Back Taxes

Most individuals are required to file their individual income tax returns or pay all of their back taxes by April 15th of each year. If you have failed to file your return, ...

Back Taxes Back Taxes
Free Tax Case Review

Federal income tax significant events, Part 2 – Marriage, divorce

This blog is the second in a continuing series on major life events that can have a big impact on your federal income tax return when it is filed with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).  Additional information about the points covered in this article is available on the IRS’s web site.

Marriage

For starters, it is common in marriage for the lady to change her last name.  Your name change needs to be filed with the Social Security Administration, to be sure your new name on your tax return matches the name the Social Security Administration has for you.  If the names do not match, it can create legal issues, as the IRS may be unable to process your federal income tax return, possibly resulting in penalties and interest.

When you are married, you gain some additional tax filing statuses that you can use as opposed to the filing statuses available to an individual.  These additional filing statuses include the following:

Married Filing Jointly.  This filing status is used when you and your spouse decide to file a single return.  You and your spouse would include both of your incomes and allowable expenses on this one return.

Married Filing Jointly can result in lower tax paid for many people as compared to if the individuals choose to file separate returns.

Married Filing Separately.  Even if you are married and can qualify to file your returns as Married Filing Jointly, you can choose to use a Married Filing Separately status.  Married Filing Separately generally results in married couples paying more total tax than if they filed as Married Filing Jointly, but it is wise to calculate the tax due under both statuses to determine which results in the lowest tax paid.

In addition, while Head of Household is a filing status that is available to some individuals, it can also be an option in certain situations when you are married.  Head of Household usually results in lower tax paid than when you choose to file your taxes as Married Filing Separately.

Additional information about filing your federal income tax return if you are married is available on the IRS’s web site.

Divorce and separation

When you receive a divorce or legal separation, it can affect your filing status and you must treat the various payments such as alimony and any property transfers related to the divorce or separation in the correct manner from a tax perspective.

In summary, if you are divorced or legally separated by the last day of the year, you are considered single for the entire year from a federal income tax standpoint.  However, keep in mind that for any joint tax returns filed before you received your divorce or legal separation, you are still liable for any tax, interest, or penalties due to the IRS.

If you receive an annulment of your marriage by the last day of the year, you are likewise considered unmarried from a federal income tax standpoint.  However, you need to file amended tax returns for the previous three tax years, changing any returns filed as though you were married into returns with a single status, since an annulment effectively makes the marriage as though it never existed.

Additional information about filing your federal income tax return if you are divorced or separated is available on the IRS’s web site.

If you have additional questions about the correct or best filing status you should use, you should speak to a tax attorney who is familiar with the federal and state tax laws that apply to you.

Related articles

Need Help with your Unpaid Taxes?

Complete the Free Tax Case Evaluation form below and an experienced Tax Professional will contact you to discuss your situation. Don't Wait -- Get Help Today!


Federal income tax significant events, Part 1 – Birth

Major life events can have a significant impact on your annual federal income tax return filed with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).  This is the first in a series of blogs that will touch on some of these major life events and how they can impact your taxes.

A complete explanation of the above points is available on the IRS’s web site.

Birth.  Having a child has an impact on the number of exemptions you can claim on you federal income tax return.  For the 2011 tax year, an exemption allows you to subtract $3,700 from the amount of your taxable income, so each exemption you can claim will reduce the amount of federal income tax you pay each year.

You are allowed exemptions on your federal income tax return in the following circumstances:

  • You are allowed one personal exemption for yourself, as every person has one exemption.
  • If you are filing a return with your spouse, you are allowed one personal exemption for your spouse.
  • You are allowed one personal exemption for each dependent you claim, with the birth of a child adding to your number of dependents.

For example, if you and your spouse are filing a joint federal income tax return and you have two dependent children, you can claim a total of four exemptions on your federal income tax return (i.e., one of you, one for your spouse, and one for each child).  This means you have exemptions worth a total of $14,800 on your federal income tax return (i.e., 4 x $3,700).

Therefore, with the birth of each child, you gain an additional exemption that can be claimed on your federal income tax return, so long as they qualify.  For a child to qualify for you to claim them as an exemption on your federal income tax return, the child must meet all of the following criteria:

  • Relationship.  The child must be your son or daughter (by birth or by adoption), stepchild, foster child, or a descendent of any of them.  Or the child must be your brother, sister, half brother, half sister, stepbrother, stepsister, or a descendent of them.
  • Age.  The child must be under age 19 at the end of the year and younger than you (or younger than your spouse if you are filing a return together), a full-time student under age 24 at the end of 2011 and younger than you (or younger than your spouse if you are filing a return together), or permanently and totally disabled at any time during the year.
  • Residency.  The child must have lived with you for more than half the year.  Remember that each person has only one exemption that can be claimed on only one tax return.  Therefore, if the parents of a child are each filing separate tax returns, only one parent can claim the child on their tax return based on the living circumstances of the child.
  • Support.  The child must have provided less than half their own support.  That is, if your child earns an income, you must pay more than half of the child’s living expenses.
  • Joint return.  The child cannot file a joint federal income tax return for the year.
Related articles

Need Help with your Unpaid Taxes?

Complete the Free Tax Case Evaluation form below and an experienced Tax Professional will contact you to discuss your situation. Don't Wait -- Get Help Today!


Tax return: Do I need to file taxes for 2011?

If you have started working for the first time or you are earning a significantly different amount than you have in prior years, you may not know if you need to file a federal income tax return for 2011.  The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has what is called an Interative Tax Assistant (ITA) that can help you determine if you need to file a tax return, but following is an overview of some things you need to consider to help you determine if you should file.

The primary things you need to consider to determine if you need to file a federal income tax return is your gross income, your filing status, and your age.  Gross income is all the money you earn from all sources.  Gross income includes but is not limited to the following sources: compensation for services (e.g., wages, salaries, tips), gains from the sale of property, interest, rent, dividends, alimony, life insurance receipts, pensions, and forgiveness of debt.

If your gross income is above a defined minimum threshold, you need to file a tax return.  Following are the minimum thresholds as defined by the IRS:

  • Single, under age 65 – $9,500
  • Single, age 65 or older – $10,950
  • Married Filing Jointly, both spouses under age 65 – $19,000
  • Married Filing Jointly, with one spouse age 65 or older – $20,150
  • Married Filing Jointly, with both spouses age 65 or  older – $21,300
  • Married Filing Separately, any age – $3,700
  • Head of Household, under age 65 – $12,200
  • Head of Household, age 65 or older – $13,650
  • Qualifying Widow(er) with dependent child, under age 65 – $15,300
  • Qualifying Widow(er) with dependent child, age 65 or older – $16,450

Based on your filing status and your age, if your gross income meets or exceeds the applicable amount noted above, you need to file a federal income tax return for the 2011 tax year.  The filing date for 2011 federal income tax returns is April 17, 2012.

If your gross income does not meet or exceed the applicable amount noted above, you may still need to file a federal income tax return for the 2011 tax year if one or more of the following situations applies to you as defined by the IRS:

  • You owe special taxes related to social security, Medicaid, medical savings accounts, or other situations
  • You or your spouse received distributions from certain medical savings accounts (MSAs)
  • You had net earnings from self-employment of at least $400
  • You had wages of $108.28 or more from a church organization exempt from social security and Medicare taxes

Even if you are not required to file your federal income tax return for the 2011 tax year, you may still want to file a tax return to get money back for one of the following reasons:

  • You had federal income tax withheld even though you owe no tax
  • You qualify for the earned income credit
  • You qualify for the additional child tax credit
  • You qualify for the health coverage tax credit
  • You qualify for the refundable credit for prior year minimum tax
  • You qualify for the first-time homebuyer credit
  • You qualify for the American opportunity credit
  • You qualify for the federal tax credit on fuels
  • You qualify for the adoption credit

Additional information about each of the situations where you are required to file a federal income tax return for the 2011 tax year or where you may want to file such a return is available in the 2011 IRS Tax Guide for Individuals.

If you are unsure if you should be filing a federal income tax return for the 2011 tax year, you should consult a tax attorney.

Related articles

Need Help with your Unpaid Taxes?

Complete the Free Tax Case Evaluation form below and an experienced Tax Professional will contact you to discuss your situation. Don't Wait -- Get Help Today!


Fraud and tax scams: How to avoid getting burned

As it becomes increasingly common for our society to rely on online communication—whether it is by e-mail or social media such as Facebook and Twitter—a new breed of tax scams has arisen to commit fraud.  These tax scams rely on the anonymity provided by the Internet to attempt to trick us.  Such tax scams often have several things in common:

  • They claim to be from an organization with legitimate power, such as the Internal Revenue Service (IRS)
  • They indicate there is a dire issue you need to resolve within a set time frame or there will be serious consequences or loss for you
  • To resolve the issue, you need to provide personal information you would not give out normally

But requests such as these are not legitimate but rather are an attempt at fraud in order to steal your money by scaring you into making a bad decision.

In the case of income tax scams, they may come in the form of an e-mail claiming to be from the IRS.  In such an e-mail, the author may say that you have some form of tax issue, and you may face penalties or even jail time if you do not address is fast.  Or perhaps the message will indicate you are owed a refund and you will lose it if you do not act quickly.  In order to resolve the matter, you need to reply or click on a provided link to give personal information such as your Social Security Number, bank account number, credit card information, and passwords or other information associated with these accounts.

Once the bad guys have your personal information, they will use it to:

  • Steal money you already have by draining your bank accounts or putting bogus charges on your credit cards
  • Use your personal information to open new credit card accounts or obtain loans to buy cars or other luxury items
  • File a fraudulent tax return and collect the refund

Since the bad guys are using your personal information to open these new accounts, you are the one who will receive the bills and your credit will be impacted by these fraud schemes when you fail to pay.

But there are ways you can protect yourself from these types of fraud.  Here are a few of the steps you can take.

  • Do not provide your personal information unless you initiate the contact with the IRS.  Because of the prevalence of scams, legitimate organizations generally do not request your personal information.
  • If you are unsure if communication from the IRS is legitimate, contact the IRS to ask.
  • Do not use contact information or links provided to you in suspicious messages.  Look up the contact information for the IRS on the IRS’s web site.  Links in such messages will not take you to the IRS’s web site but rather to a site that will attempt to place unauthorized software you on your computer that can steal your personal information.
  • Monitor your bank account and credit card statements for unauthorized activity.
  • Sign up for a credit monitoring service, so that if your credit is used to open up an account, you will be notified automatically.

Do not become a victim of fraud.  Exercise the steps above, and if you are still unsure if a message you receive is legitimate or not, speak with a tax attorney.

Related articles

Need Help with your Unpaid Taxes?

Complete the Free Tax Case Evaluation form below and an experienced Tax Professional will contact you to discuss your situation. Don't Wait -- Get Help Today!


IRS and tax preparer registration: Good for taxpayers

As of the 2011 tax year, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) now requires that tax preparers who are paid to file tax returns must be certified and registered with the IRS.  The IRS outlines this program on the IRS website.

The IRS is establishing this requirement because too many tax preparers in the past, who advertised themselves as professionals, were in fact lacking in both the training and experience needed to file a tax return that was accurate and complete.  Many of these tax preparers were simply uninformed about the appropriate way to calculate tax returns and complete the filing process, but some were outright filing returns in a fraudulent manner (or simply failing to file returns, even though they were telling their clients the returns had been filed).  As a result, many taxpayers were left paying the penalty, literally, as the taxpayers had to deal with the fines and penalties handed down by the IRS because of the improperly filed tax returns.

This registration requirement applies to tax preparers whether they are filing tax returns for individuals or businesses.  This requirement primarily affects individual tax preparers who do not already hold a certification related to tax matters.  Certified Public Accountant (CPA) and tax lawyers are exempt from this registration process, as the IRS deemed that the respective professional organizations of these individuals were already holding these individuals to an appropriate standard, in part because they must complete continuing education courses that keep the individuals apprised of current tax laws and filing requirements.  In addition, the registration process only applies to people who charge for their services.  This means that volunteers who prepare returns for the elderly or others who cannot afford to pay for tax preparation services do not have to adhere to the registration process.

To become a registered tax preparer, an individual must pass a certification exam, pay a filing fee, and adhere to the annual renewal process.  When a tax preparer becomes certified, the IRS assigns that individual a registration number known as a Preparer Tax Identification Number (PTIN).  The PTIN serves two main purposes.  First, the tax preparer must provide their PTIN to the IRS when they file a tax return.  This allows the IRS to track all of the returns prepared by a given tax preparer and monitor those returns for issues, such as a large number of errors or other signs that may be indicative of a lack of knowledge or fraud.  Second, it allows a taxpayer to verify that a tax preparer is registered before they chose to use that tax preparer to file their taxes.  The tax preparer can simply look up the PTIN in a database maintained by the IRS to confirm the tax preparer is registered and in good standing with the IRS.

The PTIN is good for taxpayers for two reasons.  First, it should improve the quality of service taxpayers receive from tax preparers.  The PTIN program increases the minimum standard of training that all tax preparers must adhere to, which should translate to fewer fines and penalties handed out by the IRS to taxpayers for tax returns with mistakes or other problems.  Second, it should reduce the cost of having a professionally prepared tax return.  While some may believe that tax preparers will attempt to pass on the certification costs to their customers, as more and more individuals gain certification as registered tax preparers, the presence of increased competition in the market will ultimately drive down the cost.  Whereas before a taxpayer had to go to a CPA or tax lawyer to have their tax return prepared by a certified individual, there is now a third group of individuals—those with the PTIN designation—who are certified tax preparers.

Related articles

Need Help with your Unpaid Taxes?

Complete the Free Tax Case Evaluation form below and an experienced Tax Professional will contact you to discuss your situation. Don't Wait -- Get Help Today!


IRS audit: Five steps to avoid a tax audit

You are being audited.  Those are four words none of us ever want to hear.  After all, submitting your federal income tax return to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) can be a lot of work to begin with.  Depending on how complicated your taxes are, simply gathering all the appropriate documentation you need to complete your taxes can be a lot of effort.  And if you actually prepare your return yourself rather than paying a Certified Public Accountant (CPA), tax attorney, or other professional tax preparer to complete your return, then the process is that much more difficult and stressful.  So you certainly want to do everything you can to avoid having to revisit your tax return as a part of an IRS audit.

So is there anything you can do to avoid an IRS audit?  Thankfully, there is… or at least there is a way to minimize the chance of your return being selected for an IRS audit.  As some returns are selected for audit purely at random, there is no way to completely prevent your return from being selected (unless you choose not to file your taxes, which is not a course of action I recommend).  But following are five things that increase the odds of your tax return being audited by the Internal Revenue Service.

  1. Calculation Errors.  Be sure that all of your math calculations are correct.  Simple errors in addition or subtraction can cause your taxes not to foot properly when entered  into the IRS’ computer systems.  Such errors can lead to the Internal Revenue Service reviewing your return in more detail and potentially trigger an audit.
  2. Interest, dividend, and W-2 reporting errors.  Certain statements you receive for use in your tax return, such as those for interest and dividends (e.g., 1099 forms) or wages you earned during the year (e.g. W-2s), have very specific numbers that must be entered from the statements into your tax forms.  And copies of some of these statements are sent to the IRS as well.  Therefore, if you do not enter the numbers correctly, it will raise flags that may result in your return being audited.
  3. Over-abundance of itemized deductions.  If you use itemized deductions rather that the standard deduction, and especially if your itemized deductions are exceedingly high for your income level, the IRS is more likely to select your return for an audit.  Therefore, be sure your itemized deductions are accurate and you have the documentation necessary to support them.
  4. Incomplete return.  The Internal Revenue Service has specific forms they want a taxpayer to complete based on the type of return being filed.  If you do not include the correct forms with your return or you do not complete the forms fully, it can trigger an IRS audit of your tax return.
  5. IRS knowledge about your inappropriate tax items.  Remember that the Internal Revenue Service pays bounties to people who turn in others who have not paid their appropriate amount of tax.  Therefore, if you brag to your friends on Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, or other social media sites about how you cheated the IRS, know that you may be turned in by your “friends.”

In summary, you should make every effort to submit an accurate and complete tax return, which will put you in the best possible position to minimize the chance of having your return audit while being able to defend your tax return should an IRS audit arise.

Related articles

Need Help with your Unpaid Taxes?

Complete the Free Tax Case Evaluation form below and an experienced Tax Professional will contact you to discuss your situation. Don't Wait -- Get Help Today!


Federal income tax and asset protection

If you owe money to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) related to unpaid federal income tax, you have likely experienced an escalating series of attempts by the IRS to collect that unpaid money.  The taxes we pay to the IRS are used in large part to fund the federal government of the United States.  If federal income tax is not paid or collected, the government simply will not have the funding needed to function.  Therefore, the IRS has been given powerful authority to seek and collect payment of unpaid federal income tax.

If you do not willingly pay the federal income tax you owe or work with the IRS to establish some form of payment plan, the IRS is able to enforce its authority to collect those unpaid taxes through the use of a levy.  A levy is a legal means by which the IRS is able to seize property from a taxpayer.  An IRS levy leaves you little in the way of asset protection, as the IRS can use a levy to seize your wages, checking and savings account balances, cars and trucks, retirement accounts, and real estate.

If you owe money to the IRS and believe they may obtain an IRS levy against your property, what you may be more interested in understanding is asset protection–that is, what assets are protected from an IRS levy?  Following is information about two ways you can establish asset protection against an IRS levy.

Obtain an IRS Exemption

The easiest means of asset protection is through an asset exemption offered by the Internal Revenue Service.  When the IRS exempts an assets from a levy, it means the IRS will not attempt to seize that asset.

The IRS generally exempts assets in two cases.  First, the IRS will not seize assets that are required in order for you to earn an income.  For example, if you are a handyman and you need your truck and tools to perform work, the IRS will likely allows you to keep those assets.

Second, the IRS will not seize assets that have no value.  This may include things that they simply cannot sell or assets that already have a liability attached to them.  For example, if you own a home but your mortgage is for an amount equal to the value of the home, then the IRS likely will not seize your home, because there would be no money left over after funds from the sale are used to pay off the mortgage.

Transfer Ownership

Assets that are transferred to ownership by someone else are not subject to seizure by the Internal Revenue Service, simply because they are no longer your asset.  However, such a transfer must occur well before the IRS levy goes into effect, as any asset transfer after the IRS levy is in place will be reversed by the IRS levy so the IRS can seize the asset.

Even if you transfer an asset to someone else before an IRS levy is enforced against you, if the transfer was purely to try to keep the IRS from seizing the asset, the IRS levy will still give the IRS power to seize the asset.

 

Some people may advise you that you can hide assets from the Internal Revenue Service by not telling the IRS about the assets and placing them in difficult-to-find locations such as offshore accounts.  However, hiding assets from the IRS is technically illegal and can result in serious repercussions if the IRS finds out you have lied to them or otherwise misled them about the assets you own.

Before you take any steps to shield your assets from an IRS levy, you should speak with a tax attorney.

How can I discuss my situation with a tax attorney?

By completing the short form found below, it will allow a tax attorney to contact you to discuss your situation.  The tax attorney will be knowledgeable about the statutes related to Internal Revenue Service tax levies and asset protection and will be able to evaluate your situation in light of these laws.

The conversation you have with the tax attorney will be free of charge, completely confidential, and will not obligate you to anything further.  Therefore, please take advantage of this opportunity to have an initial consultation with a tax attorney about your tax issues.

Related articles

Need Help with your Unpaid Taxes?

Complete the Free Tax Case Evaluation form below and an experienced Tax Professional will contact you to discuss your situation. Don't Wait -- Get Help Today!


Federal income tax return penalties and what to do next

Federal income tax returns are due to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) each year on or around April 15.  Once you have filed your tax return, it is generally the end of the matter for you.  Your federal income tax return is processed and you do not think about your taxes again until the following year.

But this year for some reason you received a notice from the IRS.  Specifically, the IRS notice indicates that they are charging you a penalty related to your federal income tax return.  Why?  Read on to find out the main reason the IRS may say you owe them money and what you need to do about it.

Once you file your federal income tax return, the IRS will review the return to determine if it appears to be complete and accurate.  If the IRS deems the return is complete and accurate, they will process it.  If the IRS detects some sort of issue, they will send you a notice describing what the issue is and what it means to you.  A list of many notices the IRS may send appears on the IRS’ web site at http://www.irs.gov/individuals/article/0,,id=96199,00.html.

If you receive a notice from the IRS indicating they are charging you a penalty, it is usually because you owe a tax liability to the IRS that you have failed to pay.  Many people do not realize that when you file your federal income tax return, if you owe a tax liability to the IRS, the IRS expects you to pay the tax liability at the time you file.  Even if you file an extension for your tax return, the extension only relates to allowing you more time to file your tax return.  The IRS still expects you to pay your tax liability due on or around April 15.

If you filed your tax return and did not owe a tax liability, yet you still received a notice from the IRS that you now owe them money related to a penalty, it is possible that you made an error on your taxes.  In the process of the IRS reviewing your tax return for completeness and accuracy, if they detect and correct an error, it could mean that you now owe money to them.  And since the IRS detected the issue after the time when you should have paid the balance due, you may not be assessed a penalty.

Whatever the reason for the penalty or money you owe to the IRS, your best option is to get help from a tax attorney.

Obtaining help from a tax attorney

If you need help with your federal income tax, you can the help you need from a tax attorney.  If you complete the short form found below, a tax attorney can review your case free of charge and start giving you direction on how to address the penalty you received from the IRS.  The tax attorney can help you with the completion of any forms or other steps necessary to address the issue.

Any conversations you have with a tax attorney are completely confidential, and the initial consultation does not obligate you to anything further.  Therefore, take advantage of this opportunity today to help minimize the money you owe to the IRS and put the matter behind you.

Related articles
Enhanced by Zemanta

Need Help with your Unpaid Taxes?

Complete the Free Tax Case Evaluation form below and an experienced Tax Professional will contact you to discuss your situation. Don't Wait -- Get Help Today!


Federal income tax have the IRS on your back?

If you owe money on a past tax return to the Internal Revenue Service (the IRS), you have probably found that they are very persistent in hunting you down in an attempt to get their money.  The initial contact from the IRS may simply come in the form of letters and phone calls under the guise of being sure you are aware that you owe them back taxes related to your tax return.  However, as time passes and the IRS continues to either not hear from you at all or not receive the money you owe them, they will realize that the non-payment of the back taxes is not simply an oversight on your part.

As the IRS can in general seek to collect back taxes for up to 10 years from the date when you filed the tax return related to that money, it is very difficult to outlast the IRS.  Before the 10-year statute of limitations runs out, the IRS will generally file a levy against you to take your property, forcing collection of the back tax owed.

However, you do have options to keep the IRS from continuing to harass you.  Here are some solutions you should consider.

Pay the federal income tax you owe.  If you are looking for help with your tax return and back taxes you owe, then odds are that you simply cannot afford to pay the back tax that you owe on your tax return.  Regardless, this point is worth mentioning and evaluating fully to ensure this solution is not an option.

If you do not have the cash available to pay the tax you owe on your tax return, do you have any other assets or property—cars, boats, homes, jewelry, real estate—you could sell for enough money to cover the back tax?  If you do and you have not been willing to sell the property because it has sentimental or other important value to you, remember that selling other property you have may be a viable solution to get the IRS off your back.

Negotiate a settlement with the IRS.  The IRS has options available to help people pay back federal income tax they owe.  One of these options is a payment plan or settlement agreement, which means that you will pay all the tax you owe not as a single lump-sum payment but as a series of payments over time.  This means that you may be able to work out with the IRS a monthly payment you can afford to address the back taxes you owe.

A second option is an offer in compromise.  An offer in compromise is when the IRS agrees to accept less than the full amount of federal income tax you owe.  But before you assume this is the best option for you, simply because it means you will have to pay less money than you thought you would, keep in mind that the IRS does not enter into an offer in compromise with a taxpayer without a good reason.  For the IRS to accept an offer in compromise, they must believe that they are unlikely to ever receive the full payment, because you have no assets or income.  In addition, you must file every past due tax return you have not filed previously.

Declare bankruptcy.  Bankruptcy is an option for addressing money you owe on a past tax return in certain cases.  Specifically, if the back tax is related to the previous three tax years, an amount assessed by the Internal Revenue Service in the past 240 days, or an amount related to an income tax return you never filed, bankruptcy cannot be used to get rid of the back taxes.  This is true whether you use Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 bankruptcy, the two most common types of bankruptcies used by individuals.

Whatever your situation, before you decide one of the above options may be for you in addressing your federal income tax situation, it would be wise to speak with a tax attorney.

Can a tax attorney help me figure out what I should do?

Yes, a tax attorney will be able to help evaluate your back taxes and determine what options is best for your situation.  The tax attorney will have experience working with cases related to past due federal income tax–situations like yours–and will know what to do.

The initial conversation you have with a tax attorney will be free of charge, completely confidential, and not obligate you to anything further.  Therefore, please take this opportunity today to learn what options you have to address your back taxes and get the IRS off your back.

Related articles
Enhanced by Zemanta

Need Help with your Unpaid Taxes?

Complete the Free Tax Case Evaluation form below and an experienced Tax Professional will contact you to discuss your situation. Don't Wait -- Get Help Today!


Income tax attorney selection: four important questions to ask

If you need help with a tax situation, a tax attorney can be one of the best people you can turn to.  A tax attorney will be familiar with tax laws and can have experience in a variety of tax matters, such as income tax, property tax, and tax settlement.  But every tax attorney and law firm is not the same.  How can you be sure to select the right law firm for you?  Asking the following four questions can help you to make the right decision.

What is the name of the tax attorney who will be assigned to my case, their supervisor, and the owner of the firm?  If you are considering a law firm with a number of tax attorneys, it is important to nail the firm down as to which attorney will be working on your case.  A law firm may be able to advertise that they have a broad array of experience in working many different types of tax cases because they do have at least one attorney who specializes in each tax area.  But if the attorney assigned to your case is not one who has experience with the issues you need help with, that broad experience of the law firm as a whole may not give you any direct benefit.

In addition, once you know the attorney who will be assigned to your case, you should also get the names of the attorney’s direct supervisor as well as the owner of the law firm.  In the event your attorney is not responding quickly enough or helping you to your satisfaction, having the names of the attorney’s supervisor and the owner of the firm will give you a place to turn to for help in resolving the matter.

What experience do they have in dealing with and success in addressing my specific tax issue?  As noted above, once you have the name of the attorney assigned to your case, you need to be sure they have experience with your situation.  You should also evaluate their success in handling those types of cases.

For example, if you are meeting with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) concerning an audit of your federal income tax, your attorney should have experience in meeting with the IRS about an income tax audit; your attorney should not simply be one who is responsible for submitting income tax returns.

Likewise, if you are looking for an attorney to submit an offer in compromise on your behalf to the IRS for your federal income tax, you should find out how many offers in compromise the attorney has submitted, how many were accepted, and what percentage of the original tax owed did those people save.

How much will it cost and how do they structure payment for their services?  It is important to ask about the cost of a firm’s services to be sure you can afford them.  You may be tempted to look for an attorney or law firm that will charge you the least amount of money.  However, with attorneys, as with many other things in life, you sometimes get what you pay for.  You should only consider the amount an attorney charges for their services while considering the experience the attorney brings to the table.  Paying a little more to hire an attorney with the right experience to actually help you will likely be worth the extra cost.

In addition, be sure the attorney does not expect to be paid everything up front.  A significant portion of the work should not be paid until their services are complete, or the attorney should structure the payment so that you pay for services as you use them.

Does the attorney offer guaranteed results?  With attorneys, a guarantee is actually something you do not want.  While you want an attorney with a good track record in handling situations like yours, if an attorney guarantees you results, you should seek a different attorney.  No attorney can or should promise guaranteed results.

How can I get help in finding a tax attorney who can help me?

If you complete the short form found below, a tax attorney who has experience in handling tax issues like yours will get in touch with you.  This initial conversation will be free of charge, completely confidential, and leave you with no additional obligation.  However, if you like what the attorney has to say and believe they can help you, you can then hire the attorney to help you address your tax issue.

Related articles
Enhanced by Zemanta

Need Help with your Unpaid Taxes?

Complete the Free Tax Case Evaluation form below and an experienced Tax Professional will contact you to discuss your situation. Don't Wait -- Get Help Today!


« Newer Posts — Older Posts »






LeadRival LP BBB Business Review


Online Marketing for Lawyers