Monthly Archives: December 2024

In an Alert entitled "Impact of Ongoing Litigation – Deadlines Stay – Voluntary Submissions Only FinCEN has stated that:

In light of a recent federal court order, reporting companies are not currently required to file beneficial ownership information with FinCEN and are not subject to liability if they fail to do so while the order remains in force. However, reporting companies may continue to voluntarily submit beneficial ownership information reports.

The Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) plays a vital role in protecting the U.S. and international financial systems, as well as people across the country, from illicit finance threats like terrorist financing, drug trafficking, and money laundering.  The CTA levels the playing field for tens of millions of law-abiding small businesses across the United States and makes it harder for bad actors to exploit loopholes in order to gain an unfair advantage.

On Tuesday, December 3, 2024, in the case of Texas Top Cop Shop, Inc., et al. v. Garland, et al., No. 4:24-cv-00478 (E.D. Tex.), a federal district court in the Eastern District of Texas, Sherman Division, issued an order granting a nationwide preliminary injunction that: (1) enjoins the CTA, including enforcement of that statute and regulations implementing its beneficial ownership information reporting requirements, and, specifically, (2) stays all deadlines to comply with the CTA’s reporting requirements. The Department of Justice, on behalf of the Department of the Treasury, filed a Notice of Appeal on December 5, 2024.

Texas Top Cop Shop is only one of several cases in which plaintiffs have challenged the CTA that are pending before courts around the country. Several district courts have denied requests to enjoin the CTA, ruling in favor of the Department of the Treasury. The government continues to believe—consistent with the conclusions of the U.S. District Courts for the Eastern District of Virginia and the District of Oregon—that the CTA is constitutional.

While this litigation is ongoing, FinCEN will comply with the order issued by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas for as long as it remains in effect. Therefore, reporting companies are not currently required to file their beneficial ownership information with FinCEN and will not be subject to liability if they fail to do so while the preliminary injunction remains in effect. Nevertheless, reporting companies may continue to voluntarily submit beneficial ownership information reports.

Need Help Filing Your BOI Report?

     Contact the Tax Lawyers at

Marini & Associates, P.A. 

Read more at: Tax Times blog

In light of a recent federal court order, reporting companies are not currently required to file beneficial ownership information with FinCEN and are not subject to liability if they fail to do so while the order remains in force. However, reporting companies may continue to voluntarily submit beneficial ownership information reports.

Notice of BOI Filing Page The Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) plays a vital role in protecting the U.S. and international financial systems, as well as people across the country, from illicit finance threats like terrorist financing, drug trafficking, and money laundering.  The CTA levels the playing field for tens of millions of law-abiding small businesses across the United States and makes it harder for bad actors to exploit loopholes in order to gain an unfair advantage. On Tuesday, December 3, 2024, in the case of Texas Top Cop Shop, Inc., et al. v. Garland, et al., No. 4:24-cv-00478 (E.D. Tex.), a federal district court in the Eastern District of Texas, Sherman Division, issued an order granting a nationwide preliminary injunction that: (1) enjoins the CTA, including enforcement of that statute and regulations implementing its beneficial ownership information reporting requirements, and, specifically, (2) stays all deadlines to comply with the CTA’s reporting requirements. The Department of Justice, on behalf of the Department of the Treasury, filed a Notice of Appeal on December 5, 2024. Texas Top Cop Shop is only one of several cases in which plaintiffs have challenged the CTA that are pending before courts around the country. Several district courts have denied requests to enjoin the CTA, ruling in favor of the Department of the Treasury. The government continues to believe—consistent with the conclusions of the U.S. District Courts for the Eastern District of Virginia and the District of Oregon—that the CTA is constitutional. While this litigation is ongoing, FinCEN will comply with the order issued by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas for as long as it remains in effect. Therefore, reporting companies are not currently required to file their beneficial ownership information with FinCEN and will not be subject to liability if they fail to do so while the preliminary injunction remains in effect. Nevertheless, reporting companies may continue to voluntarily submit beneficial ownership information reports. Need Help Filing Your BOI Report?      Contact the Tax Lawyers at Marini & Associates, P.A.  for a FREE Tax HELP Contact us at: www.TaxAid.com or www.OVDPLaw.com or Toll Free at 888 8TAXAID (888-882-9243)

Read more at: Tax Times blog

The Internal Revenue Service Criminal Investigation (IRS-CI) released its Fiscal Year 2024 (FY24) Annual Report today that details significant cases involving crimes ranging from tax fraud to cybercrime, enhanced domestic and foreign partnerships and investigative statistics from FY24 that took place from Oct. 1, 2023, to Sept. 30, 2024.

This year’s report highlights several firsts for the agency:

• the first sentencings tied to syndicated conservation easement schemes, 
• the first indictment and guilty plea of a U.S. taxpayer solely for not paying taxes on gains from cryptocurrency sales, 
• the first time Treasury agencies have led a task force and public outreach series to combat fentanyl trafficking, and 
• a historic financial settlement by the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange for violating anti-money laundering and sanctions laws.

In FY24, IRS-CI initiated more than 2,667 criminal investigations, obtained 1,571 convictions, and reclaimed its 90% conviction rate. The agency’s investigative work identified over $9.1 billion in fraud from tax and financial crimes, obtained court orders totaling $1.7 billion in restitution to the IRS and seized criminal assets totaling approximately $1.2 billion.

Other significant items in this year’s annual report include:

• IRS-CI extended the agency’s international footprint by launching a new attaché post in Nassau, Bahamas, and a Cyber attaché post in Singapore.
• The International Training Team delivered more than 30 trainings to over 930 participants from more than 70 countries. These trainings play a critical role in global partnerships and investigations.
• Combatting cybercrime continued to be a focus for the agency. In FY24 alone, IRS-CI initiated 111 new cybercrime investigations, and defendants in these cases continue to receive prison sentences averaging more than five years.

The report also includes case examples for each U.S. field office, details about the specialized services provided by IRS-CI, and additional statistics about the agency for FY24.

IRS-CI is the law enforcement arm of the IRS, responsible for conducting financial crime investigations, including tax fraud, narcotics trafficking, money laundering, public corruption, healthcare fraud, identity theft and more. IRS-CI special agents are the only federal law enforcement agents with investigative jurisdiction over violations of the Internal Revenue Code. The agency has 20 field offices located across the U.S. and 14 attaché posts abroad.

Have an IR Criminal Tax Problem?

 Like Your Freedom? 

  Contact the Tax Lawyers at

for a FREE Tax HELP Contact us at:
www.TaxAid.com or www.OVDPLaw.com
or Toll Free at 888 8TAXAID (888-882-9243)

Read more at: Tax Times blog

On December 4, 2024 we posted STOP BOI Filings (for now) - Texas DC Issues Nationwide Injunction Against The CTA And Its Impending January 1, 2025 Filing Deadline, where we discussed that the Texas District Court Issued a nationwide injunction against the enforcement of the CTA and BLI reporting requirements in Top Cop Shop, Inc. et al. vs. Garland.

The government filed its notice of appeal of the decision of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas in Texas Top Cop Shop Inc. v. Garland on December 5, 2024. 

Litigation is currently split between courts ruling on the act’s constitutionality. In March the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama granted summary judgment for the National Small Business Association in National Small Business United v. Yellen, turning aside arguments that the CTA could be viewed as a proper exercise of congressional authority under the commerce clause, Congress's taxing power, or Congress's power to oversee foreign affairs and national security.

More recently, the government has successfully defended the CTA in district court. In Community Associations Institute v. Yellen, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia on October 24 denied the group's injunctive and declaratory relief motion attempting to prevent enforcement of the CTA.

In Firestone v. Yellen, No. 3:24-cv-01034, the U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon in September denied a request for a preliminary injunction against the CTA from seven individuals challenging the constitutionality of the law. The court found that the plaintiffs were unlikely to prevail. Both of those cases are also on appeal to the Fourth and Ninth Circuits, respectively.

While The Recent Injunction Brings Hope To Some Hoping To Avoid This Reporting, It Creates Uncertainty For Everyone Else.

Some lawyers are suggesting that it is unclear whether this injunction will still be in effect by the reporting deadline of December 31, 2024. 

Therefore, Filing The Reports By Year-End,
Or At Least Being Ready To Do So, Appears To Be
Advisable In The Face Of Such Uncertainty.

Remember that this injunction it’s only a preliminary injunction and not a permanent one, which can be overruled and return the status quo prior to the ruling, requiring reporting by December 31, 2024.

On the other hand, many Americans are hoping for a favorable outcome from an eventual higher court ruling, striking down this law as unconstitutional. There are also those Americans who are hoping that the Trump Administration will prevent enforcement of the CTA and/or request Congress to remove it.

Until then remember there are hefty penalties of $500 per day up to $10,000, as well as criminal penalties, can apply for compliance failures. 

The preliminary injunction only delays enforcement of the CTA until a court issues a final ruling on the merits of the constitutionality of the CTA or an appeals court overturns the injunction. 

Need Help Filing Your BOI Report?

     Contact the Tax Lawyers at

Marini & Associates, P.A. 

for a FREE Tax HELP Contact us at:
www.TaxAid.com or www.OVDPLaw.com
or Toll Free at 888 8TAXAID (888-882-9243)

 

Read more at: Tax Times blog