Monthly Archives: October 2009

Many years ago, the IRS came out with this little slogan, “a kinder, gentler IRS”. The question is,  “are they”?  A grizzly bear is soft and gentle at times, yet other times kills. Which one is the IRS? Ever since this slogan came out I laughed at the kinder gentler IRS. The truth be told,  [...]

What do I do when the IRS is not listening?  If the IRS is working your case and YOU know there is an impasse or a problem,  is what they say gospel? No, you have a friend called the Taxpayer Advocate. So how does this process work?  The LTA is a Local Taxpayer Advocate that  [...]

This is big!  The IRS is actually helping the taxpayers understand their audit techniques. This was such a mystery over the years for so many people on the question, ” what does the IRS do during an audit”?  This is IRS’s way to become more people friendly. The IRS has a new program called TaxWise, [...]

RS manual provisions state the following regarding the estimate tax penalty: Estimated Tax Penalty and Reasonable Cause The penalty for underpayment of estimated tax cannot be removed or waived for reasonable cause alone. The IRS is tough on this penalty. The penalty for underpayment of estimated tax generally is not waived as a result of [...]

I have a tax bill and I never filed these tax returns. What are these?  They are substitutes for returns prepared by the IRS. Many times people forget to file their tax returns and the IRS finally picks up on the fact that there are no matching returns for a social security number.   What [...]

Relief From Penalties Generally, relief from penalties falls into four separate categories: Reasonable Cause Statutory Exceptions Administrative Waivers Correction of Service Error Appeals may recommend the abatement or non-assertion of a penalty based on these four criteria as well as “Hazards of Litigation.” This chapter discusses each of these categories and the related criteria. Also, [...]

Can delinquent tax returns penalties get abated with Internal Revenue Service and How? Many people who have not filed delinquent returns and decide to file returns all at one time face an uphill battle of getting penalties and interest abated. There is usually not a reasonable cause for a multitude of years, however there are [...]

How easy is it to get penalties and interest abated? That is a question that I am asked on a daily basis and there is an easy answer.  The answer is simply, ” if reasonable cause exists”.  The next question that comes from that, ” what is a reasonable cause”? There is no magic wand [...]

Yes they can, if reasonable cause exists.  The reasonable cause should be documented and signed under penalties of perjury.  Please review the following: Failure to timely file the information return, absent reasonable cause, can give rise to a penalty under section 6652 of the code. Whether or not an organization qualifies for the reasonable cause exception [...]