Washington D.C. Tax Law Blog

It’s hardly as anticipated as the Cherry Blossom Festival here in Washington, D.C., but it is no less reliable in its arrival. We’re talking about the Internal Revenue Services’ annual “Dirty Dozen” list of potential tax scams. The tax crimes list is offered in the context of being a service to protect taxpayers from unscrupulous […]

The top Democrat on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee says a measure passed by the panel on a voice vote this week defies logic. If the bill becomes law, federal workers who are “seriously delinquent” on paying their taxes and under liens for evading taxes could find themselves out of a job. Candidates […]

There are a lot of tax-saving strategies that individuals can employ. Some work well. Others need to be examined really carefully before being tried to make sure the individual doesn’t wind up proverbially shooting themselves in the foot. Particular to that latter category could well be the issue of whether an American citizen should renounce […]

The concept of taxing is fairly easy to comprehend. In its simplest form, taxes are the charges the government makes on its people in order to pay for the services it provides. Over the 200-plus years the United States has been around, the tax code that lays out what individuals and businesses must pay has […]

It might seem counterintuitive, but the government doesn’t care how you make your money when it comes to taxes. However you earn your income, the Internal Revenue Service wants it reported so that appropriate taxes can be collected. Filing instructions make it clear that income, even from illegal activities, must be recorded and reported. It […]

It is probably fair to say that for as long as there have been tax laws, there have been means and methods sought and developed to try to mitigate the liability they impose. As Washington, D.C., readers of this blog likely know, there are ways to go about protecting oneself. There are also illegal ways, […]

We’ve written a bit in recent posts about the Internal Revenue Services efforts to close the loop on U.S. citizens they suspect of using foreign banks to hide wealth and income from tax liability. Swiss banks and the accounts they hold have garnered much of the limelight, but banks all around the world are under […]

Any fans of Monty Python out there? There are certainly a few in the Washington, D.C., area. If you are, you may remember one notable skit by the British comedy troupe called “The Spanish Inquisition.” The catch phrase of the skit is, “No one expects the Spanish Inquisition!” What follows is a skit-derailing explanation about […]

Every year the Taxpayer Advocate Service issues a report to Congress about the state of the nation’s tax code. Washington, D.C., area readers of this blog may be interested, but not surprised to know that the latest report from the head of the service suggests there are a few things that could use some changing, […]

With the New Year underway we are all feeling the effects of the tax changes, even professional golfer Phil Mickelson. Over the weekend, he made a bold statement saying that the recent tax hikes on the rich may “force him to make drastic changes” implying that he might be leaving golf or his home in […]