IRS practice & procedure

TOPICS / TAX

July 24, 2017

IRS pilots Appeals videoconference service

The IRS Office of Appeals announced that on Aug. 1 it will begin offering taxpayers and their representatives a new web-based virtual conference option for taxpayer conferences.

July 24, 2017

IRS heats up compliance enforcement on passport holders with tax debt

The passport restriction will affect the expatriate community and foreign travelers who haven’t established an agreement to pay their delinquent tax debt.

July 19, 2017

Regulations address new statutory due dates for many tax returns

Changes to the due dates and extensions of time to file various tax returns and information returns were implemented in a package of regulations the IRS issued on Wednesday.

July 7, 2017

Treasury identifies 8 regulations as burdensome

After reviewing all 105 Treasury regulations issued in 2016 and early 2017, the Treasury Department has identified eight that cost too much, are too complex or exceed the IRS’s statutory authority.

July 1, 2017

Employment tax enforcement rising to a top priority

The IRS and the Department of Justice indicate an increase in efforts to counter growing noncompliance.

July 1, 2017

Guidance issued on PATH Act depreciation, Sec. 179 changes

The revenue procedure covers amended returns claiming property expensing, qualified real property, and bonus depreciation transition rules.

July 1, 2017

IRS signals non acquiescence in 3 cases

The Service says courts erred in decisions on the placed-in-service date of a retail store, the use of the completed-contract method, and an S corporation’s payment of an employee’s personal expenses.

July 1, 2017

Trump executive orders to be reflected in Priority Guidance Plan

The orders include one directing Treasury to target recent burdensome, complex, or overreaching IRS regulations.

June 21, 2017

IRS reopens PTIN registration system

The system had been down since early June, after a federal court held that the IRS cannot charge a PTIN fee.

June 5, 2017

Federal court strikes down PTIN fees, upholds PTINs

The D.C. District Court held that the IRS has the authority to require preparers to use preparer tax identification numbers (PTINs) but that it cannot charge fees for issuing PTINs.

June 1, 2017

Disbarred tax preparer is not subject to OPR jurisdiction

A district court applies the Loving decision.

June 1, 2017

Closed years are fair game in exam of NOL carryovers

Audit risks persist past the otherwise applicable limitation period.

June 1, 2017

No tax fraud for issuing Form 1099, Seventh Circuit holds

The payee’s failure to explicitly reject a check outweighs the payer’s restrictive endorsement.

May 24, 2017

President’s budget includes tax proposals and regulation of return preparers

President Donald Trump’s proposed FY 2018 budget includes a new proposal to give the IRS authority to regulate paid tax return preparers.

May 4, 2017

New IRS rules, no increased funding in appropriations bill

The 2017 appropriations bill passed by Congress includes $11.2 billion for IRS operations and enforcement. But it also includes specific directives prohibiting certain IRS conduct.

May 3, 2017

Details of FAFSA data breach revealed in House testimony

The details of a recent data breach affecting 100,000 taxpayers were revealed in testimony before the House of Representatives Oversight and Government Reform Committee in Washington.

May 1, 2017

Tax principles for the digital age

The AICPA revises its Guiding Principles of Good Tax Policy to respond to challenges in tax reform, economic efficiency, global reach, and securing taxpayers’ information.

April 1, 2017

How to obtain rescission of a 90-day letter

Procedures provide an alternative to filing a Tax Court petition.

March 31, 2017

IRS enforcement activities dropped in 2016

The IRS reported several large drops in its enforcement activities in fiscal year 2016, including a 16% drop in audits, a 40% drop in levies, and a 9% drop in liens compared to the prior year.

March 30, 2017

Use of driver’s license numbers raises security concerns

The decision of the IRS and some states to recommend—or, in a few cases, require—the use of driver’s license numbers as form of authentication on electronically filed personal tax returns has made them a higher-value target for hackers and other criminals.

FROM THIS MONTH'S ISSUE

4 ways solo practitioners can stand out

Five years ago, a grieving Angel Zhen started his own CPA firm with no clients and no revenue. Today, he has 300 clients, $600,000 in revenue and 12 weeks of annual vacation. In this JofA article, he shares how he set up his firm and how you could do the same.