Tax News

April 16, 2014 12:03 pm

The numbers are out and they’re not comforting. Taxpayers spend an exorbitant amount of time and money filing their federal income tax returns each year, and this filing season had been no different...

April 8, 2014 2:35 pm

Tax Freedom Day is April 21, which is three days later than last year. This is the day that the Tax Foundation computes as the time when the entire nation has paid enough to satisfy tax obligations fo...

March 19, 2014 2:25 pm

The IRS is holding refunds totaling $760 billion for about 918,600 taxpayers who did not file their 2010 returns. The last day to file and claim the outstanding refunds related to these returns is Apr...

March 5, 2014 11:27 am

The president’s budget proposal for the government’s 2015 fiscal year contains a measure to expand the earned income tax credit (EITC). This credit is fully refundable, so low- and moderate-income...

February 20, 2014 10:43 am

The IRS’s annual list of the Dirty Dozen Tax Scams has been released. Taxpayers who use or fall victim to these scams expose themselves to additional taxes, penalties, and in some cases, criminal pr...

February 10, 2014 11:28 am

Income from whatever source derived is included in gross income unless there is a specific law treating the income as wholly or partially tax free. This means that the winnings awarded by the U.S. Oly...

January 23, 2014 11:24 am

With tax seasons comes the advent of tax scams by email and phone, including text messages. The IRS cautions taxpayers to be wary at this time of the year. Here are some pointers to help you: The ...

January 16, 2014 12:09 pm

FreeFile is a no-cost way to figure your taxes online and submit your federal return electronically. FreeFile for 2013 returns opens on January 17, 2014 (although the IRS will not begin to process ind...

January 10, 2014 3:29 pm

The National Taxpayer Advocate is an independent organization within the IRS to help taxpayers resolve problems with the IRS as well as to recommend changes that will prevent problems. Nina Olsen, the...

December 23, 2013 2:14 pm

The U.S. Senate confirmed the appointment of John Koskinen as the next IRS commissioner. He starts his job during the week of December 23. He becomes the first commissioner since Douglas Shulman left ...

December 19, 2013 1:58 pm

The IRS announced that the filing season for 2013 income tax returns will begin on January 31, 2014. This is about a week or two later than usual. The government shutdown in October limited IRS work o...

December 10, 2013 4:37 pm

If you use your car, truck, or van for certain purposes other than personal reasons, you can deduct the related costs or use an IRS-set mileage rate. The mileage rate for 2014 is: 56 cents per mil...

December 10, 2013 4:33 pm

IRS interest rates are unchanged for the first quarter of 2014 (January 1, 2014, through March 31, 2014). These are the rates changed on underpayments and overpayments: 3% for overpayments (2% for...

December 4, 2013 10:59 am

Final statistics for the 2013 filing season (for 2012 income tax returns) show that e-filings increased by 2.5%. A total of more than 122 million returns were e-filed by tax professionals or by taxpay...

December 2, 2013 11:36 am

If you need more time or other help in paying your taxes, it will cost you more now. Starting December 2, 2013, the fee for obtaining an installment payment agreement from the IRS is $120, up from $10...

November 1, 2013 11:48 am

Cost-of-living adjustments, or COLAs, apply to nearly four dozen tax rules, and the IRS has announced these adjustments for 2014. With inflation running low, the adjustments are modest. They impact su...

November 1, 2013 11:42 am

Flexible spending accounts, or FSAs, allow employees to contribute a portion of their wages that can be used to pay for medical expenses not covered by insurance. The amount contributed to the FSA is ...

November 1, 2013 11:37 am

The IRS has announced the contribution limits for qualified retirement plans and IRAs for 2014. Due to low inflation, most limits remain unchanged from 2013 limits, for example, limits for contributio...

November 1, 2013 11:31 am

The Social Security Administration announced the 2014 wage base used for figuring the Social Security tax portion of FICA and self-employment tax. For 2014, this wage base is $117,000, up from $113,70...

October 23, 2013 3:11 pm

As a result of the government’s 16-day shutdown in October, the IRS has announced a delay in the start of the 2014 tax filing season. How much of a delay has yet to be determined. The original start...

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Tax Glossary

Private letter ruling

A written determination issued to a taxpayer by the IRS that interprets and applies the tax laws to the taxpayer’s specific set of facts. A letter ruling advises the taxpayer regarding the tax treatment that can be expected from the IRS in the circumstances specified by the ruling. It may not be used or cited as precedent by another taxpayer.

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