Tag Archives: Business IRS Tax Areas to Watch

Are Your Workers Classified Correctly?

  Don’t subject your business to tax penalties by miss-classifying an employee as an independent contractor. The IRS is aware that employers prefer to treat workers as independent contractors to avoid paying fringe benefits and payroll taxes. If you’re not … Continue reading

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Follow the Tax Rules When You Borrow From Your Corporation

If you’re a business owner and your company lends you money, you’ll enter it in the books as a shareholder loan. However, if your return is audited, the IRS will scrutinize the loan to see whether it is really disguised … Continue reading

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Audit Rates for S Corporations and Partnership Returns

Having a small business is itself a flag of sorts. Some people use small businesses as a tax dodge, a way to write off expenses, and so the IRS keeps a close eye on small-business owners. Other factors that may … Continue reading

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IRS Announces Second Quarter Interest Rates

      Interest rates charged by the IRS on underpaid taxes and paid by the IRS on tax over-payments will remain the same for the second quarter of 2013 (April 1 through June 30). Therefore, for the first six … Continue reading

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IRS Audits of Independent Contractors

  It is very important to make the proper decision about employee classification.  If an employee is incorrectly identified as an independent contractor you may be liable for the self-employment taxes that you should have paid plus penalties. If you … Continue reading

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Under Barack Obama, Audits of Small and Medium-Sized Businesses Have Skyrocketed

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recoups $702 in taxes for every hour it spends auditing small businesses, versus $9,173 an hour for auditing large corporations. But under Barack Obama, audits of small and medium-sized businesses have skyrocketed.   According to IRS … Continue reading

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Charity Scrutiny & Potential IRS Audits Forthcoming

Tax-exempt groups will face extra audit heat from IRS on several fronts:  Organizations offering aid on mortgage foreclosures. Examiners will check whether these groups are helping people or just generating income for their owners. A similar project involving credit counseling … Continue reading

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IRS Expands Eligibility for Worker Reclassification Program

On Dec. 18, 2012 the IRS announced a revision to its voluntary classification settlement program (VCSP) that provides partial relief from federal employment taxes for eligible taxpayers who agree to prospectively treat workers as employees. The original program, established in … Continue reading

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IRS Practice and Procedure Change: Voluntary Compliance Programs

On Jan. 9, 2012, the IRS provided another opportunity for taxpayers to disclose previously unreported offshore accounts: the 2012 Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program (OVDP). OVDP is the third voluntary foreign bank account reporting (FBAR) program from the IRS in four … Continue reading

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IRS Practice and Procedure Change: IRS Matching Programs

2012 was a breakthrough year for IRS automated matching programs. In 2012, it’s likely that the IRS exceeded the 4.7 million individual CP2000 (under-reporter) notices that it sent in 2011. In 2012, this was the only major IRS compliance program … Continue reading

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