Two weeks. That’s all the time that you have left to comply with the mandatory reporting accounts for foreign accounts for the calendar year 2014. The deadline for filing your FBAR, or federal form 114, Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts, is June 30. There are no extensions. You don’t file an FBAR with…
King Felipe VI of Spain has removed the title of “Duchess of Palma de Mallorca” from his sister, Princess Cristina, who faces criminal charges of tax evasion. It’s the second big shakeup in the Spanish Royal monarchy in the past two years. On June 19, 2014, King Juan Carlos I abdicated in favor of his…
It’s Fix The Tax Code Friday! This week, there has been a lot of focus on structuring following several high profile cases that made news, including charges against former Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert. Structuring occurs when large transactions are broken into smaller ones in order to avoid bank reporting requirements which kick in…
If you felt like your tax bill was a little bit higher this year, it wasn’t your imagination. Changes to the Tax Code, including the Net Income Investment Tax and the Medicare tax surcharge, help push taxes payable for many Americans upwards. Those higher tax bills helped grow revenues through fiscal year 2015 to date…
Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Commissioner John Koskinen, leading tax partners and state tax administrators have announced new steps to protect taxpayers from identity theft tax fraud, including a new collaborative effort between public and private sectors to protect taxpayers and their tax returns. The announcement was made at a press conference held earlier today, just…
Lionel Messi is having one roller coaster of a month. On Saturday, the FC Barcelona (“Barca”) soccer star helped boost his team to a 3-1 win over Juventus in the UEFA Champions League final, marking the fifth time that Barca has taken home the league trophy. While Messi didn’t score in that game, he clearly played a…
Forget your run of the mill tax evasion schemes. That’s so early 2000s. These days, it seems, structuring in order to avoid paying taxes is all the rage. Under federal law, banks are required to report transactions, including cash deposits and withdrawals, totaling more than $10,000 in any single day: this information is included on…
By now, you’ve probably either had a free doughnut or you’ve been thinking about having a free doughnut and with good reason: today is National Doughnut Day (or National Donut Day, depending on where you grew up). I know what you’re thinking. You think this is some marketing ploy recently dreamed up by bakers and…
Happy Cinco de Mayo! Contrary to popular belief, Cinco de Mayo isn’t Mexican Independence Day – that’s on September 16 (be sure and drop that casually tonight over tequila shots and margaritas and you’ll sound super smart). It is, instead, the anniversary of the Mexican army’s victory over France at the Battle of Puebla during…
Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Commissioner John Koskinen was back on the Hill this week, together with J. Russell George, The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA), to testify before members of Congress. This time, both were asked about the unauthorized access to the “Get Transcript” application on the IRS website. The hearing was a…