Regulations issued on Tuesday finalize rules the IRS put into effect in 2012 allowing employees to deduct certain expenses paid or incurred for local lodging as business expenses (T.D. 9696). Normally, lodging expenses a taxpayer incurs while not traveling away from home are considered personal expenses under Sec. 262(a) and
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Vision, dental, and long-term-care benefits qualify as limited excepted benefits under new IRS rules
Dental, vision, and long-term-care benefits will qualify as excepted benefits under final regulations issued by the IRS (T.D. 9697). Excepted benefits are not subject to certain health reform requirements enacted as part of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA), P.L. 104-191, and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care
IRS signals PPACA compliance issues for 2015
This month, the IRS made several updates to the Internal Revenue Manual (IRM) that provide insight on the notices and enforcement methods the Service will use next tax season to ensure taxpayers comply with the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA), P.L. 111-148. Most compliance efforts focus on the
AICPA identifies problems with IRS’s electronic signature rules
Jeffrey Porter, chair of the AICPA’s Tax Executive Committee, sent a letter to IRS Commissioner John Koskinen on Wednesday raising concerns about the IRS’s recently issued guidance on electronic signatures. The letter addresses the electronic signature standards that apply when a taxpayer does not appear in person before the tax
Doctors lack standing to challenge delay of employer mandate
The Seventh Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a suit objecting to the IRS’s decision to delay imposing the Sec. 4980H employer mandate penalty until 2015 (Association of American Physicians and Surgeons, Inc., No. 14-2123 (7th Cir. 9/19/14), aff’g No. 13-C-1214 (E.D. Wis. 3/18/14)). Under Sec. 4980H, an applicable large employer
Details of proposed anti-inversion rules are revealed
The IRS followed up on the Treasury Department’s Monday announcement that it is cracking down on corporate tax inversions by providing more detail on how the crackdown will work (Notice 2014-52). The new rules, which will be issued as regulations, generally apply to inversion transactions occurring on or after Sept.
Changes proposed to allocation rules for rollovers
The IRS says it has become aware that some plan providers have been treating disbursements from retirement plans that contain both pretax and after-tax contributions as a single distribution of the aggregate disbursement amount, rather than as separate distributions, as required by the regulations. In proposed regulations issued on Thursday
IRS announces proposed changes to cafeteria plan elections and lookback period
The IRS issued two notices on Thursday, proposing to change the rules for when a taxpayer can revoke health care coverage in a cafeteria plan and enroll in a plan on the Health Insurance Marketplace exchanges, and how to measure the lookback period for determining who is a full-time employee
Special per diem rates issued for 2014–2015 travel expenses
On Friday, the IRS issued its annual update of special per diem rates for use in substantiating certain business expenses taxpayers incur when traveling away from home in 2014 and 2015 (Notice 2014-57).The notice provides the transportation industry meal and incidental expenses rates, the rate for the incidental-expenses-only deduction, and
Regulations update hybrid defined benefit plan rules
On Monday, the IRS released final and proposed regulations providing guidance on so-called hybrid defined benefit pension plans (T.D. 9693 and REG-111839-13). The regulations deal with changes made by the Pension Protection Act of 2006, P.L. 109-280, and the Worker, Retiree, and Employer Recovery Act of 2008, P.L. 110-458. The
PFIC reporting rules do not apply to certain marked-to-market stock
On Wednesday, the IRS announced that it will amend the regulations governing the reporting requirements for U.S. persons who hold stock in passive foreign investment companies (PFICs). The amendments will provide that, if a taxpayer marks to market PFIC stock under Sec. 475 or any Code section other than Sec.
IRS explains power-of-attorney requirements for corporate taxpayers
On Tuesday, the IRS’s Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR) issued a bulletin clarifying when corporate officers or employees must have a valid power of attorney in order to represent the company before the IRS (OPR Bulletin 2014-12). The bulletin also discusses how the existence of a power of attorney may
CPA practitioners sue to stop PTIN fees
Two CPAs have filed suit in the U.S. district court for the District of Columbia, asking the court to stop the IRS from charging fees for issuing preparer tax identification numbers (PTINs), to obtain refunds of fees paid in the past, and to enjoin the IRS from asking for more
ERISA: 40 years later
The 40th anniversary of ERISA’s enactment is a good time to look back at the problems with pensions that the legislation was intended to solve, and the problems that face today’s and tomorrow’s retirees, who increasingly must provide for their own retirement.
Tax software: Ethical, legal, and professional liability risks
This column addresses a CPA’s professional liability exposures as well as ethical and legal obligations related to the use of tax software.
2014 tax software survey
Learn how CPAs in our annual survey assessed the performance, features, and technical support of eight major tax preparation software products.
Success-based fees and milestone payments
When taxpayers incur costs that relate to an acquisition or restructuring, they generally must capitalize any costs incurred to facilitate (i.e., investigate or otherwise pursue) the transaction (Regs. Sec. 1.263(a)-5). When fees paid to service providers are contingent upon the successful closing of a transaction, taxpayers can use a facts-and-circumstances
Rules for written tax advice finalized
Circular 230 final regs. make ubiquitous email disclaimer no longer necessary. The IRS issued final regulations under Circular 230, Regulations Governing Practice Before the Internal Revenue Service (31 C.F.R. Part 10), on the rules for practitioners to provide written tax advice and certain other related provisions, adopting the proposed regulations
Tax Court foils transferee liability of Reynolds family trusts
State law is applied to determine whether a transferee is liable for a transferor’s tax liability. The Tax Court held that four trusts were not required to pay their former personal holding company’s tax liability. Virginia state law does not contain a corollary to the federal substance-over-form doctrine, and federal
Madoff account value must be determined at trial
The IRS is denied summary judgment on an estate’s valuation of its account in an infamous Ponzi scheme. Whether an account managed by Madoff Investments or its claimed holdings are considered property included in a gross estate and whether a willing buyer or seller of the account could reasonably know
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