The Internal Revenue Service has announced that new tax glossaries are available in Chinese (simplified), Chinese (traditional), Korean, Russian, and Vietnamese. A Spanish version was previously made available online to view and as a pdf to download. The Chinese, Korean, Russian and Vietnamese versions of Publication 850 are only available as a download and not yet…
Apparently not. It’s rare that I blog about client matters. I like to keep them private for a variety of reasons, not the least of which are ethical considerations. But a recent client matter has me steamed. Really steamed. And it’s blog-worthy. I’ll keep it generic. A client had a tax matter that needed immediate…
Okay, not really leaks but it made for a clever headline. The Swamp has published a letter that Senator John Kerry (D – MA) wrote to the Senate Committee on Finance regarding the possibility that Blackwater has misclassified employees for tax purposes. The letter follows: October 26, 2007 The Honorable Max Baucus Chairman Committee on…
There’s a great post over at Election Law by Donald B. Tobin about the controversy surrounding a sermon preached by the Rev. Dr. George F. Regas, Rector Emeritus at All Saints Church on October 31, 2004. The sermon was thought to have crossed the line with respect to the prohibition against churches participating in election…
You’ve always known that you’re supposed to report your gambling winnings on your taxes, right? Well, the IRS is making it a little easier (for them) to make sure that happens. Beginning March 4, 2008, casinos and other sponsors of poker tournaments will be required to report most winnings to winners and the Internal Revenue…
The House has approved legislation that would end the extremely unpopular program that allows private collection agencies to collect tax debts for the IRS. The IRS had previously argued that the policy was not financially viable. Of the $32 million brought in since the collection bill went into effect, the IRS collected $7 million on…
I just received the following email with the header “Get Tax Refund on your VISA or MasterCard Now!” in my email today: After the last annual calculations of your fiscal activity we have determined that you are eligible to receive a tax refund of $135.50. Please submit the tax refund request and allow us 6-9…
Tax issues cause some folks to act in an irrational manner. True, the taxman shouldn’t be ignored. But feared? Nah. Here’s my list of the top five things that taxpayers are irrationally afraid of – and shouldn’t be: Being aggressive when it comes to deductions. You’re entitled to take deductions. C’mon, say it with me…
The D.C. Circuit has rejected Marrita Murphy’s petition for rehearing en banc with respect to her tax matter. The initial ruling in the case shocked the tax community but was subsequently overturned and became the center of controversy as the lawyer for Ms. Murphy (David Colapinto) visited a tax blog or two to comment. TaxProf…
Thanks to the reader who passed this joke along to me: A couple of weeks after hearing a sermon on Psalms 51:2-4 and Psalms 52:3-4 (lies and deceit), a man wrote the following letter to the IRS: I have been unable to sleep, knowing that I have cheated on my income tax. I understated my…