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IRS Enforces Tax Regulations on Cryptocurrency
With cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum and Litecoin gaining in popularity among investors, the IRS is becoming more aware of those who fail to disclose their gains and/or losses. According to an article written by Accounting Today (Click Here to read article), the IRS is going after Coinbase, an online platform where you can buy and sell…
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Tax Credits for Qualified Plug-In Electric Vehicles
Passenger automobiles that are propelled solely or significantly by electric power have been in the news lately, thanks in part to the buzz surrounding the Tesla Model 3, an “economy” model set to be priced at $35,000 and available in late 2017 or early 2018. Given all the recent media attention, this seemed like a good…
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Maximizing Benefits of §529 Plans
Using a §529 plan to pay for higher education costs can be a great tax savings tool in itself; although contributions are not tax deductible federally or for California, they are deductible in 34 other states. All withdrawals and earnings are tax-free if used to pay for qualified higher education expenses (“QHEE”) for a designated…
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Tax Industry and IRS “Team Up” to Fight Identity Theft Fraud
Under a new agreement called “a sweeping new collaborative effort”, tax software vendors and the IRS will team up to fight identity theft refund fraud. This agreement will have the IRS, tax preparation and software firms, payroll and tax financial product processors, and state tax administrators collaborate to identify new steps to validate taxpayer and tax return information…
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International Data Sharing with the IRS
In a recent news release, the IRS announced the opening of a new International Data Exchange Service (IDES) for financial institutions and foreign countries to securely provide information on financial accounts held by U.S. persons. More than 145,000 financial institutions have registered and more than 110 countries have agreed to provide this information to the…
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Supreme Court Upholds Affordable Care Act Subsidies
In a 6-3 decision that upholds a key provision of the Affordable Care Act, the Supreme Court has held that the premium tax credits under IRC Section 36B are not limited solely to taxpayers who live in states that have established a health insurance Exchange. Rather, the credits (also known as health insurance subsidies), which are designed…
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Tax Return Transcripts Available to Individual Taxpayers *Updated*
The IRS’ “Get Transcript” application has been temporarily disabled. Recently, criminals used taxpayer-specific data acquired from non-IRS sources to gain unauthorized access to information through the IRS’ “Get Transcript” application. The application will remain disabled until security modifications are made. The information gained allowed the criminals to clear the multi-step authentication process, including several personal…
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How to Fight Identity Theft
Fighting identity theft is an ongoing battle as identity thieves continue to create new ways of stealing personal information and using it for their gain. Tax-related identity theft occurs when someone uses a stolen Social Security Number to file a tax return and claim a fraudulent refund. The IRS is committed to reducing fraudulent refunds…