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Tax Court Holds That No Abuse Discretion By IRS Appeals Officer in Denying Offer

September 13, 2012

The Internal Revenue Service's rejection of a taxpayer's offer in compromise of $28,000 for a tax liability of more than $150,000 was not an abuse of discretion, because the taxpayer failed to prove any special circumstances warranting

During the CDP hearing the settlement officer advised petitioner that the OIC would not be accepted because petitioner’s Form 1120 submitted with the OIC showed loans to shareholders of $443,887as of October 1, 2007, and $468,888 as of September 30, 2008.

Both settlement officers encountered multiple pieces of evidence in the administrative record which stated that outstanding loans to shareholders payable to petitioner existed, including the first Form 1120.  
 
Additional information relevant to the shareholder loan issue was then requested, and both OICs were rejected when petitioner failed to provide satisfactory evidence that no loans to shareholders existed. The information requested of petitioner was not available to the settlement officers internally (indeed, many of the internally available records stated that loans to shareholders existed), and no blanket request from petitioner was made.  

Therefore the Tax Court found that the IRS's determinations were not arbitrary, capricious, or
without sound basis in fact or law.
If you need an Offer in Compromize, contact the Tax Lawyers at Marini & Associates, P.A. for a FREE Tax Consultation at www.TaxAid.us or www.TaxLaw.ms or Toll Free at 888-8TaxAid (888 882-9243).

Docket No. 17863-09L. Filed July 17, 2012.

 
 

 

Read more at: Tax Times blog

Swiss – US Tax Deal Terms Not Likely to Ease if Romney wins

September 12, 2012

 

A Romney White House would make the same demands as the current
administration has before agreeing to wipe the slate clean for 11 Swiss banks suspected of helping wealthy Americans evade taxes, Switzerland's Finance Minister said.
Switzerland needs the tax deal so that it can normalise its banking relations with the United States, but Widmer-Schlumpf has played down expectations that Switzerland could force a breakthrough before the November election, suggesting the ball is firmly in the U.S. court.

 

After the election in November, it would be several months before a new administration came in, then three or four more for new officials to get up to speed, Widmer-Schlumpf said.

 

Asked if the U.S. political line would change if Romney won the election, she said she thought not.

Our take is that repealing FATCA is political suicide for either party. How can either party justify repealing law which is designed to convert former tax dodgers into taxpayers?

If you have Unreported Income From Swiss Banks, contact the Lawyers at Marini & Associates, P.A. for a FREE Consultation at www.TaxAid.usor www.TaxLaw.msor Toll Freeat 888-8TaxAid (888 882-9243).

 

Call US before Uncle Sam finds you!

 

Source:

 

Rueters

 

Read more at: Tax Times blog

Bradley Birkenfeld awarded $104 million (13% ) as UBS tax case whistleblower

September 11, 2012


U.S. tax authorities have awarded $104 million to a whistleblower in a major tax fraud case against Swiss bank UBS AG that widened a government crackdown on Americans avoiding taxes in Switzerland, his lawyers said on Tuesday. This approximately 13% of the amount the Government recovered from UBS ( $780 million in fines, penalties, interest and restitution).

We first posted that Bradley Birkenfeld was freed last month from prisonon August 1, 2012. His attorneys announced the $104 million reward made under an Internal Revenue Service whistleblower program.

Birkenfeld had sought a large payout for his role in a tax-dodging case that resulted in early 2009 in UBS entering into a deferred prosecution agreement and paying $780 million in fines, penalties, interest and restitution.

Birkenfeld turned over information about UBS to the authorities, but later he was jailed after the government said he withheld other information.

UBS entered into a deferred prosecution agreement in early 2009 and paid $780 million in fines, penalties, interest and restitution. The case was a key turning point in a U.S. effort to combat tax evasion in Switzerland and elsewhere overseas.

If you have unreported income from Foreign Banks and you want to Get Right with the IRS, contact the Tax Lawyers at Marini & Associates, P.A. for a FREE Tax Consultation at www.TaxAid.us or www.TaxLaw.ms or Toll Free at 888-8TaxAid (888 882-9243).

Source:

Rueters



Read more at: Tax Times blog

Last Chance for Voluntary Disclosures before FATCA becomes effective in 2013!

September 11, 2012

 

January 1, 2013 is the effective date of the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act (FATCA) and with its implementation the associated FATCA disclosures.  FATCA ends historical bank secrecy as previously relied on by many US depositors. 

In anticipation of FATCA implementation, the IRS, revised its Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs), clarifying many uncertainties in the current OVDP, tightening some areas and relaxing others. In addition, the IRS released, updated versions of some of the documentation that taxpayers will be required to file as a part of their acceptance into the OVDP.

The clarifications establish that the OVDP is available to taxpayers who have both offshore and domestic issues that require disclosure. Additionally, the IRS clarified which years are to be included or covered in the required eight-year voluntary disclosure period: for taxpayers who submit voluntary disclosures prior to the due date or extended due date for 2011, the disclosure period includes 2003–2010. For taxpayers who submit disclosures after the due date or extended due date for 2011, the disclosure period is 2004–2011.

The IRS added two new categories of persons ineligible for the OVDP. Under the OVDP, a taxpayer is required to notify the U.S. Attorney General of any appeal or document submitted in connection with an appeal of a foreign tax administrator's decision to provide account information to the IRS and any such a person who fails to provide the required notice will no longer be eligible to make a voluntary disclosure. Second, the IRS may announce that certain taxpayer groups that have or had accounts at specific financial institutions will be ineligible due to U.S. government actions in connection with the specific financial institutions. Each announcement is to provide notice of the prospective date upon which eligibility for the specific taxpayer group ends.

The IRS also revised certain documentation, the Offshore Voluntary Disclosure letter used to make the formal application to the OVDP has significantly changed and now has a required attachment/questionnaire which, to some extent, replaces an earlier document known as the Foreign Financial Institution Statement and further expands upon the details of the offshore account and the persons involved in the creation of the account. The disclosure letter and the attached questionnaire now call for information regarding deposits/withdrawals, entities affiliated with the account, and a host of information relating to communications with representatives of the foreign financial institution.
 
The OVDP in response to situations involving U.S. citizens,including dual citizens, residing abroad added two new provisions.The first, which previously posted as Tax amnesty offered to Americans in Canada, describes the IRS giving Canada persons the opportunity to request an extension of time to make the election to Canada to defer U.S. income tax on income earned in, but not yet distributed from, Canadian registered retirement savings plans (RRSPs), pursuant to  the U.S.-Canada Income Tax Treaty. If the election is granted, the RRSP balance will not be included in the offshore penalty base upon which the 27.5% penalty attaches.
 
The second which previously posted as Instructions - New Streamlined Filing for Non-Resident & Non-Filer U.S. Taxpayers! which describes the IRS' new procedure (to take effect September 1, 2012) that will allow U.S. citizens, including dual citizens, residing abroad to become tax-compliant, without necessarily facing penalties, if they are low-compliance risk taxpayers who owe little or no back taxes (generally, those persons who have simple tax returns and owe $1,500 or less in tax for each of the covered years).
 
If you have unreported income from Foreign Banks and you want to Get Right with the IRS, contact the Tax Lawyers at Marini & Associates, P.A. for a FREE Tax Consultation at www.TaxAid.us or www.TaxLaw.ms or Toll Free at 888-8TaxAid (888 882-9243).

 

 

Read more at: Tax Times blog

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