FBI Case Exposes Massive Telefraud Scheme
Posted by Kim Chen on January 3rd, 2017
Do you dread getting phone calls from unfamiliar sources? It seems that callers are more likely to be aggressive solicitors, pushy telemarketers or even devious con artists than legitimate business people. Criminals typically target the elderly, disabled people or immigrants, threatening them with fines, penalties or deportation if they don’t make payments to the callers. […]
IRS Launches Second Year of “Taxes. Security. Together.” Campaign
Posted by Kim Chen on December 24th, 2016
The IRS and its Security Summit partners have announced the launch of the second year of the “Taxes. Security. Together.” campaign. The campaign encourages taxpayers to adopt stronger measures to protect their financial and tax data. The program features a series of security awareness tax tips, a collection of suggestions on the campaign’s website, and […]
Casualty Loss Deduction Denied Due to Failure to Prove Basis
Posted by Kim Chen on December 20th, 2016
On their timely-filed 2010 return, an Oklahoma couple claimed a casualty loss deduction for two tornado-damaged parcels of land they owned. The IRS issued a deficiency notice, disallowing the entire $127,900 deduction ($88,000 for one parcel, $39,900 for the other) and assessing an accuracy-related penalty. At trial, the couple established, to the Tax Court’s satisfaction, […]
New Version of Form I-9 Released
Posted by Kim Chen on December 16th, 2016
The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) has released a new version of Form I-9 (Employment Eligibility Verification). Dated 11/14/16, the form includes several changes, including prompts to ensure information is entered correctly, the ability to enter multiple preparers and translators, a dedicated area for additional information, and a supplemental page for the preparer/translator. According […]
ITIN Renewal Guidance
Posted by Kim Chen on December 12th, 2016
The IRS is encouraging individuals with expiring Individual Taxpayer Identification Numbers (ITINs) to start the renewal process before year-end to avoid delays at tax time. ITINs are issued by the IRS to individuals with a federal tax filing or reporting requirement who don’t have and aren’t eligible to obtain a Social Security number (e.g., foreign […]
