Loss on the Decline in Value of Cryptocurrency

Cryptocurrencies, a type of digital asset, can be a valuable source of tax losses. In fact, harvesting tax losses at or near the end of the year is a well-recognized tax planning strategy. This entails selling crypto positions that have sustained losses and immediately buying them back. This is not available for other assets, such…

Court Limits IRS Passport Certification Under Sec. 7345

In recent years, the U.S. government has taken steps to increase enforcement measures to allow the IRS to collect delinquent taxes. This includes adding Sec. 7345 to allow the IRS and U.S. State Department to revoke or deny passports of individuals with seriously delinquent tax debts. In order to revoke or deny a passport, the…

Innocent Spouse Can Benefit from Tax Savings

Innocent spouse relief is a complex and nuanced area of tax law that can be difficult to navigate. In order to successfully file a claim, one must have a thorough understanding of the rules and requirements. One example of this complexity is found in Section 6015(c), which does not require that the innocent spouse not…

Court Says IRS Issuing Six Summonses is Not Bad Faith

The IRS has a lot of power. This power stems from the broad Congressional grant of authority to examine books and records to enforce our tax laws. Since taxes impact every individual and business for every transaction (and even inactions), this allows the IRS to audit and inquire into just about anything it wants to.…

IRS Collects Taxes Discharged in Bankruptcy

When the governmet confers a benefit, it invariably puts conditions on the benefit. Congress will often modify the conditions over time. The result can be a very nuanced set of rules that, to the uninitiated, can seem nonsensical and impossible to descipher. The rules that allow taxes to be discharged in bankruptcy fall into this…

Is Homeless a Requirement for an IRS Payment Agreement?

Indifference. It is generally defined as “lack of interest, concern, or sympathy.” Those who are unfortunate enough to work with the government employees to resolve a case or matter often have a profound understanding of this term. This is true of just about every government function–be it local, state, or federal. When it comes to…

IRS Ignore Your Offer in Compromise? What’s Next?

The IRS offer in compromise program provides taxpayers with a remedy for settling back taxes.  It can provide taxpayers with a much-needed fresh start.  Congress has changed the rules for offers.  One change is that offers are deemed accepted if the IRS does not reject them within two years.  This raises the question of how…

Making Voluntary Payments to the IRS

For those who owe the IRS back taxes, the decision as to how to pay the IRS raises a number of concerns.  One such concern for those who owe taxes for several different tax years or several different types of taxes, is what year and tax account the payments are applied to.  Typically taxpayers get…