Every year, millions of taxpayers receive a computer-generated notice from the IRS about (supposedly) underreported income. These notices are called CP2000 or automated underreporting (AUR) notices. They are generated (shall we say “spit out”?) by IRS computers based on a mismatch between the income reported on a taxpayer’s return and information available to the IRS […]

“Fudge” is a peculiar word. As a noun, it refers to a soft, creamy candy or, more generally, to foolish nonsense. As a verb, it means to fake or falsify something, or to bend the rules. When filing taxes, what does it mean to fudge and what can happen if you do? Fudging is hardly […]

If you get behind on your taxes, the IRS could try to go after your paycheck to collect the debt. In this post, we’ll address frequently asked questions about this process. What does “garnishment” mean exactly? Garnishment is an old legal term for the procedure used to take property to pay a debt. In the […]

Even if you do everything right, there’s no guarantee your tax return won’t be audited. After all, the IRS does choose some returns at random for auditing. There are, however, certain red flags that can increase your risk of an audit. What are the most common red flags? One is taking overly large tax deductions. […]

Immigrants and refugees aren’t the only people whose travel plans can be affected by changes in federal policy. Under legislation passed by Congress late in 2015, if you have unpaid taxes that exceed a certain threshold, you could have your passport revoked or have an application for one denied. In this post, we will use […]

Tax-filing season is officially underway. It’s an annual rite of passage that stretches to mid-April or (with a six-month extension) beyond. Here are three reasons why it often makes sense to file sooner rather than later. Waiting to file can make you more vulnerable to tax refund fraud. The sooner you file your tax return, […]

A Hall-of-Fame first baseman has received a pardon from President Obama for making a grave tax error. The error was committed by Willie McCovey, an elite homerun hitter who played for the San Francisco Giants in for 18 years. More than 20 years ago, McCovey failed to report income from appearances at baseball card and […]

Seven attorneys from Frost Law have been selected to the 2017 Maryland Rising Stars list. This is an exclusive list, recognizing no more than 2.5 percent of the lawyers in the state. The attorneys recognized include Glen Frost, Justin Hughes, Kaitlyn Loughner, Jessica Frase Marine, Eli Noff, and John Samuels Pontius, Jr. In addition Dennis […]

Tax-refund fraud remains a huge problem. Scammers have gotten away with billions of dollars in recent years and stolen the identities of a bewildering number of people. Will the 2017 filing season be any better? Here are three things to know to help minimize the risk that you your refund or your identity will be […]

In the first part of this post, we noted what a hassle it can be to take care of taxes as a freelance worker. Figuring out self-employment tax can be complicated – and it’s easy to fall behind on making the estimated tax payments you’re supposed to make quarterly. If you have a home office, […]