Archives for January 2016

IRS Woes & Problems Continue – Is There No End in Sight?

January 26, 2016 by Frank

The December 2015 issue of Accounting Today reported about numerous challenges the IRS is facing.

First, there was the IRS Commissioner, John Koskinen, stating that budget cuts are not only harming taxpayers, but also those tax professionals who represent taxpayers. From our perspective, truer words have never been spoken. We have been experiencing long waits to have our calls answered and when they are answered, the person we are speaking to often lacks the proper training and expertise to quickly resolve our clients’ tax issues.

One major problem that the IRS faces each year is the tax extenders. Certain tax provisions expire every year and Congress “debates” whether they should be extended. Since Congress fails to extend these tax provisions until the waning days of the calendar year, or after the tax year and then makes those extenders retroactive, the IRS warned everyone that the release of certain 2015 tax forms may be delayed.

The Commissioner admitted that the level of service provided by the IRS, whether by phone or in person, was far worse than desired. When taxpayers called the IRS, they often [Read more…] about IRS Woes & Problems Continue – Is There No End in Sight?

IRS Announces New Initiative to Collect Payroll Taxes

January 19, 2016 by Frank

When some companies have a cash flow problem, what have they done? Some have thought that the cash flow problem was temporary due to a customer failing to remit payment when promised, an unexpected vendor bill, and a host of other situations. So management decides not to remit its federal payroll tax deposits to the IRS and uses the payroll taxes as working capital to fund the business operations. After all, the employer tells himself that he fully expects to remit the full amount due with the next payroll filing. What is the harm? [Read more…] about IRS Announces New Initiative to Collect Payroll Taxes

IRS Telephone Scams – and Then There is the PA Office of Unemployment Compensation

January 12, 2016 by Frank

When a tax jurisdiction calls, do you hang up on them or talk to them? One could argue that it depends whether the caller identifies himself with the IRS or PA.

Let’s start with the IRS. If you receive a call from someone claiming to be from the IRS, it likely is an IRS impersonator. Scammers are getter better at their jobs. They often introduce themselves by name and provide the target with a false IRS identity number. When an IRS impersonator calls, they often use high-pressure tactics to demand that payment be remitted immediately . . . or ELSE! The caller will state that failure to remit payment immediately will mean that the person called will suffer immediate harm, such as an arrest or property seizure.

That is a lot of pressure! What should you do in such cases? [Read more…] about IRS Telephone Scams – and Then There is the PA Office of Unemployment Compensation

Will Your Passport Be Revoked?

January 5, 2016 by Frank

The recently passed federal highway and transportation spending bill, Fixing America’s Surface Transportation Act, often referred to as the FAST Act, includes a provision that allows the sharing of certain information between the Internal Revenue Service and the U.S. State Department. Yes, the federal government in its infinite wisdom has given the IRS the authority to share your sensitive tax information with yet another party, the U.S. State Department.

The U.S. State Department will now have the power to deny a U.S. passport application or renewal, as well as revoke a previously issued passport, to a “seriously delinquent taxpayer.” A seriously delinquent tax debt includes [Read more…] about Will Your Passport Be Revoked?