I was recently quoted in an article for CreditCards.com entitled Pros and Cons of Paying the IRS with a Credit Card where I encourage taxpayers to compare the costs of using their credit cards to pay their taxes versus a negotiated IRS installment agreement if they don’t have the case on hand. I enjoy lending my expertise to this conversation because all too often, I see very smart people rush
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The Chicago politician currently on the hot seat is Cook County Commissioner and former South Side alderman William Beavers. Beavers is facing indictment on tax fraud charges for keeping campaign funds and a county stipend without paying federal taxes on them. A Chicago Tribune article entitled William Beavers Indicted on Tax Fraud Charges reported on just how far Beavers is willing to go to protect his name and perceived political
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If you have unfiled and delinquent tax returns, you’re probably dreading this tax season; owing back taxes to the IRS is a big burden. Doing nothing to resolve them, however only makes matters worse and more expensive. Even if the IRS isn’t currently knocking on your door to remind you of your tax debt, you are not out of the woods and will need to devise a plan for
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A major focus of the Obama Administration has been to reduce the “tax gap” (the difference between the amount of taxes reported and what the government actually collects). Nowhere has this become more obvious than with the President’s 2013 budget request.  A recent article in OMB Watch entitled Obama Proposes Exempting IRS from Budget Caps, reports on the Administration’s request to have some IRS enforcement spending be “excluded” from budget
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Just last week, on February 22, 2012, President Barack Obama signed into law an extension of the Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act, which effectively slashes the payroll tax, meaning employees get to keep a higher percentage of their paychecks. The payroll tax cut translates as a reduced social security tax withholding rate of 4.2 percent, which is a full 2 percent lower than the original 2011 act
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Some taxpayers have a tendency to overstate their income or expenses. The IRS “Dirty Dozen” Tax Scam # 6 – False and Inflated Income and Expenses makes this list annually simply because taxpayers still believe they can get away with it. What many don’t anticipate is that stepped-up IRS scrutiny of their flawed returns will yield not only IRS problems for them but also less money in their pockets as
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An article in Smart Money Magazine entitled Your Tax-Cheating Spouse May Cost You, considered the benefits of married couples filing joint tax returns. It also discussed what you may want to consider if your spouse was not on the level with “your” previous tax returns. Filing separately from your spouse could prevent IRS problems from occurring in the first place, but in each unique situation this may not be possible.
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Weekly, if not daily, there is news of yet another celebrity encountering IRS tax issues. While I stop to mention these stories as a cautionary tale of prevention, I am continually struck by how vulnerable the famous and newly wealthy really are with their finances, especially when it comes to paying their income taxes! I am beginning to think there should be a special course for celebrities to get their
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A recent Forbes article by Kelly Phillip Serb entitled Tax Appeal is a Scam gives readers a look at just how pervasive the tax scams are becoming out there. Upon first glance, this e-mail may look official to some of you, but scan the document and scratch the surface like Kelly did and you’ll get a sense that some things “just aren’t right.”

The text in the e-mail reads:
Dear Accountant Officer,
Hereby
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In another chapter of Swiss Banks versus the IRS, strong pressure from both U.S. and European governments, have forced Swiss lawmakers to take a stand. Yesterday, Switzerland announced it outlined proposals for how it aims to do the following:

improve its reputation as a private global banking center.
comply with the exchange of tax information that includes requiring all offshore account holders to declare their taxable assets.

A Wall Street Journal article titled
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Payroll Tax Problem Question:
Our business has done well financially until a year ago when some of our best customers got behind on their payments to us; the crushing blow came when one closed its doors before we could to collect. We are still behind and the loss in income has weakened our business finances so much, we cannot afford to make the payroll tax payments. I’m really worried about
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Leslie W. Jacobs, 67, of Gates Mills, Ohio, was sentenced to one year and one day in prison and ordered to pay a $10,000 fine after pleading guilty to making and subscribing to false personal income tax returns. According to court records, Jacobs, a partner in a Cleveland law firm, filed joint income tax return on which he inflated his law firm business expense deductions and, as a result, falsely
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In a recent blog post called IRS Warns of Dirty Dozen Tax Scams, I covered in detail the top four most common and pervasive tax scams currently permeating the tax system. It’s important to prevent IRS tax issues from the start and covering each tax scam separately could go a long way to help consumers first recognize then steer clear of “IRS deals” and false promises that would end up
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Senator Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) is frustrated with tax delinquency and last week introduced legislation aimed at those with back taxes. His message: pay up or face the consequences.
According to the Forbes’ article: Owe IRS Taxes, Lose Your Passport, Senator Hatch’s proposed laws are intended to force tax avoiding Americans to deal with their tax debt or suffer the following:

If you owe more than $50k to the IRS in back taxes
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IRS commissioner Doug Schulman announced on Thursday its IRS “Dirty Dozen” List of tax scams and “phishing” expeditions to warn taxpayers about scams that range from identity theft to return preparer fraud. This annual list is meant to provide the most recent advice for consumers to prevent tax problems on a year round basis. However, as tax day draws near, scams and schemes tend to peak as people get their
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