With the enactment of Sec. 6695A, the IRS was given new responsibilities to ensure the quality of appraisals and appraisers who provided information in support of a taxpayer’s federal tax filings.
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IRS Practice & Procedure
Taxpayer Representation in the Shadow of Preparer Discipline
Tax practitioners at times must balance client interests and their own professional interests. This issue takes on even greater import when the CPA is representing a client before the IRS.
PTIN Renewal System Reopens
Two weeks after the end of the government shutdown, the IRS reopened its registration system for renewing preparer tax identification numbers (PTINs) for the 2014 filing season.
IRS Releases Inflation Adjustments for 2014
The IRS issued the annual inflation adjustments for 2014 for more than 40 tax provisions and the tax tables for 2014.
Social Security Wage Base Rises to $117,000 for 2014
The Social Security Administration announced that the wage base above which taxes for old age, survivors, and disability insurance (OASDI) are not due will increase from $113,700 to $117,000 in 2014.
Ineffective Income and Withholding Verification Hinder IRS in Detecting Fraudulent Returns
A TIGTA report concluding that inadequate income and withholding verification results in the IRS’s missing many fraudulent returns.
Filing Season Will Be Delayed, IRS Says
The IRS announced a delay of one or two weeks in the start of the 2014 filing season as a result of the 16-day government shutdown to allow adequate time for the IRS to prepare and test systems.
IRS and Tax Court Reopen After Government Shutdown; PTIN Renewals Delayed
After the president signed the bill reopening the federal government, the IRS and Tax Court announced that they are back open for business. But the IRS also announced a delay in 2014 PTIN renewals.
Government Shutdown, Debt Ceiling Deal Includes One Tax Provision
Wednesday’s deal to fund the federal government through Jan. 15 and to extend the federal government’s borrowing authority through Feb. 7 in the end contained only one tax provision, making a minor change to 2010’s health care legislation.
Federal Courts to Stay Open Through Oct. 17
The federal judiciary announced on Thursday that federal courts will remain open through Thursday, Oct. 17, unless the government shutdown is resolved and court funding is restored before then.
IRS Not Issuing Liens or Levies, Enforcement Actions Limited, During Shutdown
The IRS updated its website to notify taxpayers that, during the current government shutdown, the IRS is not sending out liens or levies either generated automatically or sent by personnel.
IRS Tackles Inefficiency in Its Examinations of Large Taxpayers
The IRS sees an opportunity to create a more efficient form of oversight for large taxpayer examinations so it can redirect resources to other pressing compliance challenges.
IRS Tightens Penalty Relief
Recent IRS actions suggest a movement away from granting penalty relief. Recent budget cuts, furloughs, and negative press have exacerbated the trend by significantly decreasing IRS resources, resulting in slower responses to taxpayer inquiries.
Tax Court Closed During Government Shutdown; IRS Announces No Refunds
With the federal government shutting down at midnight on Sept. 30, the Tax Court announced that, unlike other federal courts, it is closing during the shutdown.
How the Government Shutdown Affects Taxpayers and Tax Practitioners
The shutdown of the federal government on Oct. 1 involves a large number of federal government functions, including many affecting taxpayers and tax practitioners.
“At Least You Still Have Your Identity”
Tax-related identity theft has become a huge and growing problem in this country, and it is critical for the AICPA to play a thoughtful and forceful role in solving the problem, along with Congress the IRS, and CPAs.
Foreign Citizen Denied Refund of Erroneously Withheld Taxes
The Federal Circuit upheld the IRS’s denial of a request for refund of erroneously withheld taxes because the taxpayer filed his claim for a refund well after the end of the three-year lookback period in Sec. 6511(b)(2)(A).
IRS Releases Government Shutdown Contingency Plan
The IRS released its contingency plan for what it will do if the federal government shuts down Oct. 1.
Streamlined Procedures for Post-Windsor FICA Refunds Are Released
The IRS announced the procedures employers should follow for filing refund claims for overpaid FICA and income taxes paid on employer-provided benefits for same-sex spouses that, because of the Supreme Court’s Windsor decision, are now tax free.
New York State Proposes to Regulate Tax Return Preparers
The New York State Department of Taxation and Finance has proposed amendments to its Personal Income Tax Regulations and Procedural Regulations to regulate tax return preparers.
employee benefits & pensions
Profits interests: The most tax-efficient equity grant to employees
By granting them a profits interest, entities taxed as partnerships can reward employees with equity. Mistakes, however, could cause challenges from taxing authorities.
