tax penalties

Streamlined Filing Procedures for Taxpayers Living Outside the United States

March 22, 2017 | by Dennis N. Brager

The IRS streamlined filing compliance procedures allow eligible taxpayers to avoid potentially disastrous penalties and resolve their offshore bank account problems. Taxpayers who have failed to file Foreign Bank Account Reports (FBARs) and report their income from foreign financial accounts on their tax returns can face penalties of up to $10,000 per violation for non-willful violations, and penalties of up to $250,000 and five years in prison for violations that are deemed willful; not to mention civil penalties of over $100,000 per violation, at a minimum.

The streamlined procedures can help taxpayers correct their past mistakes and avoid these penalties. There are different procedures, and different penalties for taxpayers that reside in the U.S. and taxpayers that live outside the U.S., but both types of taxpayers are eligible for this program.

Most importantly, these procedures are only available to taxpayers whose failure to file FBARs was non-willful. This means the conduct must have been due to negligence, inadvertence, mistake, or a good faith misunderstanding of the law. Taxpayers who have willfully failed to file FBARs may be eligible for the Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program, which has some of the same benefits, but also involves much higher penalties.

What to Do If You Are Accused of Tax Fraud

March 21, 2017 | by Dennis N. Brager

Tax fraud is a crime that involves intentional wrongdoing when failing to comply with a tax law. If you simply make a mistake when filing your taxes, the IRS may charge you with civil penalties, but they will not pursue any criminal charges. If, however, the IRS believes that you intentionally failed to meet your obligations as a taxpayer, you could face criminal penalties and jail time.

Tax fraud can result in up to 5 years and prison and a $500,000 fine. The IRS does not commonly pursue criminal charges, so if they have singled you out for a criminal tax violation, you should immediately consult with a tax attorney.

What to Do If You Are Accused of Tax Fraud

What Are the Potential Penalties for IRS Tax Fraud?

February 28, 2017 | by Dennis N. Brager

The idea of being sent to prison for making a mistake on your tax return may seem ridiculous — and also scary — to the average taxpayer. With so many regulations to follow that even IRS employees can become confused, how can a lay person with no tax expertise be charged criminally for messing up their taxes?

Actually, they cannot be charged criminally if an honest mistake was made. While tax fraud can results in both civil and criminal penalties, there is a higher standard of proof for criminal charges. The IRS must prove criminal tax fraud “beyond a reasonable doubt”, whereas a civl tax fraud penalty can be imposed if there is “clear and convincing evidence”.

The IRS Must Prove You Intended to Commit Tax Fraud

With What IRS Penalties and Charges Can Tax Preparers Be Charged?

February 21, 2017 | by Dennis N. Brager

The IRS can go after professional tax preparers with many different penalties related to filing inaccurate or fraudulent tax returns. Targeting tax preparers allows the IRS to affect a large number of tax returns because each tax preparer can be responsible for completing tax returns for hundreds of taxpayers.

Some of the penalties related to understatement of tax that the IRS can charge tax preparers with include:

IRC § 6694(a) – Understatement due to unreasonable positions. The penalty is the greater of $1,000 or 50% of the income derived by the tax return preparer with respect to the return or claim for refund.

The Most Common Criminal Tax Violations

February 16, 2017 | by Dennis N. Brager

The IRS reported 2,672 convictions for criminal tax violations in the 2016 fiscal year. While criminal tax charges are not common, the penalties —which can include jail time — are severe enough to cause any taxpayer to be concerned.

Most criminal tax penalties can result in a five-year prison sentence and $100,000 fine. You can also be charged with civil penalties for the same violations, and you may have any professional licenses revoked.

Common Criminal Tax Violations

Can You Request the IRS Waive Penalties Based on Medical Hardship?

February 14, 2017 | by Dennis N. Brager

The IRS may offer penalty relief for taxpayers who can show a reasonable cause for failing to file tax returns or pay taxes. IRS penalties can be waived in certain cases, but the IRS will examine all of the facts and circumstances to determine if a reasonable cause exists in your particular case.

A typical situation that the IRS will consider a sound reason for failing to file or pay taxes is death, serious illness, incapacitation, or unavoidable absence of the taxpayer or a member of the taxpayer’s immediate family. If you owe a substantial amount of IRS penalties, you may want to consult with a tax attorney.

Facts Need to Establish Reasonable Cause Due to Medical Hardship

Can an Employee Be Held Liable for Their Employer’s Unpaid Taxes?

January 31, 2017 | by Dennis N. Brager

An employee can be held liable for their employer’s unpaid taxes in certain situations. While most businesses withhold their employees’ income and payroll taxes and then transmit them to the IRS, there are cases where employers either do not withhold taxes or do not give the withheld money to the IRS. Employees need to be aware of their responsibilities as both taxpayers and a person responsible for collecting and paying a business’s income or payroll taxes.

Liability for Employee’s Unpaid Taxes

If your employer fails to withhold income or payroll taxes from your paycheck, you are still responsible for paying these taxes to the IRS. If you do not pay these taxes personally, you may face tax penalties, and you may not be eligible for Social Security, Medicare, or unemployment benefits.

What Are the Penalties for Failing to File IRS Tax Returns?

January 10, 2017 | by Dennis N. Brager

Timely filing of IRS tax returns is always preferable to missing deadlines and facing tax return penalties for doing so. Failing to file tax returns leaves you liable for some potentially expensive penalties. Depending on how late, the amount of taxes involved and how many years of returns are delinquent, the consequences can be quite severe.

Here is a look at the penalties for failing to file tax returns:

Failure-to-file penalties begin after the April 15 deadline and accrue at a rate of 5% of the amount owed, per month or part of a month up to a maximum of 25%.

IRS Programs Available to Help with Tax Problems

January 3, 2017 | by Dennis N. Brager

When faced with tax problems, managing the debt without destroying your budget can be daunting. Depending on how much you owe, it could take years to get out from under the financial burden. The longer it takes, the more penalties you face, including interest and potential tax liens or levied assets.

Fortunately, the IRS offers several programs to ease that burden and in some cases reduce the total amount you will need to repay. These programs have been augmented to provide greater tax relief as part of an IRS policy change known as the Fresh Start Program.

Offers in Compromise (OIC)

Can I Go to Jail for Failure to File Tax Returns?

December 13, 2016 | by Dennis N. Brager

Failure to file tax returns can be classified as tax fraud by the IRS. While that term does manage to make it sound much more serious, failure to file by itself doesn’t often result in jail time. Still it’s not impossible—just ask Wesley Snipes! Usually though, the government wants taxpayers earning money so it can collect those taxes. Sending non-payers to prison isn’t going to facilitate that.

The federal or California state government would have to be convinced that your failure to file taxes was intentional before considering something as severe as a jail term. Failure to file over many years, coupled with other bad conduct such as hiding assets, for example, could be subject to criminal penalties including imprisonment and/or fines. In lesser cases, you are more likely going to be liable for back taxes and civil penalties, plus interest.

Failure to File Tax Returns and Failure to Pay