According to Accounting Today, the Criminal Investigation (CI) division of the IRS has released its top 10 cases for 2022. Which of the agency’s most prominent and high-profile investigations have you heard about? Questions: Source: Stimpson, J. (2023) The top tax crooks of 2022. Accounting Today, January 16 (Retrievable online at https://www.accountingtoday.com/list/the-irs-names-the-top-tax-crooks-of-2022)
Posts Tagged: IRS
News from the I.R.S.
According to the New York Times, the I.R.S. is saying to hold off on filing your federal income tax return if you are a person that received a one-time special payment from your state last year. Since there are a variety of state programs that distributed these payments in 2022 with complex rules, there is… Read more »
401(k) Contribution Limits are Jumping
According to the New York Times, the I.R.S. announced one of its largest increases in decades to caps on retirement contributions, allowing workers with access to the plans to save more. Questions: How much will employees be able to contribute in 2023 to 401 (k) plans? How much are the catch-up contributions for 2023 and… Read more »
Suspension of Automated Notices
According to Accounting Today, the IRS will suspend more than a dozen automated letters it sends out to taxpayers, including collection notices, balance due notices and unfiled tax return notices, until it catches up on its backlog of unprocessed returns. Questions: Why is it doing this? A coalition of tax professionals was instrument in promoting… Read more »
ID.me
The IRS has implemented a new verification process for taxpayers who want to access their online tax accounts and self-help tools that includes taking a selfie and submitting a photo of their driver’s license or passport to the third-party service, ID.me. Questions: Why are they requiring this new authentication procedure? True or False: Selfies from… Read more »
New IRS requirements on R&D Refund Claims
According to Accounting Today, the IRS wants more detailed information about all the business components for which the research and development credit claims relate for each year and for each business component. Questions: What is the form that is required under this new direction? How long have companies been allowed to take this research and… Read more »
Hiding in Plain Site
According to Accounting Today, the IRS failed to spot $20.6M in bogus nonresident tax refunds in 2018. Questions: How many returns did this account for? In a short paragraph, explain how this happened. In a report by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA), what recommendations were made for the improvement of IRS identification… Read more »
The Employee Retention Tax Credit for Employers
According to Accounting Today, IRS and Treasury Department guidance was released for employers who paid qualified wages after June 30, 2021, and before Jan. 1, 2022, as part of the CARES Act. Questions: What was the objective of including employee retention credits (ERCs) as part of the CARES Act? During the COVID pandemic, what program… Read more »
What are NFTs and why should tax accountants care?
According to Accounting Today, tax rules surrounding NFTs or nonfungible tokens are not clear. NFTs are basically digital assets whose data is stored in a blockchain, similar to cryptocurrency like Bitcoin and Ethereum. Questions: What can NFTs digitally represent? Why are NFTs a kind of a goldmine for the IRS? What Internet sites specialize in… Read more »
Scamdemic
According to the Department of Justice, three family members were arrested in New York for misrepresenting employee payroll figures to receive COVID-19 loan funds for a chain of family-owned nail salons. Questions: According to the report, how was the payroll misrepresented by this family? What federal organizations were involve in the identification of these fraudsters?… Read more »