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Hurricane Ian: IRS Extends Deadline for All Floridians to February 15 September 29, 2022
The IRS announced today that because the state of Florida has been declared a disaster zone that tax deadlines for Floridians have been extended until February 15, 2023. This includes the individual and C-Corporation extended deadline of October 17th, the trust/estate (Form 1041) extension deadline of September 30th, payroll tax deadlines of October 31st and […]
Russ
The Trouble With Identity Protection Verification Notices September 16, 2022
The IRS sends two types of Identity Protection Verification Letters: LTR 4883C and LTR 5071C. If you receive a LTR 4883C, you must call the IRS’s Identity Protection unit so that your return is processed. If you receive a LTR 5071C, you can generally respond online and have your return processed. There are three main […]
Russ
Student Loan Forgiveness: Should You File or Wait? August 25, 2022
With President Biden’s announcement of forgiving student loans, there are some obvious questions: Will this be taxed by the IRS? Will this be taxed by the states with income taxes? Will this be upheld by the courts? When will there be guidance on this? When should impacted taxpayers file? We have answers to some of […]
Russ
If You Haven’t Filed Your 2019 and/or 2020 Tax Returns, You Have One Month to Do So and Avoid Late Filing Penalties August 24, 2022
Earlier today, the IRS announced extremely broad penalty relief for 2019 and 2020 late-filed tax returns. Here’s the beginning of the IRS’s press release: To help struggling taxpayers affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Internal Revenue Service today issued Notice 2022-36, which provides penalty relief to most people and businesses who file certain 2019 or […]
Russ
IRS: Let’s Spend $5 (At Least) to Disallow $0.11 August 21, 2022
When you file an amended return, you’re actually making a claim for refund. Tax professionals have been filing (for their clients) amended payroll tax returns (Form 941) to obtain the Economic Recovery Credit (ERC). I’ve done two (so far), and have a few more to go. Another tax professional filed one claiming a $19,746.61 refund. […]
Russ
Answering to a Higher Authority August 10, 2022
Robert Brockman, the 2020 Tax Offender of the Year, passed away last weekend. Mr. Brockman was facing a 39-count indictment for tax fraud and related charges; his trial was set for this coming February. Mr. Brockman’s attorneys argued that he was incompetent to stand trial due to dementia; however, the judge had ruled him competent. […]
Russ
Do IRS Employees Know the Postmark Rule? July 22, 2022
So what’s the postmark rule? The IRS notes this on their website: Your return is considered filed on time if the envelope is properly addressed, has enough postage, is postmarked, and is deposited in the mail by the due date. If you file electronically, the date and time in your time zone when your return […]
Russ
Standard Mileage Rate Increases Beginning July 1st June 9, 2022
The IRS announced today that the standard mileage rate for the second half of 2022 will be $0.625/mile, up from $0.585/mile. As the IRS notes: In recognition of recent gasoline price increases, the IRS made this special adjustment for the final months of 2022. The IRS normally updates the mileage rates once a year in […]
Russ
Contributing to the IRS’s Paper Backlog May 20, 2022
A client of ours has filed Form 2553 three times to elect S-Corporation status. The first time, his attorney sent the form to the IRS. The second time, my client mailed the form (right before the pandemic began). The third time, I faxed the form (now 13 months ago). As of today, the IRS has […]
Russ
Depressing May 5, 2022
TIGTA (the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration) came out this morning with its interim report on the 2022 Tax Filing Season. I would love to report statistics that make me feel warm and fuzzy; instead, we’re left with more of the same: lots and lots of items sitting around in bins (both virtual and […]
Russ