Archive for category: IRS Operations & Procedures

Before the 2017 Tax Cuts And Jobs Act was enacted into law, the IRS published the mileage rates to be used for travel in 2018. For many taxpayers this was a significant tax deduction but the 2017 Tax Cuts And Jobs Act changes that.

Why fewer taxpayers will be itemizing:

Increase Of Standard Deduction – A substantial increase to $12,000 for single filers (was $6,500), $18,000 for heads of household (was $9,550), and $24,000 for joint filers (was $13,000).

Limit On Deduction For State And Local Taxes – A taxpayer may claim an itemized deduction of only up to $10,000 ($5,000 for a married taxpayer filing a separate return) in (i) personal state and local property taxes, and (ii) state and local income taxes (or sales taxes in lieu of income taxes).  Taxes paid or accrued in carrying on a trade or business are not subject to this limitation.

Limit On Deduction Of Mortgage Interest – For mortgages incurred after December 31, 2017, taxpayers may deduct interest on up to $750,000 of principal (mortgages existing before January 1, 2018 are still subject to the pre-existing law’s $1 million limit). But for all taxpayers there is no longer a deduction for interest paid on home equity loans.

Elimination Of Miscellaneous Itemized Deductions And Deduction For Moving Expenses – A taxpayer can no longer deduct miscellaneous itemized deductions which include unreimbursed employee expenses and tax preparation costs.  Also the deduction for moving expenses is gone.

But for those who can benefit from itemizing, here are the rates for 2018:

Standard Business Mileage – The standard business mileage rate increased by 1 cent to 54.5 cents per mile.

Medical And Moving Mileage – The medical and moving mileage rates also increased by 1 cent to 18 cents per mile.

Charitable Mileage – Charitable mileage rates remained unchanged at 14 cents per mile.

Time Limits For Keeping Your Tax Records

Even though your 2017 income tax return is processed by the IRS and a refund is issued, that does not mean the IRS can later question or audit the tax return,  In fact the Statute Of Limitations allows the IRS three years to go back and audit your tax return.  That is why it’s a good idea to keep copies of your prior-year tax returns and supporting backup documentation for at least three years. In the case of backing of any deductible mileage, you will need to retain your travel log showing the distance traveled, who you visited and the purpose of the visit.

What Should You Do?

You know that at the Law Offices Of Jeffrey B. Kahn, P.C. we are always thinking of ways that our clients can save on taxes. If you are selected for an audit, stand up to the IRS by getting representation. Tax problems are usually a serious matter and must be handled appropriately so it’s important to that you’ve hired the best lawyer for your particular situation. The tax attorneys at the Law Offices Of Jeffrey B. Kahn, P.C. located in Orange County (Irvine), Inland Empire (Ontario) and elsewhere in California are highly skilled in handling tax matters and can effectively represent at all levels with the IRS and State Tax Agencies including criminal tax investigations and attempted prosecutions, undisclosed foreign bank accounts and other foreign assets, and unreported foreign income.

 

On December 22, 2017, President Trump signed into law the 2017 Tax Cuts And Jobs Act. It’s been a good 30 years since the last time the Internal Revenue Code received such a major update.  With much discussion on the touted benefits of the plan, there has been very little discussion on what is missing.

Major Changes From The New Law Include:

• Compressed And Lower Income Tax Rates For Individuals.
• Increased Standard Deduction For Individuals
• Elimination Of Personal Exemptions
• Limitations of Deductibility Of Itemized Deductions including Mortgage Interest and State & Local Taxes.
• Lower Corporation Tax Rates.

More details on these changes and others will be forthcoming.

But What Is Missing In The New Law? 

U.S. Taxpayers Still Taxed On Worldwide Income.  There is no change to citizen based taxation for U.S. taxpayers.  That means that U.S. citizens and resident aliens who are subject to U.S. taxation will still have to report their worldwide income, including income from foreign trusts and foreign bank and securities accounts, on their U.S individual income tax returns. In most cases, affected taxpayers need to complete and attach Schedule B to their tax return. Part III of Schedule B asks about the existence of foreign accounts, such as bank and securities accounts, and usually requires U.S. citizens to report the country in which each account is located.

Repeal Of The Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (“FATCA”). There is no repeal of or for that matter any change in FATCA.  FATCA was enacted into law in 2010 to impose a reporting obligation by foreign financial institutions to report information on U.S. account holders so that it is received by the IRS.  It also mandates that U.S. citizens, resident aliens and certain non-resident aliens must report specified foreign financial assets on Form 8938 if the aggregate value of those assets exceeds certain thresholds. Reporting thresholds vary based on whether a taxpayer files a joint income tax return or lives abroad. The lowest reporting threshold for Form 8938 is $50,000 but varies by taxpayer.

 Other Filing Requirements If You Have Foreign Accounts Remain Unchanged.

By law, many U.S. taxpayers with foreign accounts exceeding certain thresholds must file Form 114, Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts, known as the “FBAR.” It is filed electronically with the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”).

Taxpayers with an interest in, or signature or other authority over, foreign financial accounts whose aggregate value exceeded $10,000 at any time during a calendar year must file FBARs. It is due by the due date of your Form 1040 and must be filed electronically through the BSA E-Filing System website.

By law, Americans living abroad, as well as many non-U.S. citizens, must file a U.S. income tax return. In addition, key tax benefits, such as the foreign earned income exclusion, are only available to those who file U.S. returns.

Penalties for non-compliance.

Civil Fraud – If your failure to file is due to fraud, the penalty is 15% for each month or part of a month that your return is late, up to a maximum of 75%.

Criminal Fraud – Any person who willfully attempts in any manner to evade or defeat any tax under the Internal Revenue Code or the payment thereof is, in addition to other penalties provided by law, guilty of a felony and, upon conviction thereof, can be fined not more than $100,000 ($500,000 in the case of a corporation), or imprisoned not more than five years, or both, together with the costs of prosecution (Code Sec. 7201).

The term “willfully” has been interpreted to require a specific intent to violate the law (U.S. v. Pomponio, 429 U.S. 10 (1976)). The term “willfulness” is defined as the voluntary, intentional violation of a known legal duty (Cheek v. U.S., 498 U.S. 192 (1991)).

Additionally, the penalties for FBAR noncompliance are stiffer than the civil tax penalties ordinarily imposed for delinquent taxes. For non-willful violations it is $10,000.00 per account per year going back as far as six years. For willful violations the penalties for noncompliance which the government may impose include a fine of not more than $500,000 and imprisonment of not more than five years, for failure to file a report, supply information, and for filing a false or fraudulent report.

Lastly, failing to file Form 8938 when required could result in a $10,000 penalty, with an additional penalty up to $50,000 for continued failure to file after IRS notification. A 40% penalty on any understatement of tax attributable to non-disclosed assets can also be imposed.

The Solution.

The IRS has special programs for taxpayers to come forward to disclose unreported foreign accounts and unreported foreign income. The main program is called the Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program (OVDP). OVDP offers taxpayers with undisclosed income from offshore accounts an opportunity to get current with their tax returns and information reporting obligations. The program encourages taxpayers to voluntarily disclose foreign accounts now rather than risk detection by the IRS at a later date and face more severe penalties and possible criminal prosecution.

For taxpayers who willfully did not comply with the U.S. tax laws, we recommend going into the 2014 Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program (OVDP). Under this program, you can get immunity from criminal prosecution and the one-time penalty is 27.5% of the highest aggregate value of your foreign income producing asset holdings.

For taxpayers who were non-willful, we recommend going into the Streamlined Procedures of OVDP. Under these procedures the penalty rate is 5% and if you are a foreign person, that penalty can be waived. This is a very popular program and we have had much success qualifying taxpayers and demonstrating to the IRS that their non-compliance was not willful.

What Should You Do?

Don’t delay because if the government finds out about you first, you will be subject to the maximum civil and maybe criminal penalties under the law.  Taxpayers who hire an experienced tax attorney in Offshore Account Voluntary Disclosures should result in avoiding any pitfalls and gaining the maximum benefits conferred by this program. Let the tax attorneys of the Law Offices Of Jeffrey B. Kahn, P.C. located in Orange County, San Jose and other California locations resolve your IRS tax problems, get you in compliance with your FBAR filing obligations, and minimize the chance of any criminal investigation or imposition of civil penalties.

 

With so many people whose lives were disrupted by the California wildfires, it is welcome relief that the Federal and State Tax Agencies are providing extra time to taxpayers to meet their tax obligations.

Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”)

The IRS announced that victims of wildfires ravaging parts of California now have until January 31, 2018, to file certain individual and business tax returns and make certain tax payments. This includes an additional filing extension for taxpayers with valid extensions that run out Monday, October 16, 2017.

Currently, the IRS is providing relief to seven California counties: Butte, Lake, Mendocino, Napa, Nevada, Sonoma and Yuba. Individuals and businesses in these localities, as well as firefighters and relief workers who live elsewhere, qualify for the extension. The agency will continue to closely monitor this disaster and may provide other relief to these and other affected localities.

The tax relief postpones various tax filing and payment deadlines that occurred starting on October 8, 2017. As a result, affected individuals and businesses will have until January 31, 2018, to file returns and pay any taxes originally due during this period.

This includes the January 16, 2018 deadline for making quarterly estimated tax payments. For individual tax filers, it also includes 2016 income tax returns that received a tax-filing extension until October 16, 2017. However, any payment that was due with the extension filed on April 18, 2017 but not paid until later will still be subject to a late-payment penalty.

A variety of business tax deadlines are also affected, including the October 31, 2017 deadline for quarterly payroll and excise tax returns. Calendar-year tax-exempt organizations whose 2016 extensions run out on November 15, 2017 also qualify for the extra time.

In addition, the IRS is waiving late-deposit penalties for federal payroll and excise tax deposits normally due after October 8, 2017 and before October 23, 2017, if the deposits are made by October 23, 2017.

The IRS automatically provides filing and penalty relief to any taxpayer with an IRS address of record located in the disaster area. Thus, taxpayers need not contact the IRS to get this relief. However, if an affected taxpayer receives a late filing or late payment penalty notice from the IRS that has an original or extended filing, payment or deposit due date falling within the postponement period, it would be necessary to contact the IRS to have the penalty abated.

The IRS will also work with any taxpayer who lives outside the disaster area but whose records necessary to meet a deadline occurring during the postponement period are located in the affected area. An example would be where the taxpayer’s representative is located in an affected area and is unable to help the taxpayer-client meet a tax deadline.

Individuals and businesses who suffered uninsured or unreimbursed disaster-related losses can choose to claim them on either the return for the year the loss occurred (in this instance, the 2017 return normally filed next year) or the return for the prior year (2016). See Publication 547 for details.

For a complete list of all disasters besides the recent California wildfires, see the IRS disaster relief webpage.

Franchise Tax Board (“FTB”)

The FTB announced that affected taxpayers are granted an extension to file 2016 California tax returns and make payments until January 31, 2018.

Taxpayers may deduct a disaster loss for any loss sustained in California that is proclaimed by the Governor to be in a state of emergency. For a complete list of all disasters, see the “Qualified Disasters” chart on FTB’s Disaster Loss webpage. This disaster page also has information on extended deadlines, filing instructions, and obtaining free copies of state returns.

In addition, the FTB automatically follows federal postponement periods for any presidentially declared disasters, the most recent being Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria. So a taxpayer who earns income in California can show that Hurricane Harvey impacted him or her, that taxpayer has extra time to file a California tax return. 

Importance To Preserve Records

Keep in mind that the IRS has up to three years to select a tax return for audit. The FTB has up to four years to select a tax return for audit. In some cases this period is extended to six years. When a taxpayer is selected for audit, the taxpayer has the burden of proof to show that expenses claimed are properly deductible. Having the evidence handy and organized makes meeting this burden of proof much easier.

Essential Records to Have for a Tax Audit

If you are getting ready for a tax audit, one of the most important things to do is gather and organize your tax records and receipts. There’s a good chance that you have a large amount of documents and receipts in your possession. No matter how organized you are, it can be a daunting task to collect the right pieces and make sure that you have them organized and handy for the audit conference.

We have seen many tax audits that hinge on whether or not the taxpayer can provide proper documentation for their previous tax filings. A tax lawyer in Orange County or elsewhere can make sure that the documentation is complete and proper.  By submitting this to your tax attorney in advance of the audit, your tax attorney can review your documentation and determine if there are any gaps that need to be addressed before starting the dialogue with the IRS agent.

So what are the most essential tax records to have ahead of your audit? Here are a few must-have items:

• Any W-2 forms from the previous year. This can include documents from full-time and part-time work, large casino and lottery winnings and more.
• Form 1098 records from your bank or lender on mortgage interest paid from the previous year.
• Records of any miscellaneous money you earned and reported to the IRS including work done as an independent contractor or freelancer, interest from savings accounts and stock dividends.
• Written letters from charities confirming your monetary donations from the previous year.
• Receipts for business expenses you claimed.
• Mileage Logs for business use of vehicle.
• Entertainment and Travel Logs for business activities.

Develop And Implement Your Backup Plan

Do not wait for the next disaster to come for then it may be too late to retrieve your important records for a tax audit or for that matter any legal or business matter. And if you do get selected for audit and do not have all the records to support what was claimed on your tax returns, you should contact an experienced tax attorney who can argue the application of your facts and circumstances to pursue the least possible changes in an audit.

The Law Offices Of Jeffrey B. Kahn, P.C. has helped many people minimize or avoid adjustments from IRS audits. Working with a tax attorney is the best bet for minimizing adjustments that would create liability to the IRS.

The adage “a little knowledge is a dangerous thing” is vividly — and sometimes catastrophically — illustrated when it comes to anything and everything to do with the IRS.

Indeed, the amount of so-called good advice available on the web and across social media that is partially or wholly incorrect is staggering, and many taxpayers (individuals and businesses) that believe they are sailing towards safe shores are, in fact, heading straight into a costly audit that could turn into criminal prosecution. Read more