Getting a letter from the IRS notifying you of an upcoming tax audit is never a welcome event. At the very least, it can be a major inconvenience. At worst, it could mean the possibility of criminal investigation for tax fraud. Knowing how to proceed when you are notified can…
As a California employer, you are responsible for making payroll tax payments to the California Employment Development Department and the IRS. These payroll tax deposits must be made regularly, often monthly or weekly as taxes are withheld from payroll disbursements. If you become behind on making these deposits, you could…
The 2007 financial crisis and its aftermath fundamentally changed how Americans think about risk and business. Another effect of the financial crisis was creating a renewed urgency regarding balancing the federal government’s finances. While many in Congress focus on reducing expenditures, the IRS has continued its efforts to increase tax…
Temporary employment agencies have become a more prevalent part of the American work experience since the 2007 financial crisis and the difficult economic times that followed. While on one hand, temporary employment agencies can provide workers with an entry point into a new industry, on the other hand they require…
The 6th Circuit recently taught an expensive lesson to a Michigan couple about carefully following procedure when dealing with tax problems and subsequent loss of their $64,000 refund occurred because of a seeming minor error. Following an IRS tax dispute began, as the IRS’ records stated that the envelope containing…
In a criminal tax case last year the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit upheld the conviction of a man for willful failure to pay the employment taxes of his healthcare staffing business. U.S. v. McClain (8th Cir. 2011). In United States v. Francis Leroy McLain, No.…
The criminal tax conviction of a New Jersey couple (the DeMuros) for failure to pay payroll taxes to the IRS was affirmed by the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, United States v. DeMuro (3d Cir. 2012). The willful failure to pay payroll taxes is a violation Internal Revenue Code (IRC)…
Last month, while most people were preparing their Christmas lists, Louis Alba, a New York contractor, plead guilty to criminal tax charges of failing to pay over to IRS employment taxes withheld from employee wages in the amount of almost $780,000 over approximately six years. Failure to pay over payroll…
The IRS has filed felony criminal tax charges pursuant to Internal Revenue Code Section 7202 for willful failure to collect, truthfully account for and pay over trust fund taxes. This is yet another in a series of criminal tax charges being brought against responsible officers who haven’t paid over corporate…
United States v. Quinn (D. KS 2011) is one of several recent felony tax prosecutions, not for tax evasion, but for violation of Internal Revenue Code Section 7202. IRC Section 7202 makes it a felony to willfully fail to collect, account for, or pay over any tax due. In this…