When you hire a tax professional to resolve a tax matter, one of the first steps they will take is a review of your IRS account transcripts. An account transcript provides you with a complete history of your tax account, which can be useful for determining things such as the status of your tax return or refund, whether there have been tax offsets, or even if there was an audit adjustment. But you have to understand how to read the transcript which can seem confusing at first. How to get your account transcript There are various types of transcripts available, but in this article we’ll be discu ..read more

If you need to face-to-face assistance at your local IRS office, normally you are required to schedule an appointment. However, there are Saturday help days where you can visit selected local TAC offices without an appointment on the following dates and locations. These offices will be open from 9 am to 4 pm. Since the locations may change, please verify at IRS.gov. Note that you must make an appointment to visit the office on any other dates or locations other than these. Saturday February 11, 2023 Alabama 417 20th St. North, Room 501, Birmingham, AL 35203 Alaska 949 E. 36th Ave ..read more

When you apply for an EIN, you receive a computer-generated notice (CP 575) that contains your EIN and other information. If you’ve lost the notice, here are some things you can try. Before Contacting the IRS If you only need the EIN number and not an EIN verification letter, you might be able to locate your EIN without contacting the IRS. First, check if you’ve filed a business tax return previously using the EIN. If so, you can find the EIN on the tax return. Next, if you used your EIN to open a bank account, the bank may be able to provide your EIN. Contact the IRS If you’re still not able ..read more

This week the IRS announced that it was abating certain penalties relating to the 2019 and 2020 tax periods. Taxpayers who have already paid these penalties could be seeing a refund check in the mail. What Penalties Will be Abated? The following penalties for tax periods 2019 and 2020 if filed before September 30, 2022 will be abated: Section 6651(a)(1) failure to file penalties for most Form 1040 and 1120 series, Form 1041, Form 1066, Form 990-PF, and Form 990-T Systemic penalties for certain late-filed Form 5471, Form 5472, Form 3520, Form 3520-A Certain penalties for failure to file timely ..read more

If you paper filed a return and are owed a refund, you may be wondering why it is taking so long. The reason is likely that your return is caught up in a backlog of paper-filed returns. Take a Deep Breath IRS employees are real people and working as hard as possible to process tax returns. Contacting the IRS will not speed up the refund. Always E-file Whenever Possible E-filing returns helps avoid mistakes such as incorrect SSNs that can delay your tax refund. When you e-file you will receive an acknowledgement within minutes. If rejected you’ll find out how to fix the error. When a tax return ..read more

Taxpayers may deduct charitable contributions if they meet specific requirements. In Albrecht v. Commissioner; No. 13314-20; T.C. Memo. 2022-53, the Tax Court clarifies these requirements. Law Regarding Charitable Contributions Over $250 IRC § 170(a)(1) allows deductions for charitable contributions. For a contribution over $250, IRC § 170(f)(8) requires a contemporaneous written acknowledgement (CWA) from the donee organization which must include the following: the amount of cash and a description (but not value) of any property other than cash contributed; whether the donee organizatio ..read more

Amounts paid to a spouse or former spouse under a divorce or separation agreement may be deductible as alimony or separate maintenance payments. There are certain requirements to be met for such payments to be deductible and the Tax Court fleshes those out in the recent Ibrahim v. Commissioner; No. 10750-20S; T.C. Summ. Op. 2022-7. Law Regarding Alimony or Separate Maintenance Deductions I.R.C. 71(b)(1) defines alimony or separate maintenance payments as any monetary payment that satisfies the following four requirements: A. the payment is received by (or on behalf of) a spouse under a di ..read more

In general real estate activity is considered a passive activity which means that any loss is not deductible in the current year and must be carried forward. There are two exceptions to this rule: 1. Taxpayers can deduct up to a $25,000 special loss allowance if they actively participated the the rental activity and their modified AGI is below the limit, or 2. Taxpayers can deduct the full amount of loss if they are a real estate professional. How do you qualify as a real estate professional? The tax court answers this in Sezonov v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2022-40. Real estate professional an ..read more

It’s tax time and if you’re missing your Form W-2, here are some things you can try. Contact your employer first The law requires employers to issue a Form W-2 to their employees by January 31st every year. If you didn’t receive your Form W-2 by January 31st, or if it is incorrect, try reaching out to your employer. In some cases, for example, the employer may have sent it to an old address if you moved. Or it may have been sent to you electronically by your employer. Contact the IRS If you tried reaching out to your employer and still do not receive your W-2 by the end of February, you would ..read more

Child tax credits are typically claimed when taxpayers file their income tax returns. However, as part of the American Rescue Plan package, millions of parents received monthly advances of their child tax credits from July through December of 2021. In addition, the total child tax credit amount and eligibility were expanded. The IRS calculated the advance credit payments based on the taxpayer’s 2019 or 2020 return, whichever was the latest available. When filing their 2021 returns, some taxpayers might see a smaller refund than they are used to, some may see larger refunds, and a small percent ..read more