Federal Tax Posts

Receiving a letter from the IRS may make you go weak in the knees. Don’t panic, but do read the letter, the tax agency says. The IRS may simply have a question about your return or inform you of a change to your account or the letter may request payment. Don’t ignore it. Instead, read it carefully, right away. Most IRS communication deals with a [...]

Could your business become a victim of a data security breach? Most businesses store sensitive data about employees and customers, including names, addresses and Social Security numbers (SSNs). If lost or stolen, this data could put individuals at risk for identity theft and other types of damage. Depending on the situation, the IRS advises: 1) If a breach could pose harm to a person or [...]

Taxpayers received more refund dollars in fiscal year (FY) 2023 than they did the previous year, according to the latest IRS Data Book. The IRS issued approximately $659 million in refunds, a 2.7% increase over FY 2022. Overall, individuals and estates and trusts paid close to $2.6 trillion, which is down from $2.9 trillion in FY 2022. Total business taxes declined from $476 billion in [...]

The IRS has issued its annual Data Book detailing its activities during fiscal year 2023. As the publication’s name implies, it’s packed with statistics. For example, during FY 2023, the IRS collected approximately $4.7 trillion in gross taxes. This amount accounts for about 96% of the funding that supports the federal government’s operations. In addition, in FY 2023, the IRS processed more than 271.4 million [...]

If you’re waiting for a tax refund and relying on the IRS’s Where’s My Refund (WMR) tool (https://bit.ly/3xJoEi1), listen up. WMR generally provides current information about your refund status and amount and typically is updated every 24 hours (usually overnight). If you think WMR is displaying inaccurate data, keep in mind that a letter may be on its way to you requesting additional details needed [...]

Can posting on social media be evidence in a tax dispute? In one case, the U.S. Tax Court said yes. The court allowed the IRS to present a woman’s blog posts as evidence. The taxpayer and her husband allegedly underpaid tax for multiple years. After the husband died, the wife sought “innocent spouse” relief, which the IRS denied. The blog posts were relevant because they [...]

The long-term solvency of the Social Security trust fund has been a topic of concern for both Congress and individual taxpayers for years. Congress often puts forth bills to address the program’s projected financial shortfall. Some proposals aim to achieve financial balance by reducing costs (such as benefit amounts) while other proposals aim to achieve financial balance by raising revenues (such as payroll taxes). The [...]

The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) has reported that the estimated federal budget deficit for the first four months of fiscal year 2024 reached $531 billion. That amount is $71 billion more than the deficit recorded during the same period during fiscal year 2023. Although revenues this year were $112 billion (8%) higher, outlays rose by $183 billion (9%). Note that a significant portion of the [...]

If you have an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN), make sure it’s current before you file your taxes. In general, certain nonresident and resident aliens, their spouses and dependents who aren’t eligible for Social Security Numbers use ITINs to file income tax and information returns. The IRS can still accept your return if your ITIN has expired, but the expiration may result in processing delays [...]

One of the provisions of the Inflation Reduction Act is intended to provide financial help to farmers, ranchers and forest landowners who experienced discrimination from the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture (USDA) prior to 2021. Applications for the USDA Financial Discrimination Assistance Program were due Jan. 17, 2024. The IRS recently released FAQs (https://bit.ly/42RXbWI  ) about the tax treatment of program payments taxpayers received. Payments generally [...]

If you’re due a tax refund and are reluctant to receive it by direct deposit, here’s a reason to reconsider. The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has reported a surge in check fraud schemes using the U.S. mail. The latest available figures from FinCEN show that from 2020 to 2022, the number of suspicious activity reports related to check fraud nearly doubled, to over 680,000. [...]

Just in time for tax filing season, the IRS has made several updates to (and added several new) FAQs related to the health insurance premium tax credit. This refundable credit is designed to help eligible individuals and families with low or moderate income afford health insurance purchased through the Health Insurance Marketplace. The size of the premium tax credit is based on a sliding scale. [...]

The IRS is beginning phase two of its Pre-Examination Retirement Plan Compliance Program. The overall project is intended to reduce taxpayer burden, minimize IRS time spent auditing plans and encourage plan sponsors to self-correct. Sponsors currently chosen for participation will receive a letter urging them to review their plan documents and operations for tax law compliance. If you’re selected and don’t reply to the IRS [...]

The employer-provided childcare tax credit is designed to help employers cover some of the qualified facility, resource and referral costs associated with providing childcare services to their employees. A qualified childcare facility is one that meets the requirements of all applicable laws and regulations of the state or local government in which it’s located. The credit is limited to $150,000 per year to offset 25% [...]