Search Results
Friday, January 29th, 2010
Taxpayers with foreign bank accounts must stay on top of the game when it comes to paying taxes and disclosing foreign funds.
If you have undisclosed foreign funds or if you have accumulated back taxes on your overseas money, now is the time to seek tax help from a tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist to resolve your IRS problems before they become any worse.
Due to the severe nature of offshore tax evasion charges, it is advisable for you to hire a special offshore tax evasion defense division for expert tax help in order to maximize your chances of winning an affordable IRS installment agreement or penalty abatement.
It is no longer safe to believe that the Swiss government will protect your secrecy. This latest report shows how the Swiss government is continuing to cooperate with the IRS rather than to hide the identities of wealthy tax evaders.
CCH (http://intelliconnect.cch.com) reports:
Swiss Seek to Salvage UBS Agreement; IRS Expects Continued Cooperation
Switzerland’s executive body, the Swiss Federal Council, announced on January 27 that it intends to salvage its landmark 2009 agreement with the U.S. to expose alleged tax evasion by U.S. nationals. The agreement cracked open Switzerland’s long history of bank secrecy by requiring one of its largest banks, UBS AG, to disclose account holder information to the U.S. Court Setback.
In a January 21 ruling, made public on January 22, the Swiss Federal Administrative Court found that the 2009 agreement exceed the scope of the U.S.-Switzerland tax treaty. The court held that the agreement permitted no change to terms that had been given binding definitions in the treaty, particularly the definition of “tax fraud or the like,” which does not encompass “any serious tax offenses in the sense of the continued evasion of large sums of tax.”
Fewer Disclosures
The 2009 agreement anticipated that information would be shared involving 4,450 accounts at UBS. “It is thought that treaty assistance will be ruled out in around 4,200 cases,” the Swiss Federal Council said in a statement. “Only in around 250 cases may information be exchanged with the U.S.,” the Swiss Federal Council noted.
Under the 2009 agreement, UBS provides account information to the SFTA, which, in turn, decides if the account meets the criteria for disclosure to the U.S. According to published reports, the U.S. has received information on fewer than 10 accounts. CCH asked the IRS to confirm this number but a spokesperson for the Service declined to comment.
The IRS spokesperson did, however, reiterate the Service’s earlier comments that it expects continued cooperation from Switzerland. “The U.S. has an agreement with the Swiss government to produce information in U.S. accountholders at UBS. We expect the Swiss government to continue to honor the terms of the agreement,” the spokesperson told CCH.
Possible Remedy
The Swiss Federal Council may present the 2009 agreement to the Swiss parliament for approval. “The agreement would stand as a treaty of the same status as the older and more general bilateral double taxation agreement and, according to general rules of interpretation, would take precedence over the latter,” the Swiss Federal Council explained. The Swiss Federal Council added that it “firmly believes that the ongoing threat of a conflict with the U.S. can be eliminated for good only by executing the agreement.”
By George L. Yaksick, Jr., CCH News Staff
We have seen how aggressive the IRS has worked together with the Swiss government to reveal more than 4,000 names of tax evaders in the past few months–it would be a mistake to believe that this is all over. If you are in IRS trouble for overseas tax evasion, you can get tax help now in order to resolve your taxes and penalties.
Tax Resolution Services’ Offshore Banking and FBAR Defense Division is headed by the nation’s leading offshore tax evasion defense experts. Don’t wait another day, get tax help today to be rid of your IRS problems!
Call Tax Resolution Services’ team of expert tax attorneys, CPAs, and Certified Tax Resolution Specialists today at 1-866-477-7762 for a free tax resolution consultation or visit www.taxresolution.com
Tags: Back Taxes, CCH, delinquent taxes, FBAR, Free Tax Consultation, Installment Agreement, IRS debt, IRS help, IRS payment plan, irs problems, Michael Rozbruch, offshore bank accounts, offshore tax settlement, tax attorney, tax evasion, tax help, tax resolution, tax settlement
Posted in Back Taxes, Expert Help From Tax Attorney, IRS Installment Agreements, IRS Tax Cases, IRS help, Offers in Compromise, Offshore Tax Settlements, Penalty Abatement, Seeking Professional Tax Help, Tax Debt Help News, Tax Relief News, Tax news and tips, Unfiled Returns - Delinquent Tax Returns, tax help | No Comments »
Thursday, January 14th, 2010
Recently I was featured in CPA Magazine along with an elite selection of other top CPAs and tax experts to offer tax help and advice to taxpayers like you to prepare for the upcoming 2010 tax return filings. In light of the fast-approaching 2010 tax season, I want to draw your attention to a few things that you need to know about new IRS regulations for tax preparers.
If you didn’t know already, the IRS projects that it will receive more than 139 million individual tax returns in 2010. As Americans get ready to file their 2009 tax returns, the IRS is focusing in on the tax return preparer community in an attempt to curb tax cheats and boost enforcement of its tax collection efforts.
As one of Top 40 Tax Advisors to Know During a Recession, I will tell you this: essentially the IRS is turning tax professionals into ‘auditors’ instead of advocates of our clients. What’s happening now is that the government has decided that its war on tax evasion is a multi-front conflict, ranging from overseas bank accounts to the tax preparer around the corner.
In this particular CPA Magazine feature, “What We Learned From Last Tax Season,” the article reveals important tax lessons from me along with other top tax advisors aimed to help readers work smarter in 2010 when preparing their tax returns.
Basically, the government’s new model for the regulation of tax return preparers includes a “More Likely Than Not” preparer penalty standard designed to make it more difficult for tax advisors to take aggressive positions on behalf of clients who need tax help when they fall in the grey area of IRS law.
Let me elaborate:
Per IRS’s IRC Section 6694, the “More Likely Than Not” preparer penalty standard is making it more difficult to take aggressive positions on behalf of clients who are in the grey area of tax law. The IRS is turning tax professionals into “auditors” instead of advocates of our clients.
If the IRS detects and proves beyond a reasonable doubt that fraudulence was deliberate, both the taxpayer and the tax preparer will now be liable for IRS penalties. However, if you have a very strong case to get the penalties abated or removed, a tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist can help prepare amended returns and then represent you in the case of an IRS audit.
Make sure that you handle your tax returns carefully this season. Don’t cheat on your taxes–now with the IRS and tax preparers both on the lookout for fishy tax activities, it’s no time to gamble with your life’s savings. But also make sure that if you do use a tax preparer, that you double-check all your tax returns before approving them; otherwise, you could be liable for a tax filing mistake you did not make.
Tax Resolution Services is a team of expert tax attorneys, CPAs, and Certified Tax Resolution Specialists who are here to help you with your tax problems. Call our office today at 1-866-IRS-PROBLEMS (1-866-477-7762) for a free tax resolution consultation or visit www.taxresolution.com
Tags: Back Taxes, CPA magazine, delinquent taxes, income tax relief, more likely than not, tax attorney, tax expert, tax help, tax preparer penalty, tax resolution, tax season 2010, tax settlement, Tax Tips
Posted in Back Taxes, Expert Help From Tax Attorney, Filing Unfiled Returns and Replacing Substitute for Ret, IRS help, IRS tax audit, Seeking Professional Tax Help, Tax Relief News, Tax news and tips, income tax relief, tax help | No Comments »
Thursday, January 7th, 2010
As a Certified Tax Resolution Specialist, I’ve seen how rough the last couple of years have been for tax cheats in the United States. But the bad news is the IRS has plans to put even more pressure on tax cheats in 2010.
For middle-class tax cheats, there was the Caribbean scheme. U.S. taxpayers living in the United States would stash their money in a Caribbean bank account, then link that bank account to a credit card they could use to pay for everyday expenses at home. It gave these taxpayers the tax-cheating luxury of having mad money the IRS didn’t know a thing about.
Until, of course, the IRS found out. The government cut deals with the major credit card companies and obtained lists of people whose credit cards were linked to foreign accounts.
Amnesty came first. Then came prosecutions of individuals for tax evasion.
For wealthy tax cheats, Switzerland has long been the scheme. With the right money and contacts, U.S. taxpayers could conceal hundreds of thousands, even millions, in bank accounts protected by a Swiss banking veil that guaranteed total secrecy.
Until, of course, the IRS finally pierced that banking veil after threatening to prosecute Swiss bank UBS. Now the U.S. government is set to obtain the names of taxpayers who have been hiding their many greenbacks.
Now, those with Swiss accounts could face enormous fines and even prison time. As I said, it’s been a rough couple of years for tax cheats in our country.
The bad news for them: The pain ain’t over. Not yet.
On Dec. 10, 2009, at the 22nd Annual George Washington University International Tax Conference, IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman made it clear that what has seemed like a bare-knuckled aggressiveness against tax cheats will only get more, well, bare-knuckled!
“The unprecedented agreement with the Swiss authorities we reached this past August regarding UBS account holders – and the response to the special offshore voluntary disclosure program – together represent an historic milestone,” Shulman told the audience. “They proved to the world – especially to account holders, promoters and banks – that we’re serious about our international efforts. We’re serious about piercing the veil of bank secrecy. And we’re serious about carrying forward the momentum to address offshore tax evasion.
“We will be mining the 14,700 voluntary disclosures,” he continued, “for information to identify financial institutions, advisors, and others who promoted or otherwise facilitated U.S. persons hiding assets and income offshore and attempted to shirk their tax responsibilities at home.”
Shulman promised increased budgets for compliance, the hiring of additional agents and a general sharpening of the IRS’s mighty sword.
Over the previous years, Shulman has proven he isn’t a man of empty promises.
If you’re cheating, maybe it’s time you stop. And maybe it’s time you finally get a tax professional such as a tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist to help you.
You can learn more tax help tips by reading our previous TRS Newspaper Articles.
Tax Resolution Services is a team of tax attorneys, Certified Tax Resolution Specialists and CPAs that are here to offer you tax help. Take advantage of the expertise of our firm by calling 1-866-477-7762 today for a free tax resolution consultation or visit www.taxresolution.com
Tags: Back Taxes, delinquent taxes, IRS debt, IRS help, irs problems, Michael Rozbruch, tax attorney, tax cheats, tax evasion, tax expert, tax help, tax resolution services, tax settlement, Tax Tips
Posted in Back Taxes, Expert Help From Tax Attorney, IRS help, Seeking Professional Tax Help, Tax Debt Help News, Tax Relief News, Tax news and tips, Unfiled Returns - Delinquent Tax Returns, tax help | No Comments »
Tuesday, January 5th, 2010
Many taxpayers facing the tough year of 2009 may find themselves unable to pay their full taxes in 2010 or unsure about how to resolve the back taxes that they already owe. This is why it’s a pleasure for me to sit down with people like Scott Mason of KROQ to share some free tax help advice to listeners.
Right now we are seeing some real desperate situations where many people can’t afford to hire a tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist, which is not a good thing. Many taxpayers think they can negotiate an IRS installment agreement with the IRS themselves. The problem in 90% of these cases is that the taxpayer fails to get the 433D form, which is the formal agreement that the IRS inputs into the computer saying they have an installment agreement. So the next thing you know, your wages are getting garnished with no record of an installment agreement with the IRS.
Don’t be one of these people. There are plenty of tax resolution options that are available to you which will save you from severe IRS penalties and debt. Below are some useful tax help answers to questions that may be haunting taxpayers just like you who are facing the upcoming tax season:
Listen to the full interview for more tax help tips.
—————
Filing Exceptions for Military Personnel:
Scott: Are there filing exceptions for those deployed in the military?
MR: If they are deployed overseas there are extensions from 60-120 days. They are still US resident citizens and do need to file on time or by the agreed extension dates. The sad thing for many is that they come back to the states, cant’ get employment and are not able to pay their taxes, which will result in IRS penalties.
—————
How to Avoid IRS Filing Problems:
Scott: What one can do to make sure they don’t have a problem come April 15?
MR: Be organized, have knowledge, budget and be a better money manager. It’s never a bad idea to see a professional to do a tax projection for year end. The rule of thumb is: accelerate deductions and defer income.
For those who are self employed, a good principle to follow is to put away almost 30% of every dollar for FICA, Social Security, and income tax in a special account called a “tax” account and make quarterly payments from that.
If you are a wage earner, make sure you withhold properly. Many claim too many exemptions. As long as you fill out a W4 with 9 exemptions and sign it the IRS will not be alerted to it. If you have over 9 exemptions, then the IRS will be alerted to it so be prepared to back up your exemptions with substantial evidence.
—————
Reporting Activities Pertaining to Prop 215:
Jim: In regards to reportable activity specifically pertaining to Prop 215. How can I recover the cost of growing medical marijuana. What has to be reported?
MR: Any activity that you engage in whether its legal or illegal or for profit you have to report it. Gambling and prostitution included (this is how they got Al Capone).
—————
How Far Back Can the IRS Go:
If you haven’t filed your tax returns, the IRS can go back to day one. If you filed, the IRS has 3 years from the filing date to audit you. If you had a 25% under-reporting of income, they can go back 6 years. However, for fraudulent activities such as your failure to disclose a foreign bank account, the IRS can go back for as long as they want. If you are in IRS trouble for failing to disclose a foreign bank account, we have a special division for offshore bank account defense that is here to help you.
—————
Dealing with Overwhelming IRS Debt:
Paul: Is it possible to just go to jail or do community service instead of paying your taxes if the amount of what you owe is just ridiculous?
MR: You can’t go to jail for owing money but you can go for not filing. Failure to file is a misdemeanor. You may be a good candidate for an Offer in Compromise (OIC). There are solutions to every problem. Forget about having anything else in your name for the rest of your life if you don’t deal with it.
—————
The TRS Success Rate:
Scott: You have a really high success rate. What do you call success?
MR: We call success a couple of things. Number one, we probably turn away 2 to 3 times as many people as we retain. That’s why we have the highest success rate. The success rate is twofold, one is an offer in compromise success rate and number two and permanent resolution success rates. If they don’t qualify for a “tax debt settlement) which is an Offer in Compromise, we will get them an IRS installment agreement that they can live with and be done with it in a few years. The IRS right now is allowing first year delinquent penalties removed as long as you have been a good boy or girl in the past.
Some final tax help tips: If you do owe money for 2009 and can’t afford to pay it come April 15, 2010, file your returns and send a money order or cashiers check for $10.00. This does two things: #1 it takes the huge 25% failure to file penalty off the table and #2 it creates a computerized record at the IRS showing that you filed on time and you made a good faith effort to pay some of that money you owe. This will keep you out of jail!
You can seek professional tax help from a tax attorney, Certified Tax Resolution Specialist, or CPA from Tax Resolution Services. We are here to help you settle your IRS debt–call us today at 1-866-477-7762 for a free tax resolution consultation or visit www.taxresolution.com
Tags: Back Taxes, FBAR, foreign bank accounts, Free Tax Consultation, income tax relief, Installment Agreement, Michael Rozbruch, Offer in Compromise, offshore bank accounts, offshore tax evasion defense, Penalty Abatement, tax attorney, tax evasion, tax expert, tax help, tax relief, tax resolution, tax resolution services, Tax Tips
Posted in Back Taxes, Expert Help From Tax Attorney, IRS Installment Agreements, IRS help, Offers in Compromise, Offshore Tax Settlements, Seeking Professional Tax Help, Tax news and tips, Unfiled Returns - Delinquent Tax Returns, income tax relief, tax help | No Comments »
Sunday, December 27th, 2009
I recently appeared on the Big Biz Show with Russ and Sully to talk about the new top 500 list that the Swiss Government released to the IRS. The first 500 people who made it on the “Swiss Cheese List” are now under IRS scrutiny for tax evasion charges–many facing IRS penalties up to $2.3 million or ten years in prison for FBAR violations ($2.1 million for failure to report overseas funds on the tax return plus $125,000 in penalties). These names are people who have not chosen amnesty by disclosing their accounts to the IRS before October 15th. Consequently, the IRS is expecting large sums of money from these accounts in the form of back taxes, severe penalties, and interest.
Considering how impenetrable the Swiss bank accounts have been for the past 50 years, this new development where the IRS is now able to penalize tax evaders with help from the Swiss government is huge news. Taxpayers need to be alarmed at the fact that the IRS can simply go over to the Swiss Government and make them open their banks. Over this past summer, a whistleblower from the Swiss Government allowed the US Government to file and win a settlement through an injunction. The deal was that the Swiss Government will release 2,450 names to the IRS, out of which the first 500 names have just been handed over. This is merely the beginning–there will definitely be more names to come.
This change of tax climate doesn’t only apply to the wealthy corporate titans either–if you are an average taxpayer, this news should come as a warning sign. It’s important for everyone to realize that no tax evasion scheme is safe from the IRS’s reach.
While it is possible that among the 500 names released, some may be truly innocent of tax evasion, the IRS is still going to hold these people guilty till proven otherwise. This means the “wrongfully accused” will have to get tax help from a tax attorney, CPA, or tax resolution specialist to help produce convincing evidence to substantiate their innocence. We have a specialized division solely devoted to offshore tax evasion defense that is here to help you fight against the IRS if you find yourself in cross-hairs.
In the past, I have stressed the importance of the changing tax climate in my TRS newspaper publication that the days of “safe” illegal tax shelters are over. Just look at the recent incident at the Cayman Islands and the Bahamas where taxpayers were caught and penalized for tax evasion through the usage of oversea credit cards.
Don’t make the mistake of believing that you can get away with any tax evasion schemes. The IRS has successfully busted down the walled gates of the Swiss Banks–it’ll be foolish to think that they are not powerful enough to find you.
If you did not declare your oversea funds by October 15th’s amnesty deadline, you can still get tax help from a tax attorney or CPA to resolve your offshore tax evasion charges. Tax Resolution Services is a team of expert tax attorneys, CPAs, and tax resolution specialists who are here to help you settle your IRS tax problems. Call our office today at 1-866-477-7762 for a free tax resolution consultation or visit www.taxresolution.com.
Tags: Back Taxes, Big Biz Show with Russ and Sully, Michael Rozbruch, offshore tax evasion charges, offshore tax evasion defense, Swiss bank accounts, tax attorney, tax evasion, tax expert, tax help, tax relief, tax resolution, tax resolution expert
Posted in Back Taxes, Expert Help From Tax Attorney, IRS help, Offshore Tax Settlements, Penalty Abatement, Seeking Professional Tax Help, Tax news and tips, tax help | No Comments »
Thursday, December 10th, 2009
Recently, more than 14,700 Americans with secret offshore accounts took the IRS up on their offer of tax amnesty for voluntary disclosure before the October 15th deadline, generating “billions of dollars” in new revenue for the IRS. Based on this success, the IRS has hired 800 personnel in the United States and bulked up their offices overseas to smoke out more tax revenue from offshore hiding places.
Taxpayers need to be cautious around this time and not make the mistake of believing that if they have foreign bank accounts in other countries other than Switzerland that they won’t get caught. The fact is: if you have an offshore bank account anywhere in the world, you need to act now to disclose it to the IRS before they find you. It doesn’t matter if you have the account for Holocaust reparations, an overseas job, operating expenses for a vacation home, or funds from a married spouse from another country – you could be the next victim of the IRS’s intensified federal crackdown on offshore accounts.
We recently launch of our specialized Offshore Banking and FBAR Defense Division headed by Brian Compton, one of the nation’s leading offshore tax evasion defense experts. Compton personally oversees all offshore tax evasion defense cases and works closely with our firm’s team of IRS and legal experts (tax attorneys, CPAs) to help clients disclose overseas funds, obtain FBAR compliance and reduce severe IRS penalties.
Compton warns taxpayers that the IRS back tax penalties for offshore accounts can add up to double or triple the amount that is hidden in those accounts. If you think your offshore bank account may be a potential IRS target, it’s important to follow the IRS’s disclosure guidelines to avoid huge fines and penalties, including jail time.
If you contact the IRS yourself, any mistake you make can have severe consequences. Tax evasion carries a five-year sentence, while failure to file FBAR reports is punishable by a 10-year sentence – so you will need an experienced FBAR tax attorney or tax resolution specialist on your side.
To learn more tax help tips, check out our other TRS publications.
Tax Resolution Services is dedicated to providing affordable solutions to businesses and individuals who find themselves in trouble with the IRS. Their team of expert tax attorneys, enrolled agents and CPAs has a success rate of 90% – second to none in the industry – and an Offer in Compromise Settlement Rate of $0.13 on the dollar. For more information or to receive a FREE tax relief consultation, visit www.taxresolution.com or call 866-IRS-PROBLEMS.
Tags: brian compton, FBAR, Michael Rozbruch, offshore bank account, offshore banking and FBAR defense division, offshore tax evasion defense, offshore tax settlement, tax attorneys, tax help, Voluntary Disclosure
Posted in Expert Help From Tax Attorney, Offshore Tax Settlements, Penalty Abatement, Seeking Professional Tax Help, Tax Resolution Options and Alternatives, Voluntary Disclosure | No Comments »
Tuesday, December 8th, 2009
If you have undeclared funds in foreign bank accounts, you need to act now. If you missed the October 15th tax amnesty deadline for voluntary disclosure, there is a heightened need to get expert tax help as soon as possible from an FBAR tax attorney or FBAR tax resolution specialist who can help you seek IRS penalty abatement to reduce the impact of back taxes and severe criminal implications.
I have worked with my associate Brian for many years and he is the head of our firm’s Offshore Banking & FBAR Defense Division. As President of Tax Resolution Services, Co., Brian personally oversees all our offshore tax evasion defense cases and works closely with our team of experts (tax attorneys, CPAs) to help our clients obtain FBAR compliance and reduce severe IRS penalties.
The fact is more than 14,700 Americans with secret offshore accounts took the IRS up on their offer of tax amnesty for voluntary disclosure before October 15th so they wouldn’t face criminal prosecution if they paid FBAR back taxes, interest and reduced civil penalties. According to the IRS, the FBAR amnesty program generated “billions of dollars” in new revenue from back taxes.
Even though you may have blown your one official shot for offshore account governmental leniency, there’s still hope to reduce FBAR penalties if you get expert tax help to get started on your voluntary disclosure and FBAR compliance before the IRS comes knocking on your door.
The IRS is Determined to Smoke Out More Tax Revenue from Offshore Hiding Places Than Ever Before
The IRS has found that the back tax money in offshore accounts is gigantic. The IRS expects to get another $8.5 billion in back taxes over the next few years from offshore bank account holders just like you. And that is just the tip of the iceberg. The IRS is eying over $100 billion in unpaid FBAR back taxes stashed in offshore accounts. In offshore accounts, the IRS has found a new money tree and they will never ever stop shaking for every penny of back taxes.
Based on the billion dollar success of the offshore account FBAR amnesty program, the IRS has staffed up to find those offshore account holders who didn’t take the opportunity to avoid jail time. The IRS has just hired 800 personnel in the United States and bulked up their offices overseas solely for the purpose of tracking down offshore account holders.
Don’t Wait for the IRS to Come After You
Now that the FBAR amnesty deadline has passed, the only way to avoid the wrath of the IRS’s intensified federal crackdown on offshore accounts is contacting a FBAR tax attorney or tax resolution specialist who can mount an offshore tax evasion defense by drafting a voluntary disclosure agreement. Retaining effective offshore tax evasion defense, means that your FBAR tax attorney, tax resolution specialist or CPA will take over all communications with the IRS, making the required disclosures, filing FBAR reports and amending tax returns typically for 2003 thru 2008.
Prosecutions of offshore account holders in UBS tax cases are making headlines across the world while sending the message that the IRS will not tolerate offshore tax evasion. Due to the severity of the financial penalties and criminal implications, it is not in the account holder’s best interest to wait for the IRS to approach them.
How To Get Tax Help with Your Offshore Bank Account and FBAR Compliance
Here are the first steps to take:
1. Get together all your offshore accounts. Break them down by country. Some offshore account countries have already opened up all their offshore account books to the IRS, others are in the process of doing so. Those safe offshore account tax havens are an endangered species on the verge of extinction. Don’t join them.
2. Contact a FBAR tax attorney or tax resolution specialist – make sure you retain a professional with a proven track record of successfully handling offshore tax evasion cases. Explain your situation in full detail including who told you to set up these offshore accounts and include any documentation from your offshore account financial advisors. You will want to need to show that you were not willfully failing to declare foreign income.
3. Have your FBAR tax attorney or tax resolution specialist conduct all communication with the IRS. This is not the time for amateur hour. So, how serious is this? Very. Every FBAR tax attorney or tax resolution specialist will tell you that IRS back tax penalties for offshore accounts are double or triple the amount that is hidden in those accounts. If the IRS believes you acted willfully, you’re looking at 10 years of jail time. If you contact the IRS yourself (something you should never, ever do) an innocent mistake can have severe consequences. For example, if you try to do a voluntary disclosure without a FBAR tax attorney and you forget to file form 5471, you will be hit with an automatic, immediate, mandatory $10,000 fine. And that’s just one of the many small details an experienced FBAR tax attorney or tax resolution specialist can catch.
Finally, don’t give up hope. Even if you missed the Oct 15th deadline for voluntary disclosure of offshore accounts, a good FBAR tax attorney can give you the tax help you need by reducing fines and criminal sanctions. But you need an experienced offshore tax evasion expert to give you tax help, not just any tax attorney or CPA, but someone who can help your survive the dangerous waters of international tax law. Battling the IRS on offshore tax evasion charges requires the highest level of tax law legerdemain. You need to act now. The IRS probably already has your number.
Tax Resolution Services has a very specialized division for defending offshore tax evasion cases. This highly specialized department is run by one of the nation’s leading offshore tax evasion defense experts, Brian Compton. Call our team of expert tax attorneys, and CPAs today at 1-866-477-7762 for a free tax resolution consultation or visit www.taxresolution.com
Tags: Back Taxes, brian compton, FBAR Defense, offshore accounts, Offshore Banking, offshore tax evasion defense, Penalty Abatement, tax attorney, tax evasion, tax help, tax resolution, tax settlement
Posted in Back Taxes, Expert Help From Tax Attorney, Offshore Tax Settlements, Penalty Abatement, Seeking Professional Tax Help | No Comments »
Thursday, December 3rd, 2009
It may resemble a chapter out of 1984 but the recent surge of whistle blowers to the IRS about tax cheats comes as no surprise since these whistleblowers are getting paid enormous sums of money for “telling on their neighbors” for owing back taxes.
A recent Forbes article revealed that a new federal rewards program dishes out cash to people who turn in friends, relatives and employers for fudging their tax returns.
Take Bradley C. Birkenfeld, a former employee of UBS AG, who came to U.S. officials with documents in hand and laid out how his former employer, UBS AG, helped wealthy Americans hide money offshore. So far the investigation he triggered has produced a $780 million payment in back taxes and penalties to the U.S. government from UBS, Switzerland’s largest bank.
Consequently, Birkenfeld, who is facing 40 months in the federal pen, may now leave prison with millions of dollars in reward money.
The IRS is changing its attitude towards Whistleblowers–ten years ago, anyone who had enough knowledge of a company’s accounting books were not eligible for reaping any reward money for being the whistleblower because they were inevitably involved in crafting the tax evasion activities. Now, these same people who may have faced prison sentences for their crimes may be entitled to received a reduced reward amount (which could still be very substantial, depending on the case and how much back taxes owed).
This whistleblower rewards program has motivated many more people to rat out the “bigger guys.” From 2004-2005, the IRS was mostly dealing with small cases of tax evasion. But according to Forbes, “in fiscal 2009, ended Oct. 30, the IRS Whistleblower Office also logged big case leads on 1,900 taxpayers, up from 1,246 in fiscal 2008, the first full year the new law was in effect. Dozens of these tips involve purported tax losses of $100 million or more.”
In many of these instances, the whistleblower could walk away from it with anywhere between 15% to 30% of the back taxes owed by some of these corporations–amounting to rewards of millions of dollars.
The important thing to learn from this development is that the only way to ensure that no one will hand you on a silver platter to the IRS is if you do not commit any tax fraud. The rewards are high for whistleblowers and who’s to resist the temptation of a large payoff in this economic slump?
Get your accounting number straight. Make sure that your tax numbers are legitimate and correct. If you have someone else do your accounting for you, make sure to verify the accuracy of the numbers you submit to the IRS. Once you sign off on your tax forms, you are technically liable for what you have “approved” on it. Don’t risk being accused of being a tax cheat–hold your accountants accountable.
Also check out this great cartoon we posted last month on the whistleblower program.
Read the full Forbes article on IRS whistleblowers.
Tax Resolution Services is a team of expert tax attorneys, CPAs, and tax resolution specialists who help people with their tax problems every day. We have successfully settled thousands of cases for taxpayers with tax debt both big and small. Call us today at 1-866-477-7762 for a free tax resolution consultation or visit www.taxresolution.com
Tags: Back Taxes, Forbes article whistleblower, IRS debt, IRS whistleblower reward, tax attorney, tax cheats, tax evaders, tax evasion, tax fraud, tax help, tax relief, tax resolution, UBS AG, whistleblower money
Posted in Back Taxes, Offshore Tax Settlements, tax help | No Comments »
Thursday, December 3rd, 2009
You don’t have to be a wealthy jet-setter to get caught in the IRS crosshairs – especially as they are aggressively going after million in back taxes from undisclosed fund in foreign bank accounts.
My associate Brian Compton is one of the nation’s leading offshore tax evasion defense experts. He was recently interviewed by Joe Mont for an article in The Street.com, Overseas Bank Sting Ensnares Average Joes. That’s right- NO ONE is safe from the IRS. You may have an offshore bank account anywhere (not just in Switzerland!) for Holocaust reparations, an overseas job, or perhaps you married a spouse from another country who has funds there. We spoke to someone who was a model and worked in Japan and Europe, and the funds were deposited in the local bank for convenience. Even if you have a timeshare or second home in Mexico and have a bank account to fund operating expenses, you could be a potential target.
As President of Tax Resolution Services, Co., Brian also heads up our firm’s specialized Offshore Banking & FBAR Defense Division. He personally oversees all our offshore tax evasion defense cases and works closely with our team of experts (tax attorneys, CPAs) to help our clients dobtain FBAR compliance and reduce severe IRS penalties.
If you think your offshore bank account may be a potential IRS target, it’s important to follow the IRS’ disclosure guidelines. It’s also important to amend your tax returns accurately. In addition to huge fines, filing a false tax return is punishable by up to three years in prison. Tax evasion carries a five-year sentence. Failure to file a report that gives details of a foreign bank’s name and the amount of an account holder’s assets is punishable by a 10-year sentence.
Our team of tax attorneys, tax resolution specialists and CPAs can help you mitigate the severe IRS penalties and criminal sanctions for offshore account holders. Don’t wait for IRS to come after you, we can help you resolve your IRS problems before it’s too late. Call us at 866-IRS-PROBLEMS (1-866-477-7762) or for a free consultation.
Tags: Back Taxes, brian compton, irs offshore accounts, offshore bank accounts, offshore tax evasion, offshore tax evasion defense, overseas bank accounts, tax attorney
Posted in Back Taxes, Offshore Tax Settlements | No Comments »
Wednesday, December 2nd, 2009
Before the UBS deal of 2009 that sent overseas account holders scrambling to submit their voluntary disclosures before October 15th’s amnesty deadline, many people believed a number of IRS myths: that Swiss Bank Accounts are a “tax fortress” impenetrable by the IRS or that the IRS only cared about the “bigger fish.” However, as we have seen in the past couple of months, this is clearly not the case anymore. At this point, taxpayers with undisclosed funds should be looking for expert offshore tax evasion defense.
Authorities in Switzerland have notified the first 500 Swiss bank clients whose names they are set to turn over to the United States government for suspected tax evasion. Those 500 people will have met strict criteria established by Swiss authorities, which include holding over 1 million Swiss francs at any time between 2001 and 2008, the use of false documents or other fraudulent actions, and accounts that earned an average of 100,000 francs a year for the last three years.
Since Switzerland built a reputation of neutrality that extended to its banking system, creating an independent enclave of banks immune from outside pressure, this latest collaboration with the IRS to hunt down tax evaders is groundbreaking news.
Wealthy Americans who have depended on these foreign bank accounts can no longer feel safe from the IRS with their money stashed abroad. It would be naive for anyone to believe that cheating the IRS of back taxes will go unnoticed forever.
What’s really important to note from all of this is that the IRS is serious about collecting all the taxes it can get. Regular taxpayers who don’t have overseas bank accounts can take away a very valuable lesson from all of this: If the IRS can get these guys, you better believe they can get you.
Just ask the tens of thousands of Americans who were using a Caribbean bank account linked to a U.S. credit card to evade taxes. Now that the IRS has their information thanks to a separate deal with the credit card companies, they have every reason to be sorry.
Don’t underestimate the power and the reach of the IRS. If you gamble with your chances of getting caught for tax evasion, it’s like playing Russian Roulette with a loaded gun–your luck is bound to run out at some point.
If you find yourself in IRS trouble due to having funds in a undisclosed foreign bank account, you may be able to reduce your penalties or settle your taxes with an IRS payment plan. Learn how you can get an offshore tax settlement to save your financial future.
To learn more tax tips and tax help advice, check out our previous publications.
If you owe the IRS back taxes, you can take control of your tax problems by getting expert tax help. By being proactive with resolving your tax problems, oftentimes you can reduce your IRS penalties and fines. Tax Resolution Services is a team of tax attorneys, CPAs, and certified tax resolution specialists. We’re here to help you get the tax settlement you deserve. Call us today at 1-866-477-7762 for a free tax resolution consultation or visit www.taxresolution.com
Tags: Back Taxes, IRS payment plan, offshore tax settlement, swiss bank account holders, Swiss bank tax haven, tax attorney, tax cheats, tax evasion, tax help, Voluntary Disclosure
Posted in Back Taxes, Offshore Tax Settlements, Seeking Professional Tax Help, Tax news and tips | No Comments »
Tuesday, November 24th, 2009
We’ve been hearing a lot of stories about how the IRS is dealing with the abundant influx of voluntary disclosures from Americans who had hid their money overseas in Swiss banks such as UBS. The LA Times recently reported that the IRS is settling with over 14,700 overseas foreign account cases.
According to the LA Times, “To put it simply, this is a historic milestone for the nation’s hardworking taxpayers.”
While many taxpayers flocked to voluntarily disclose their foreign untaxed funds before October 15th’s amnesty deadline, some taxpayers may have missed this date. The good news is that hope for IRS penalty reduction or an IRS overseas tax settlement is not lost. You can still get tax help from an expert tax attorney to settle your IRS debt. Expert tax help from a well-qualified tax attorney could make the difference between a manageable IRS payment plan and a crippled financial future.
Earlier this year, UBS paid a $780 million penalty under a deferred prosecution agreement filed in a Florida federal court that included disclosure of an additional 150 names. It is no secret that the IRS is serious and aggressive about piercing the veil of overseas secret banks in order to collect back taxes. In fact, the foreign “tax haven” climate is changing to be virtually a thing of the past.
Just last week, the IRS and Swiss unveiled the criteria being used to determine which American UBS accounts will be disclosed under the August agreement:
“Accounts being targeted include those that contained 1 million or more Swiss francs at any time between 2001 and 2008; instances in which there was clear fraudulent actions, such as false documents; and accounts that earned an average of 100,000 francs a year for at least three years.
The equivalent amounts in U.S. dollars vary widely depending on the year, as the dollar lost over a third of its value against the Swiss franc during that period. One million francs was worth about $600,000 in 2001, compared with about $900,000 seven years later.”
[LA Times]
Don’t wait around for the IRS to find you. If you have undisclosed foreign funds in oversea bank accounts, you must act now to settle your IRS debt before the IRS slams their harsh penalties on you. By being proactive, you can take control of your tax situation and walk away with an IRS offshore tax settlement that you can live with.
Tax Resolution Services is the nation’s leading offshore tax evasion defense firm. We are a team of expert tax attorneys, CPAs, and certified tax resolution specialists who are here to help you get the tax settlement you deserve. Call us today at 1-866-477-7762 for a free consultation or visit our website at www.taxresolution.com
Tags: FBAR amnesty, IRS debt, IRS offshore tax settlement, IRS payment plan, IRS penalties, offshore account holders, overseas tax settlement, tax attorney, tax help, UBS settlement
Posted in Back Taxes, IRS Installment Agreements, Offshore Tax Settlements, Penalty Abatement, Seeking Professional Tax Help, tax help | No Comments »
Thursday, November 19th, 2009
The IRS crackdown on foreign bank account holders has been highly effective in getting more tax evaders to come forward. News reports have shown that the number of people who voluntarily disclosed their foreign bank accounts before October 15th have been higher than other responses to any prior IRS initiatives.
The large number of voluntarily disclosures means billions of incoming revenues to the IRS in the next ten to twenty years in addition to the waning trend of foreign “tax havens”–two very good incentives for the IRS to keep up their heightened tax collection efforts.
As a taxpayer, it is important for you to realize that this IRS trend of stricter tax collection procedures is not likely to loosen in the future. The IRS has already reported to increase staffing in international offices by hiring 800 new agents in the next year. According to Bloomberg news, “The IRS plans to hire 800 people in the next year and increase staff in eight overseas offices, including Hong Kong. The agency also will open offices in Beijing, Sydney and Panama City.”
The primary target of the IRS is people who deliberately evade taxes through the usage of offshore bank accounts. Ordinarily, the IRS can seize the higher of $100,000 or 50 percent of an offshore account’s value when the holder deliberately didn’t disclose it to the Treasury Department. The penalty can apply each year that required forms weren’t filed, so after three years of noncompliance an account holder can owe 150 percent of the account’s value.
Indeed, the days of bank secrecy are over. So what if you have undisclosed foreign funds and failed to meet the October 15th deadline? There is still a chance for you to reduce your IRS penalties if you seek professional tax help now before the IRS finds you first. It is absolutely better for you to come forward to the IRS before they find you. But this is not something casual–you must make sure that you understand all the right legal guidelines before talking to the IRS so that you don’t inadvertently incriminate yourself.
The best thing to do for those of you who want to reduce your IRS penalties or get an IRS offshore settlement is to contact an expert tax attorney to evaluate your best options. Make sure that you are armed with expert tax representation before you communicate with the IRS. This will give you the best chance of getting a favorable IRS offshore tax settlement than if you just picked up the phone and called the IRS.
You wouldn’t go to court without a lawyer. So don’t go to the IRS without proper tax representation!
Tax Resolution Services is a team of tax attorneys, CPAs, and certified tax resolution specialists who handle cases of offshore tax settlements on a regular basis. We can help you get the tax resolution you need even if you missed the October 15th amnesty deadline. Call us today at 1-866-477-7762 today for a free consultation or visit www.taxresolution.com.
Tags: IRS offshore tax settlement, IRS penalties, offshore account holders, Penalty Abatement, tax attorney, tax help
Posted in Back Taxes, Offshore Tax Settlements, Penalty Abatement, Seeking Professional Tax Help | 1 Comment »
Wednesday, November 18th, 2009
The latest IRS step-up in tax collection crackdown has some 14,700 wealthy Americans shaking in their chairs. The IRS reports that it has been seeing an “unprecedented” number of Americans who have come forward before the October 15th amnesty deadline. Offshore account holders who voluntarily disclose their unpaid back taxes on foreign funds by this deadline are able to receive reduced IRS penalties.
For those who did not make the deadline but are worried about being discovered by the IRS before coming forward, U.S. Internal Revenue Service Commissioner Douglas Shulman encourages them to come talk to the IRS before the IRS finds them, emphasizing that “It will be much worse for them if we find them first.”(According to the Reuters article).
According to Reuters, “Shulman also said the outpouring of hidden offshore accounts does not affect in any way the obligation of UBS to turn over those American account-holder names. There had been some speculation that success in the amnesty program would cut the obligation of UBS to turn over accounts.”
Furthermore, the Swiss Justice Department said it would hand over the names of wealthy U.S. clients of UBS with accounts holding more than 1 million Swiss francs ($986,200) where there is a reasonable suspicion of tax fraud.
It is clear that the IRS tax collection rigor has heightened to the point where foreign “tax havens” will dissolve to be a thing of the past. However, if you have not yet disclosed your untaxed foreign funds, there is still a chance that you can get an IRS offshore tax settlement that will be less severe than the IRS penalties you would face otherwise.
The important thing to know is that in order to get the optimum tax resolution for failing to disclose your foreign funds, you need to seek tax help from an expert tax attorney. It’s important for you to be represented by someone who understands the IRS language and the legal aspects behind tax resolution procedures. This will ensure that you get the best chance possible at settling your offshore tax debt with lesser IRS penalties than you would otherwise.
Tax Resolution Services is a team of tax attorneys, CPAs, and certified tax resolution specialists who can provide you with the tax help you need. If you are thinking about talking to the IRS about your undisclosed foreign bank account funds, call us first for a free consultation! 1-866-477-7762 or visit www.taxresolution.com
Tags: Back Taxes, Douglas Shulman, FBAR, IRS offshore tax settlement, October 15th, offshore account amnesty, offshore tax settlement, Reuters, tax help, UBS
Posted in Back Taxes, Offshore Tax Settlements, Seeking Professional Tax Help, Tax news and tips, tax help | Comments Off
Wednesday, November 18th, 2009
Ever since the latest IRS crackdown on American offshore bank account holders, Swiss banks such as Julius Baer Group has reported losses in financial assets due to scared Americans who are withdrawing their money. This latest news shows that the IRS has successfully struck fear among Americans who up until recently, have been able to evade taxes with offshore bank accounts.
According to the NYTimes, “shares in Julius Baer fell 2.78 francs, or 6.9 percent, to close at 37.79 francs last week.” Since Julius Bauer Group does not have a large onshore presence in Europe to capture assets, this latest trend of American account holders pulling out their funds is especially troublesome.
It’s not unusual for companies that do business internationally to have offshore bank accounts. But what offshore account holders need to know is that the IRS is determined to smoke out more tax revenue from offshore hiding places than ever before. I recently blogged about how offshore account holders can still get tax help to get an IRS offshore tax settlement–learn more about how you can get tax help to reduce your IRS tax penalties.
But don’t let fear of the IRS overwhelm you. Even if you missed the Oct 15th deadline to disclose your foreign accounts, you can still get tax help to reduce your IRS penalties and criminal sanctions. A tax resolution expert or tax attorney can help you get a good IRS offshore tax settlement even if you failed to disclose your account before October 15th.
These are crucial times for offshore account holders to get the right kind of tax help. Dealing with offshore tax evasion cases before the IRS requires a whole new level of rigor. Make sure that you get tax help from someone who is experienced and an tax resolution expert instead of just any tax attorney or CPA. Make sure you hire someone who can act both as a financial adviser as well as a tax savior.
To learn more about how you can reduce your IRS penalties and get an IRS offshore tax settlement, visit our latest IRS offshore tax settlement page to discover your tax resolution options. You can also visit our TRS news page for more tax help resources to obtain tax relief.
If you believe that you owe back taxes on your foreign accounts, you need to retain either a tax attorney, tax resolution specialist or CPA who will take over all communications with the IRS, make the required disclosures, file FBAR reports and amend tax returns typically for 2003 through 2008.
Tax Resolution Services is a team of tax attorneys, CPAs, and tax resolution specialists who can help you get the expert tax advice you need. Call us today at 1-866-477-7762 for your free consultation or visit our website at www.taxresolution.com
Tags: Back Taxes, IRS offshore tax settlement, IRS penalties, Julius Baer Group, Penalty Abatement, tax attorney, tax evasion, tax help, UBS settlement
Posted in Back Taxes, Offshore Tax Settlements, Penalty Abatement, Seeking Professional Tax Help, Tax news and tips | 2 Comments »
Tuesday, November 17th, 2009
We provide offshore tax evasion defense for clients who have been targeted by the IRS. And I’ve heard on many occasions that it’s difficult to find reliable offshore tax resolution information on the Internet. So we’ve added a new tax help resource devoted to IRS offshore tax settlements to to further help people with overseas accounts by educating them on their options for tax relief.
Each year, the government racks up billions of uncollected tax revenues from offshore accounts held by Americans. Since the latest UBS deal, the IRS has buckled down to find and penalize an unprecedented number of offshore tax evaders and is still going strong to investigate additional offshore “tax havens.”
Recent events prove that the IRS is more determined than ever to investigate high-net-worth individuals – both at home and overseas – so really, no one is safe from the wrath of the IRS. The latest headlines of harsh IRS crackdowns and expensive IRS tax penalties has sent a message to the rest of us: the IRS will not tolerate offshore tax evasion.
The good news is: for those of you who missed the October 15th filing deadline for tax amnesty, there is still hope for an IRS offshore tax settlement if you seek professional tax help now from a tax attorney, CPA, or certified tax resolution specialist.
It’s important for taxpayers to know that Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR) penalties can amount to as much as 200-300% of the asset value of the account. So if you have an unreported overseas bank account, you really need to get expert tax help as soon as possible to seek penalty abatement to reduce the impact of financial penalties and criminal implications.
Due to the severity of the financial penalties and criminal implications, it is not in your best interest to wait for the IRS to approach you. If you believe that you owe back taxes on your foreign accounts, you need to retain either a tax attorney, tax resolution specialist or CPA who will take over all communications with the IRS, make the required disclosures, file FBAR reports and amend tax returns typically for 2003 through 2008. Don’t wait for IRS to come after you – get tax help for resolving your IRS problems before it’s too late.
TRS is a team of expert tax attorneys, CPAs, and certified tax resolution specialists. Call TRS today at 1-866-477-7762 today for a free consultation!
Tags: Back Taxes, FBAR, IRS amnesty, IRS offshore tax settlements, offshore bank accounts, Penalty Abatement, tax advice, tax attorney, tax help
Posted in Back Taxes, IRS help, Offshore Tax Settlements, Penalty Abatement, Seeking Professional Tax Help, Tax Relief News | No Comments »
