Tax News

The interest rates that the will IRS charge on underpayments and pay on overpayments remains unchanged for the third quarter of 2013 (July 1 through September 30). The rates are: 3% for overpaymen...

The IRS reported that e-filing of individual income tax returns was up this year. More than 43 million taxpayers self-prepared and e-filed their returns using their computers, which is an increase of ...

Treasury Secretary Lew has named a new acting IRS commissioner to replace Steven Miller, the acting commissioner who resigned amidst ongoing IRS improprieties now under investigation. Daniel Werfel, w...

As a result of the federal government’s sequester (budgetary constraints), the IRS will be closed on May 24, June 14, July 5, July 22, and August 30. This means that all of its toll-free hotlines an...

Employer payments for your health coverage are fully tax free. This rule does not change in 2014 when the health care mandates go into effect. But are cash payments that an employer pays to an employe...

Last month it came to light that the IRS believed it could obtain a taxpayer’s email from an Internet Service Provider (ISP) just by asking for it. The IRS wanted to read the content of some taxpaye...

It’s not easy to turn a foreign trip into a tax deduction. Just ask one taxpayer who tried to justify his travel costs as “research” for his writing activities. He was born in France but became ...

Health savings accounts (HSAs) are a viable way to obtain affordable health coverage. In order to make contributions to these accounts, you must be covered by a high-deductible health plan (HDHP). The...

Despite a massive tax bill enacted at the start of this year, there are a number of new tax proposals in the works. Whether any of them will ultimately come to pass remains to be seen. However, if you...

Are your personal and business emails private? Last week the IRS indicated to members of Congress that it had the authority to read them. In a statement issued on April 22, 2013, the IRS clarified the...

Taxpayers who adopt children may qualify for a federal tax credit to cover their adoption expenses. The adoption credit in 2013 is up to $12,970. The full credit amount can be claimed for special need...

The bomb blasts in Boston went off on April 15, the deadline for filing 2012 returns. However, in view of this event, the IRS has given affected taxpayers 3 additional months to timely file 2012 retur...

As part of President Obama’s 2014 budget, there are proposals to increase federal taxes and fees by more than $1 trillion over 10 years. The increases would result from: Capping all itemized ded...

The IRS has noted that tax refunds are down from last year. As of March 22, the average refund was $2,985; it was $3,030 as of March 23, 2012. The IRS paid $187.7 billion in refunds as of March 22, 20...

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...

The IRS’s 2012 Data Book, released on March 25, 2013, reveals that audit rates on individuals declined somewhat in the government’s fiscal year ending September 30, 2012. The overall audit rate fo...

Usually, a filing extension does not give you more time to pay your taxes. But this is a different year. Because the American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012, enacted on January 2, 2013, delayed the issua...

The Affordable Care Act provides that a group health plan or health insurance issuer offering group health insurance coverage cannot have a waiting period of more than 90 days. The IRS, the Department...

Taxpayers who are owed refunds but have not yet filed 2009 returns have until April 15, 2013, to do so. If they don’t file by this date, they lose the refund forever. The IRS estimates that nearly 9...

Are your taxes going up or down? It depends on which tax plan you read. Both sides of the political aisle have proposed sweeping but dramatically different tax reform packages for Congress to consider...