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The article offers information on how small accounting firms are succeeding by adopting modern technology and innovative approaches. Topics discussed include the shift from traditional audit and tax services to year-round advisory roles; the use of advanced technology for efficiency and remote work; and the importance of finding and developing niche markets for better client engagement.

The article focuses on the implications of increased Internal Revenue Service (IRS) funding from the Inflation Reduction Act and its potential impact on tax professionals. Topics include the IRS's enhanced enforcement efforts targeting high-income and high-wealth individuals; the use of advanced technology and data analytics to improve tax compliance; and the increased risk of malpractice claims for Certified Public Accountants (CPAs) due to heightened scrutiny and potential audit adjustments.

The article focuses on the challenges faced by CPAs who specialize in one area of practice, such as tax matters, while neglecting to understand the risks associated with providing limited services outside their focus area, particularly in light of recent revisions to the AICPA's Statements on Standards for Tax Services (SSTSs). It highlights the importance of all CPAs being aware of these revisions and understanding their implications.

The article focuses on variety of 'reportable transactions' require transparency with the IRS.

The article explores financial and investment advisers should seek to understand the implications of a legislative proposal originally set forth in the American Families Plan that would severely limit benefits historically provided by Sec. 1031 of the Internal Revenue Code. Under the proposal, the deferral of capital gains from the exchange of real property used in a trade or business, or of investment property, would be limited to $500,000 ($1 million for married individuals filing jointly).

The article focuses on the practical guide to economic nexus. Topics discussed include New sales tax nexus standards are creating a larger compliance footprint for U.S. companies and, potentially, foreign entities selling into the U.S.; and investigates what companies and identifies potential legal arguments in this new area of tax jurisprudence.

The article offers information about the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA) has enacted changes to the tax law that have proved costly to some tax-exempt organizations in the U.S. It mentions that TCJA has amended law to provide less-favorable rules for computing tax on unrelated business income, added a tax on the investment income of larger private colleges and universities and added an excise tax on excess compensation paid to certain executives and other highly paid employees.

In this article the author talks about how the kiddie tax calculations have changed once again, why Congress repealed the TCJA's version of the kiddie tax, and how best to deal with these changes for children subject to this tax. It mentions that the kiddie tax returns to pre TCJA rules wherein a child's unearned income is taxed at the parent's marginal tax rate, for 2018 and 2019, a child can choose between TCJA rules and pre-TCJA rules for computing the kiddie tax.

The article offers information on considerations for Internal Revenue Service (IRS) appeals. Topics discussed include information on appeals of taxpayer related to the arguments of the taxpayer and the revenue agent (RA); information on Revenue Agent Report (RAR) that describe how the adjustment to the taxpayer's tax liability was determined; and invalid rulings from Treasury because they have been superseded or obsoleted.

The article focuses on avoiding fallout from aggressive tax strategies. Topics discussed include Taxpayers were assessed substantial penalties, and CPAs were penalized as well; and CPAs acting as promoters of syndicated conservation easements pleaded guilty to criminal conspiracy charges, and a Big Four firm admitted to criminal wrongdoing, paying fines, restitution, and penalties to defer prosecution related to son-of-boss strategies.

The article discusses how formal enterprise risk management (ERM) implementation can help federal agencies and risk management practices can lead to more transparency and better decision-making. Topics include the successful adoption of enterprise risk management (ERM) can assist agencies by improving efficiency, increasing transparency, and allowing the government to be a more effective steward of taxpayer resources.

The article focuses on the tax compliance of accounting for merger and acquisition of corporations. It presents information on the type of merger and acquisition transaction as mentioned in the merger and purchase agreements. It also includes information on the stock and asset acquisition of the C corporations and S corporations.

The article features an interview with James Tilk, Director of Solutions Strategy at BlackLine, discussing the challenges of intercompany operations. Factors like globalization, regulations, global trade, and global Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A) increase complexity and the risk of mistakes. Tilk emphasizes the need for clean processes, collaboration, and Intercompany Financial Management (IFM) to improve efficiency, accuracy, and compliance.

The article focuses on the move of the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to issue final regulations on the treatment of internal-use software for purposes of calculating the research credit and are largely mirror the taxpayer friendly proposed regulations issued in 2015 with some changes. Service-based companies investing in technology will get support for the position that those costs are eligible for the research credit following the issuance of regulations.

An interview with Calvin Leong, application programming interface (API) Solutions Consultant at Thomson Reuters, is presented. Topics include worked with different firms to create integration and automation within their workflow using the different product APIs; and service APIs like GoSystem Tax API can import or export values and statuses from a tax return.

The article reports that Tax Court has concluded that taxpayer was required to pay interest and taxes on income resulting from the disallowance in equity investments. It mentions that John Sensenig, a licensed public accountant, was shareholder Conestoga Log Cabins Leasing Inc. (CLCL). It also mentions that taxpayer is entitled under Sec. 166(a) has worthless within the tax year.

The article discusses the potential pitfalls of the Section 475 election despite the potential tax benefits it brings for taxpayers in the U.S. The authors provide an overview about the prospects and consequences of a Section 475 election. Also tackled are the necessity for dealers, traders and investors and securites and commodities to identify who may make a Sec. 475 election..

The IRS Large Business and International (LB&I) Division stated in a memo (LB&I-04-0420-0009) on April 14, 2020, that as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, it will generally not begin [...]

In Fact Sheet FS-2019-15 issued in November, the IRS described its plans for revenue officers to make personal visits to noncompliant taxpayers. These efforts will be focused in areas where [...]

Only about 83.6% of taxes owed in 2011 through 2013 was voluntarily paid, leaving a 'tax gap' of $441 billion per year on average, the IRS reported in late September [...]

The article provides a general overview of major transfer-pricing issues facing practitioners in the U.S. from a financial reporting and tax perspective. It discusses the difficulty in applying transfer pricing, and shows that it is an area of high-tax-compliance risk for multinational corporations. The determination of an arm's-length transfer price and the uncertain tax benefits arising from transfer-pricing issues are examined.

The article focuses on tax matters in the U.S., including U.S. Tax Court judgments on topics including fraud prevention, late filing penalties, and disclosure rules on taxpayer information. The expansion of the voluntary classification settlement program is also discussed, along with the mandatory language used in disclosure consent documents.

The article looks at U.S. efforts to address tax evasion carried out through maintaining bank accounts overseas, as of January 2013. It discusses the U.S. Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA)'s reporting requirements for U.S. taxpayers with foreign holdings and for foreign financial institutions (FFIs) with U.S. account holders. It notes the law also imposes tax withholding requirements on FFIs in certain cases. It cites a form created by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to implement FATCA, the Statement of Specified Foreign Financial Assets form. The IRS's voluntary disclosure program for U.S. taxpayers who have been out of compliance with foreign asset rules is also discussed. INSET: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY.

The article looks at policies of the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as of 2012 regarding individuals who do not have the ability to pay taxes owed in full. The author notes that regardless of ability to pay, it is always best to file on time, and says the IRS has expanded its programs for working with taxpayers to address past tax liabilities. She describes the agency's Fresh Start program, under which taxpayers can easily seek permission to pay tax arrears in installments. She also says that the agency may settle tax debts for less than the original amount owed, referred to as offers in compromise (OIC).

The article discusses mergers and acquisitions as a potential growth strategy for corporations persisting through difficult economic conditions, and describes the process of tax compliance for acquiring corporations. According to the article, legal, information technology (IT), and human resources departments should cooperate to consider tax elements during integration. Topics include contractual indemnifications of tax liabilities in stock acquisitions, due diligence, and the release of valuation allowances (VAs) for acquiring company deferred tax assets (DTAs).

The article discusses the different important aspects of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA), which is a major component of the push of the U.S. federal government for increased tax compliance among taxpayers with foreign accounts in the U.S. It says that FATCA is part of the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment (HIRE) Act. According to the author, the possible effect of FATCA on U.S. taxpayers with foreign assets and accounts is difficult to overstate. According to the author, FATCA imposes a second filing requirement on U.S. taxpayers with foreign assets and accounts. The required components of a FATCA disclosure are also mentioned. INSET: EXECUTIVE SUMMARY.

The article discusses a court case wherein the Tax Court ruled the relief of an innocent spouse from granted interest and penalties in the U.S. Topics discussed include an overview of the case, the Tax Court's ruling on the ignorance of the taxpayer on his spouse's failure in mailing the completed return, the presentation of the case's facts, and its issues.

The article discusses the strategies that must be considered when dealing with the additional tax, and a 3.8% net investment income tax may also apply to certain high-income taxpayers. Topics including the postponement of income, acceleration of deductions, net investment income tax, and retirement planning are also discussed.

The article focuses on the final reporting regulations for specified foreign financial assets using the Statement of Specified Foreign Financial Assets form which is part of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act. It mentions that the regulations offer an exception for dual-resident taxpayers who are taxed as residents of a treaty partner country.

The article reports on the implementation of several bills by the House of Representatives for the opening of the 2015 tax processing season in the U.S. It highlights several provisions including health insurance, premium tax credit and business tax. It also cites the responsibility of the taxpayers to pay taxes during the filing season to inspect the documents and records for tax savings.

The article discusses the consequences of the employee-independent contractor reclassification by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service for small business. In 1988, the IRS began a nationwide employment tax examination program (ETEP) to increase compliance by requiring businesses to treat misclassified independent contractors as employees subject to withholding taxes. Employers classifying workers as employees must withhold federal unemployment tax and various state employment taxes. Between October 1987 and December 1991, the General Accounting Office reported that 6,900 ETEP audits resulted in $468 million of proposed assessments and reclassification of 338,000 workers as employees. In some cases, taxpayers can obtain relief from reclassification by taking advantage of Internal Revenue Code section 530, which absolves employers of prior employers of prior employment tax liability if they meet certain sate haven requirements. Reclassification of a worker from independent contractor to employee for federal purposes is likely to cause a similar reclassification for state tax purposes.

The article highlights the issue on the new civil tax penalty. The U. S. Congress passed the Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act of 1989, one of its many elements was subtitle G, the Improved Penalty Administration and Compliance Tax Act. Subtitle G contained a new penalty structure that governs both taxpayers and tax return prepares and applies to returns due, positions taken, documents prepared and activities after December 31,1989. An overview of the structure of the new penalty is highlighted. There is also an analysis on what impact the changes will have on tax practitioners, who now must exercise a new standard of care in preparing tax returns.

This article details how complex tax laws have come about, why vested interests increase complexity and what can be done to encourage simplification of the law. The tax system of the United States is founded on voluntary compliance. Complexity erodes this foundation and reduces revenues. Ultimately, when the tax laws are difficult to understand and comply with, taxpayers lose their respect for the system itself. Complexity in the tax system requires hours of expensive professional talent and mountains of paperwork. Good tax advisers can help arrange their clients' affairs to minimize the clients' burden. INSETS: Open letter on tax simplification;Open letter on tax simplification.

The article deals with the tax gap, the reorganization of the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the team-audit approach of the service. The term tax gap has been defined as the amount of tax which does not flow to the government because of non-compliance. Its magnitude in 1981 was $95 billion. It was made up of about $87 billion of tax underreported in the legal sectors of the economy and $8 billion of tax underreported from the illegal sectors. The tax gap bas a debilitating effect on the tax system. It lends credence to the perception by the complying taxpayer that everyone is not hearing a fair share of the load. It tends to attract adherents to its side as it grows. The remedy may lie in a number of areas. These include greater staffing for the IRS. Another approach to the problem is to provide stiffer penalties for noncompliance. About four years ago when the service was considering moving from a two-level tax appeal system to a single-level system, attention was directed to the tremendous span of control and immense workload that fell on the deputy commissioner. At that time, consideration was given to establishing two deputy commissioners. This gave rise to the current reorganizational plan. This reorganization plan has necessitated the restaffing of some 40 positions in the IRS national office. This gives the service the opportunity to renew attention to problems of tax administration to achieve greater efficiency. Turning to the Coordinated Examination Program, in 1966 the service recognized the inefficiency of the one-person, one-taxpayer approach to conducting large-case examinations. Subsequently, the service devised a team-audit approach in dealing with the large corporate organization. The service also has organized a system of industry specialization. Finally, the IRS bas developed facilities for international coordination in the examination of multinational corporations.

The article discusses a court case wherein the Tax Court has denied the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) summary judgment. The Tax court has concluded that the phrase, termination for cause, in the in the taxpayers' restricted stock and employment agreements did not have the same meaning as discharged for cause in Regs. Sec. 1.83-3(c)(2). It also held that an employment agreement's requirements constitute an earnout provision that could create a substantial risk of forfeiture under the section.

This article focuses on audit compliance in taxation as practiced by the United States Internal Revenue Service and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. Several items were considered discussed in the article. First, the Internal Revenue Service appeals and procedures which include Audit and Appellate. Second, computer audits and revenue rule. Third, audits during the tax season and cyclical filing of returns. Fourth, auditing of related returns by one district.

The article presents a corporation tax return review sheet. Law practitioner Jackson L. Boughner has prepared the review sheet. The sheet addresses the complexities of corporation tax returns. The increasing complexities of corporation tax returns are making it more and more difficult for the small practitioner to he sure each return is complete and nothing is overlooked. An oversight might be serious and costly, or it might just be embarrassing.

The article presents a discussion on the reactions of the U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to suggestions on reopening closed cases and restricted consents. To the suggestion that a closing agreement be used in virtually every audit, it would appear to be wholly impracticable. On the other hand, a taxpayer is never refused a closing agreement solely because it gives no advantage to the government. With respect to the raising of new issues, the IRS suggests that new issues are never to be raised capriciously, indiscriminately, promiscuously or haphazardly and are never, under any circumstances, to be raised for bargaining purposes. Essentially the new policy on closed cases will foreclose reopening of an audited return unless: there is evidence of fraud, malfeasance, collusion, concealment or misrepresentation of a material fact; the prior closing involved a clearly defined substantial error based upon an established IRS position existing at the time of the prior examination; other circumstances are present that indicate failure to reopen would be a serious administrative omission.

This article discusses the problem of allocating income between controlled taxpayers in accordance with Section 482 of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code. The purpose of Section 482 is to place a controlled taxpayers on a tax parity with an uncontrolled taxpayer, by determining, according to the standard of an uncontrolled taxpayer, the true taxable income from the property and business of a controlled taxpayer. The standard to be applied in every case is that of an uncontrolled taxpayer dealing at arm's length with another uncontrolled taxpayer.

The article reports that general tax rules for income recognition under an accrual method of accounting were changed in the law known as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA). It notes that accrual-method taxpayers to include amounts in gross income when all the events occurred that fix the right to receive the income and the amount of income can be determined with reasonable accuracy. It adds that an accrual-method taxpayer is required to recognize income no later than the tax year.

The article reports that Tax Court held that a notice of deficiency sent to husband-and-wife taxpayers' previous home address shown on their latest filed tax return was valid. It notes that the two forms submitted by the taxpayers were not returns and did not provide the IRS with clear and concise notification. It adds that the Tax Court held that the taxpayers had not provided the IRS with clear and concise notification of their address change.

This article discusses specific taxation rules for the 2004 filing season in the U.S. A taxpayer's sale or exchange of investment securities generally does not qualify for nonrecognition of gain as a like-kind exchange. However, when taxpayers sell securities that they have held for at least three years in a C corporation that isn't publicly traded to an employee stock ownership plan, they can elect not to recognize gain on the sale and reinvest the proceeds in replacement property. The nonrecognition of gain is temporary if the taxpayer subsequently disposes of the replacement property by other than a corporate reorganization, death or gift. Under a duly filed election, in the event of a taxpayer's death, the replacement property is included in his or her gross estate at fair market value, thus permanently avoiding federal income tax on the deferred gain. Evidence of intent is an essential requirement to overcome a failure to file an election. Taxpayers can argue substantial compliance when they have provided most of the information required by the statute or regulations and the omitted information is not significant. Omitting income that otherwise would be excluded under a duly filed election from a tax return is not sufficient evidence of intent.

This article presents news briefs related to taxation in the U.S. It is reported that CPAs may want to remind clients with excess inventory that they can earn a federal tax deduction when the product is donated to charity. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced that it was delaying its program that would allow it to update taxpayers' addresses using the U.S. Postal Service's national change of address (NCOA) database. Also the IRS expanded its voluntary tip compliance programs from the food and beverage, gaming and hairstyling industries to all those in which tipping is customary. A chart showing federal spending levels on States is included, showing that some states receive more in federal outlays than their residents pay in federal taxes. And it was reported that the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System (EFTPS), which allows businesses to make their federal tax payments electronically, set record highs for the year 2000.

The article informs that Virgin Islands Bureau of Internal Revenue (VIBIR) of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has revealed transmittal of Form 1040, U.S. Individual Income Tax Return. It is noted that the IRS has audited the partial returns and in 2009 issued a notice of deficiency for both years. the Coffeys timely filed petitions to contest the deficiencies.

This article focuses on the move of several U.S. states to emphasize tax collection as a means of raising revenues. A 1991 study by sales tax consulting group Vertex Inc. revealed that companies are more likely to be audited for state sales and use tax compliance than they were just a few years ago. These moves can be attributed to the following factors: state budget constraints; the need to attract businesses to create jobs and raise revenues; and convenience of implementing the process.

The article focuses on a decision made by the U.S. Federal Circuit that the abandonment of a claim for reimbursement of a theft loss is not important to prove a reasonable certainty that no reimbursement will be received. The federal court held that the lower court had erred in identifying when taxpayers could deduct a loss from a fraudulent investment scheme.

The article discusses a court case wherein the Tax Court ruled the entitlement of a taxpayer in claiming the American opportunity tax credit. Topics discussed include an overview of the case, the Tax Court's attribution of the American opportunity tax credit to an unreported amount on Form 1098-T, the presentation of the case's facts, and its issues.

The article focuses on the settlement and discharge of the U.S. Department of Education federal student loans for Corinthian Colleges Inc.-owned campus students. Topics discussed include the failure of taxpayers to recognize income for discharged loans, the exclusion of a taxpayer's loan from gross income, and the discharge process of the loan.

The article focuses on the decision of the tax court on a joint federal income tax return that was not signed by one of the spouses in the U.S. It provides overview of the background of the case involving couple Bradley and Nancy Refler who filed their 2000 joint federal income tax return prepared, however, it turned that the wife was not able to sign the documents. It also indicates that the couple has failed to exercise ordinary business care and prudence in their tax return.

The article focuses on the two-year budget deal passed by the Congress and signed by President Barack Obama, which affects partnership returns filed for tax years beginning after December 31, 2017. It examines the provisions of the new regulation which replaces the partnership audit and adjustment rule. It also notes that the regulation introduces new procedures regarding the notices of proceedings and adjustment, assessment collection and payment of the taxation.