IRS practice & procedure

TOPICS / TAX

July 18, 2023

IRS provides transition relief for change in beginning date for RMDs

A notice provides transition relief for the change in the required beginning date for required minimum distributions (RMDs) under the SECURE 2.0 Act and guidance related to certain specified RMDs.

July 17, 2023

Commissioner: We are progressing toward a user-friendly IRS

IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel said the Service’s transformation is in full swing, thanks to new infusion of cash that he says needs to keep coming.

July 14, 2023

How the IRS can avoid tax deadline confusion in disaster areas

The national taxpayer advocate recommended changes that range from one simple one the IRS can handle on its own to congressional action.

July 12, 2023

Prop. regs. clarify tax treatment of certain health insurance payments

New proposed regulations clarify that accident or health insurance payments are not excludable from an employee’s income where the payments are made without regard to amount of medical expenses incurred by the employee under Sec. 213(d) and the premiums or contributions for coverage are paid on a pre-tax basis.

July 5, 2023

Study: Deterrence a major factor in bringing in more money from IRS audits

The paper by researchers at Harvard University, the University of Sydney, and Treasury finds that an additional $1 spent on marginal audits of top earners can get a return of $12 in revenue.

July 1, 2023

Taxpayer’s blog posts held admissible in innocent-spouse case

In a case of first impression, the Tax Court considered the evidence ‘newly discovered’ and ‘previously unavailable.’

June 30, 2023

Stock repurchase excise tax reporting and payment delayed by IRS

The IRS says covered corporations will not have to report or pay the new 1% stock repurchase excise tax until it issues forthcoming regulations.

June 29, 2023

Research finds algorithms, unscrupulous preparers behind audit bias

Subsequent research has replicated the racial gap in audit rates found in a study led by Stanford University and pointed to both unscrupulous tax preparers who submit EITC claims and algorithmic bias in the IRS’s audit selection process as causes.

June 22, 2023

Taxpayer advocate: 2023 tax season better at IRS; IT upgrades imperative

In her annual midyear report to Congress, National Taxpayer Advocate Erin Collins says the difference between the 2022 and 2023 tax seasons was “like night and day.”

June 16, 2023

IRS updates list of automatic accounting method changes

The IRS on Thursday provided a comprehensive, updated list of changes in tax accounting methods to which the automatic change procedures in Rev. Proc. 2015-13 apply. The list includes 29 changes that the Service describes as significant.

June 14, 2023

IRS addresses whether college NIL collectives further an exempt purpose

A memo from the IRS Office of Chief Counsel advises that an organization that develops paid NIL opportunities for student-athletes will, in many cases, be operating for a substantial nonexempt purpose—serving the private interests of student-athletes—which is more than incidental to any exempt purpose furthered by the activity.

June 7, 2023

National taxpayer advocate: A paperless IRS is possible

NTA Erin Collins said at AICPA & CIMA ENGAGE 2023 that the IRS has a goal of being “paperless” by 2025, by which it means anything taxpayers file on paper would be scanned.

June 6, 2023

IRS revises actuarial tables to account for most recent mortality data

The IRS issued final regulations revising actuarial tables to reflect mortality data from the 2010 Census.

June 1, 2023

A pandemic-era tax break that remains rife with abuse — the ERC

The IRS issues at least its seventh warning about the employee retention credit since October 2022.

June 1, 2023

Ninth Circuit reverses its earlier holding in Seaview Trading

Rehearing the case en banc, the court determines that an LLC’s faxed and subsequently mailed copy of its late return were not filings that started an adjustment limitation period.

June 1, 2023

Attorney’s racing activities fall short of the finish line

A taxpayer participated in auto races for personal enjoyment rather than to advertise his law practice, the Tax Court holds.

June 1, 2023

Qualified appraisal required for charitable contributions of cryptoassets

The exchange-reported value of digital assets does not substitute for the qualified appraisal required for a charitable contribution deduction; a reasonable-cause exception will not apply, the IRS Office of Chief Counsel advises.

May 24, 2023

AICPA backs bill to make it easier to file for tax extensions

The bill filed by Reps. Judy Chu and Mike Carey would streamline the extension-filing process for millions of Americans.

May 23, 2023

Supreme Court upholds exception to notice requirement for third-party summonses

In a unanimous decision, the Court held that the IRS does not have to notify third parties named in a summons when it seeks access to records held at institutions such as banks in aid of collection of a tax assessment.

May 17, 2023

HSA amounts continue trend, increase again in 2024

The 2024 amounts from the IRS mark at least the ninth annual increase in a row for maximum contributions.

FROM THIS MONTH'S ISSUE

Flip out with the latest Tech Q&A

The September Technology Q&A column shows how to create dynamic to-do lists with Excel's checkboxes and also how to set up multifactor authentication texts that don't rely on phones. Flip through both items and view a video walkthrough in our digital format.