS has released its annual list of the top 12 tax scams. Make sure the tax advice you’re following isn’t on this list.
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If it’s too good to be true, it probably is.
That well-worn maxim applies to many things in life.
Including, of course, tax advice.
Someone saying you don’t need to pay taxes? Others claiming they can help you hide money off shore?
It’s all too good to be true.
In fact, some
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Thanks to Frank Byrt at The Street, we learned that the IRS announced the release of their “2012 Internal Revenue Service Data Book [1],” This annual report provides an overview of agency activities, including information and statistical tables dating from October 1, 2011, to September 30, 2012. The report provides helpful data and information on the following: returns filed, taxes collected, enforcement actions, taxpayer assistance, IRS budget and workforce, and
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Reminder: 18 days left until Tax Day!
Here’s a review of the tax relief news covered this week. Featured topics include: IRS releases 2013 Dirty Dozen Tax Scam/Scheme List, businessmen guilty of tax evasion and filing false returns, IRS apologies for expensive Star Trek training video and hiring a tax professional versus tax preparation software.
IRS Releases 2013 Dirty Dozen Tax Scam-Scheme List – as well as a video to remind taxpayers
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The IRS just released its Dirty Dozen Tax Scam List for 2013 and introduced a video to remind taxpayers they need to protect themselves from the worst tax scams and schemes out there. While the “usual suspect” scams and schemes have not changed that much from last year, the notification explains how the IRS has stepped up their efforts to handle them, specifically identity theft related tax issues. Below the
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Sometimes the government does things that make you want to shake your head. This post is about one of those instances. The Today Show reported in a segment titled “Live Long and Squander?” that the IRS is under fire for two training videos in particular a “Star Trek” parody the Agency thought would be good for employee training. NBC’s Kelly O’Donnell reports that a congressional committee was angry about the
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Some of you may still be deciding whether to hire a tax professional or purchase tax preparation software. In this informative video, (one part of a series that came from my appearance on the Midday Sunday Fox 11 with host Tony Valdez program), I offer the following tax help tips:

When tax preparation software works
Know when it’s time to hire a tax professional
When it’s time to hire a tax resolution specialist

(Below
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