The Presumption of Innocence Podcast: Episode 44 - A Recipe for Litigation: The Simmering Conflict Surrounding ERC Claims
REFRESH Nonprofit Basics: Navigating the Complex Rules That Describe a Public Charity
Expedited Review of IRS Applications for Recognition of Exempt Status
Nonprofit Quick Tip: State Filings in New Mexico and Utah
Back to Compliance: Reinstating Tax-Exempt Status for a Charity
PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - IRS Clarifies Emergency Distributions Tax Exceptions
GILTI Conscience Podcast | Spotlight Series: A Celebration of Pride Month With IRS Veteran De Lon Harris
Nonprofit Quick Tip: State Filings in Oklahoma and Texas
Inflation Reduction Act Tax Trends Begin to Take Shape
Advice for Nonprofit Investment Committees From an Investment Advisor June 3, 2024 Podcast
REFRESH: Loot and Private Foundation Rules – Part 2
IRS Dirty Dozen Warnings on Charitable Scams
US Expatriate Tax Planning - Part 1 - A Podcast with Janathan Allen
Nonprofit Quick Tip: State Filings in North Carolina and South Carolina
Nonprofit Quick Tip: State Filings in Florida and Louisiana
Business Better Podcast Episode: Tax Audits, Investigations, and Global Enforcement - A Conversation with IRS Special Agent Jonathan Schnatz
4 Key Takeaways | Harnessing the Inflation Reduction Act: Driving Investments in Renewable Energy and Carbon Reduction
Nonprofit Basics: Scholarship Grant Program IRS Approval Requirements
Nonprofit Quick Tip: State Filings in Rhode Island and New Hampshire
REFRESH Nonprofit Basics: Election Year Issues for Private Foundations and Public Charities - Private Foundation Advocacy
You may recall that earlier this year the IRS launched an initiative to pursue 125,000 “high-income, high-wealth” taxpayers who have not filed taxes since 2017. These were cases where the IRS received third party information...more
For years, FBAR litigants have made the commonsense argument that large willful FBAR penalties, which can exceed the value of the unreported foreign accounts themselves, violate the excessive fines clause of the Eighth...more
How does the IRS define willfulness in unreported or under-reported offshore income? What actions help determine whether a U.S. taxpayer's actions amount to "willful or non-willful" conduct? Why should U.S. taxpayers be...more
Many US taxpayers still have questions regarding offshore accounts and FBAR filing requirements and compliance. Is there a genuine risk their activities (or lack of compliance) will come to light? The definition of a US...more
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently announced a renewed effort to ensure compliance with federal tax law, specifically focusing on high-income earners, partnerships, and large corporations. This additional scrutiny...more
Every year, the IRS compiles a list of common scams that taxpayers may encounter – its so-called “Dirty Dozen.” Today, the Service wrapped up the annual Dirty Dozen list of tax scams for 2023 with a reminder for taxpayers,...more
Harrington v. Commissioner - In Harrington v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue, George S. Harrington (Harrington) challenged tax deficiencies and fraud penalties assessed for tax years 2005 through 2010. Originally...more
In this bulletin, we highlight two recent federal court cases in which U.S. taxpayers won major victories against the United States with respect to their obligations to report non-U.S. accounts on FinCEN Form 114 – Report of...more
Taxpayers recently won a significant victory at the Supreme Court in a penalty case involving a non-willful failure to file a Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (“FBAR”) under the Bank Secrecy Act (the “BSA”)....more
After years of litigation, the United States Supreme Court, in Bittner v. United States, 598 U.S. ____ (2023), determined that the penalty for a non-willful failure to file a Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts...more
On Feb. 28, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that non-willful penalties related to FBARs apply to each report filed, not on a per-account basis. The 5-4 decision resolved a split between the Fifth and Ninth circuits that focused...more
Taxpayers who hold foreign accounts finally received clarity as the Supreme Court ruled that the $10,000 non-willful penalty for failure to file a FinCEN Form 114, Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts (FBAR) applies...more
Summary: At its core, this 31-page opinion regards married U.S. citizen taxpayers, Leigh Fairbank (Leigh) and Barbara Fairbank (Barbara), challenge to deficiency notices issued for the tax years in issue (2003 through 2009...more
If you have unreported foreign accounts, you are not alone. Every year, I speak with hundreds of clients with tax non-reporting issues (e.g., FBARs, Form 8938, Form 3520, Form 3520-A, etc.). The good news: the IRS offers...more
After a yearlong investigation, the US Senate Finance Committee probed into a FATCA Loophole and delivered an investigative report titled “The Shell Bank Loophole” that exposes a tax evasion scheme under a FATCA loophole...more
The Bank Secrecy Act requires certain taxpayers to submit timely FBARs to the United States reporting their interests in foreign accounts. If a taxpayer has an FBAR filing requirement and misses it, the taxpayer can be...more
$50,000 or $2.72 million? Those are the penalty amounts for the non-willful failure to timely file to report foreign financial accounts at issue in U.S. v Bittner, which will be argued before the U.S. Supreme Court in...more
This fall, the Supreme Court is set to hear an important case regarding the interpretation of the law that provides for penalties for failing to file an FBAR. The case will impact many taxpayers who have already been...more
Tax Litigation: The Week of August 29th, 2022, through September 2nd, 2022 Sparta Pink Property, LLC v. Comm’r, T.C. Memo. 2022-88 | August 29, 2022 | Lauber, J. | Dkt. No. 12114-20 Pressman v. Comm’r, T.C. Summ. Op....more
A recent FBAR case—well, kind of—serves as a reminder that FBAR penalties can be [*fill in your pejorative adjective of choice*]. In United States v. Buff, the government initiated a suit to collect unpaid civil penalties...more
In Flint v. United States, 2022 WL 3593826 (Fed. Cl. 2022), the court held that the executors of an estate could not recover a six-figure "Title 26 miscellaneous offshore penalty" (MOP) the decedent paid to the Internal...more
As a general matter, the FBAR is not a difficult tax form to prepare, at least for most taxpayers and their tax professionals. At its very basics, it merely asks for identifying information regarding the taxpayer and certain...more
El Informe de TIGTA (“Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration”) del 7 de abril de 2022 detalla seis recomendaciones de acciones adicionales necesarias para abordar el cumplimiento de la falta de presentación y...more
The TIGTA Report dated April 7, 2022 details six recommendations for additional actions needed to address Non-Filing and Non-Reporting Compliance Under FATCA. ...more
The IRS and FBARs - On March 30, 2022, the IRS issued Publication 5569, Report of Foreign Bank & Financial Accounts (FBAR) Reference Guide. The 12-page publication provides helpful information to both taxpayers and tax...more