Every year, the IRS issues income tax refunds to taxpayers throughout the U.S., including in the Washington, D.C. area. Everyone likes to get a check in the mail, but is getting a big income tax refund good news or bad news? According to a Gallup poll, 45 percent of taxpayers prefer receiving a large refund […]

In our last blog post, we provided our readers with some advice for reducing their federal income tax bills before the end of the year. We have some more tips for you today. Today’s tips, provided by the IRS, may apply more to the general public, instead of mostly high-income taxpayers. First, now is the […]

Back on Sept. 26, we warned our readers about a widespread scam involving phony IRS agents. The “agents” call innocent people in Washington, D.C. and elsewhere, claiming the victim owes thousands in back income taxes. If the victim does not pay immediately, the caller says, the IRS will seize the victim’s property, arrest the person […]

At first blush, a state or local tax controversy may seem to be less scary than an audit by the IRS. However, state tax officials in Washington, D.C. are often very aggressive, maybe even more so than their equivalents at the federal level. Besides state income tax, you could find yourself dealing with property tax […]

Taxpayers who have tried to hide some of their assets in overseas bank accounts currently have two options: voluntarily reveal these accounts to the IRS via the Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program, or face prosecution. The first OVDP began in March 2009 as a way of giving taxpayers the chance to avoid legal problems, while also […]

As we approach the end of 2014, it is time to start thinking about federal income taxes. Though it is not necessarily a pleasant thing to consider, there is good news: time remains to take action to reduce your tax bill come 2015. A few things you can do now may result in significant tax […]

The Bill of Rights generally requires the government to acquire a search warrant before its agents can seize a person’s property. Though exceptions exist, few would suspect that federal authorities have the power to seize their bank accounts without the person being even suspected of a crime. Believe it or not, the IRS, along with […]

For various reasons, many people whom the IRS accuses of owing a hefty income tax bill choose not to contest the claim. Perhaps they do not dispute owing the money, or the size of the debt. Maybe, for personal reasons, it is not worthwhile to go through the time and expense of fighting the IRS. […]

There is no doubt that the Internal Revenue Service is an agency that wields a significant amount of power over us. The words “IRS audit” are enough to seriously frighten even the most law-abiding tax payer simply because innocent mistakes found in an audit are still a very serious matter. What is the IRS’s duty […]

The federal Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act, commonly known as FATCA, is a 2013 law that empowers the IRS to pursue taxpayers suspected of failing to disclose assets in foreign bank and investment accounts. The idea is that these individuals and businesses are defrauding the IRS by hiding these funds so that they can claim […]