The IRS recently signed contracts with three private-sector collection agencies, taking effect Thursday, Sept. 23, 2021. Taxpayers that are behind on payments toward their debts may be contacted by one of the new agencies. Here’s what you need to know: Read More
Revenue Officers deal with the most advanced tax collection cases that the IRS has on file. If you owe a large sum of money to the IRS, you could potentially have a Revenue Officer assigned to you. Optima CEO David King and in-house Revenue Officer expert and Enrolled Agent, Rosie Steele, provide helpful tips on what individuals can do if they have been assigned a Revenue Officer. Watch Video
Since 2009, apps such as Venmo have been evolving into common payment methods for businesses and individuals. Now, peer-to-peer payment apps are gaining the government’s attention regarding unreported income. To remain compliant with the IRS, there are some things to consider if you utilize these apps for business. Read More
The Senate recently passed President Joe Biden’s infrastructure bill, which includes a pilot program for vehicle mileage tax. This tax would charge drivers based on how many miles they drive in a year. The vehicle mileage fee will likely bring in revenue for transportation and future infrastructure projects. Read More
Tax Evasion, Fraud & the Statute of Limitations on Tax Crimes
Tax evasion and fraud is not just a problem for white-collar crime criminals. Filing your taxes, particularly if you have considerable assets or run your own business, can be terribly complex. This means that the line between an aggressive – but legal – tax planning strategy and fraud is thinner than you might think.
Perfectly innocent mistakes may be interpreted by an IRS investigator as suspect. Therefore, even if you are a law-abiding taxpayer it pays to know the difference between tax evasion and tax fraud, the penalties, and what the IRS’ statute of limitations is when prosecuting tax crimes.
Tax Evasion vs. Tax Fraud
Although often used interchangeably, there are important differences between tax evasion and tax fraud. Tax evasion refers to the use of illegal means to avoid paying your taxes. This includes felonies, such as refusing to pay your taxes once they have been assessed, and misdemeanors; such as failing to file a return. Tax fraud, on the other hand, refers to lying on your tax return and falsifying tax documents- which is always a felony charge. This can extend to tax scammers will pose as a tax preparers and then rip off customers through refund fraud or identity theft. These phony accountants are committing Accountant Fraud and will tell you that they can get you a large tax refund and typically prey on low-income and non-English speaking taxpayers.
Take for example celebrity-convict Wesley Snipes, who was charged with three counts of failing to file a return. Snipes was convicted for three misdemeanor charges and received the maximum one-year sentence for each count. If he had been found guilty of a felony evasion charge or of tax fraud, he could have received up to five years for each count.
Statute of Limitations for Tax Evasion or Tax Fraud
The statute of limitations of a crime is the amount of time a prosecutor or a plaintiff has to file charges. In the case of taxes, it represents how long you should be looking over your shoulder after – willfully or otherwise – lying on your tax return.
The general rule of thumb is that the IRS has three years to audit your tax returns. If an investigation of your tax return reveals you concealed over 25% of your income, the IRS gets twice the time, six years, to file charges. However, this time period can be extended for a variety of reasons.
How can the Statute of Limitations be extended?
There are some stipulations that can make those ten years spread out to an even longer period of time. Here are some reasons you may have an extended tax statute of limitations:
If you agree to an extension, your statute is placed on hold until that extension time is up.
If you file bankruptcy, your statute is placed on hold until six months after the bankruptcy and court proceedings have been finished.
If you leave the country for at least six months, the statute is placed on hold until you decide to return.
If you are making payment installment arrangements or request innocent spouse relief, the statute is placed on hold until the final decisions are made.
For instance, if you are not in the United States or you become a fugitive, the statute of limitations may be “tolled” – or stop running – until you are found or return home. Another matter to consider is when the 6-year period starts. The IRS could prosecute a series of fraudulent tax returns as a single charge and only start counting the six-year period from your last act of tax evasion or fraud.
It gets worse. Although the IRS is limited to how far back it can look when filing charges in criminal court, there is no statute of limitations for civil tax fraud. This means the IRS can look back as far as it wants when suing for civil fraud. In practice the IRS rarely goes back more than six years because it has a high enough burden of proof to meet in fraud cases without having to deal with the added difficulties of proving older charges.
Tax Crime Statistics
Let’s end with the good news. Although the law grants extensive powers to the IRS, the chances of you being charged — never mind convicted — of tax fraud are minimal. According to IRS statistics, of the approximately 240.2 million tax returns filed, less than 2,000 people were investigated for fraud in 2020. Of those who were investigated, only half were actually charged with a criminal offense. However, once the IRS charges a taxpayer, the conviction rate is high: around 93%. Tax prosecutors have a high burden of proof to meet and their resources are limited; so they tend to focus their efforts on clear-cut cases.
Another positive tidbit is that the IRS rarely brings up an original return in audits or criminal prosecutions, if you came forward and tried to correct mistakes through an amended return. This means that if you avoid blatant abuses and correct filing errors when they come up in an audit, your chances of staying on the right side of a prison cell are excellent.
As the spirit of generosity is in the air, companies and employees need to know that holiday bonuses are considered supplemental wages and subject to taxes. Holiday bonuses are viewed by the IRS as compensation, just like paychecks, so taxes need to be withheld from your holiday bonus.
How Much are Holiday Bonuses Taxed?
Some of the taxes you will need to pay on your holiday bonus include:
Social security tax:
You pay social security tax on all compensation up to $132,900 in 2019. If you haven’t passed this threshold, then you can expect your employer to deduct 6.20% from your bonus for social security.
Medicare tax:
You can expect another 1.45% to be deducted from your holiday bonus for Medicare tax.
Federal income tax:
The IRS requires a set percentage of your bonus to be withheld when you receive it. This is because your holiday bonus is considered a supplemental income. Under tax reform, the federal tax rate for withholding on a bonus was lowered to 22%. This is lower than the federal income tax rate of 25%.
State income tax:
depending on which state you live in, state income tax will be withheld at the rate the state requires by law.
Retirement Plans (401k):
If you have requested that your employer contribute a portion of your wages to your retirement plan, then the rate at which you have set will be the same rate that will be taken out of your holiday bonus.
Ultimately, you should check with your employer about your holiday bonus and taxes. Your employer has the option to combine your regular paycheck and holiday bonus and withhold taxes on the whole amount. If your employer does this, it may result in a higher withholding than 22%.
If this is the case, don’t worry as you will eventually get some of the money back as part of your federal tax refund when you file your taxes.
How to Avoid Holiday Bonus Tax
Are there any ways to avoid paying tax on the bonus? No. And failing to report and pay taxes could lead to problems down the road. But there are ways to minimize or delay the impact. Here are three options:
Give a little more:
Employers can estimate the taxes an employee would have to pay on the bonus and add that to the total amount. That way, after taxes, the employee would get to keep the intended bonus amount. Obviously, this requires the employer to be more generous, which is not always possible.
Invest in the future:
Another option – that would avoid both payroll and income taxes – is to put the bonus into the employee’s 401K retirement plan. While employees would not actually receive a check during the holidays, they would also not have to pay taxes on that money until they withdraw it. In the meantime, that bonus could continue to grow.
Kick Off a Healthy New Year:
Employers can decide to award holiday bonuses in January and offer the option of placing the money in a Flexible Spending Account for healthcare. None of that money would be taxed, but the employee would have to use it on qualifying health or dependent care expenses.
If you’re an employee and your company will not offer any of the options above, then do your best to plan ahead and factor the taxes into your holiday budget. And if it makes you feel any better, giving is always better than receiving.
Looking for assistance with tax relief? Optima Tax Relief’s licensed professionals offer a range of tax services to help you. Reach out for a consultation today.
You may live or work abroad, but if you’re an American citizen or legal permanent resident, Uncle Sam still wants his rightful share of your income. Even if you reside outside the United States and receive earnings from a source located outside the country, you must report that income.
Depending on your circumstances, you may have to pay taxes both to the government where the company from which you earned your income is located and to the IRS. However, in some cases you may receive a foreign tax credit or tax exclusion for some or all of your foreign income.
The details of reporting foreign income vary according to individual circumstances. Nonetheless, there are general guidelines for nearly everyone who receives foreign income.
What is a Foreign Income Tax Credit?
If you are taxed by the country from which your income is earned and that country has established a tax treaty with the U.S., you may be able to claim the Foreign Income Tax Credit. This credit was designed to help you avoid double taxation and allows you to claim a credit for income tax that you have paid to a foreign government. The intended net result of the foreign tax credit is to ensure that the total amount you pay is no more than the highest result that you would have paid to a single government.
If you hire an accountant or a tax attorney to do your taxes, they will undoubtedly apply the Foreign Income Tax Credit on your income tax return. Some tax preparation software programs also include provisions to calculate the Foreign Income Tax Credit if it applies to you. If not, it would be advisable to choose a different tax preparation program.
What is the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion?
Do not confuse the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion with the Foreign Income Tax Credit. The Foreign Earned Income Exclusion is designed to allow American citizens and legal residents who reside outside the country to exclude most or all of the income earned from foreign sources from their federal income tax liability. The amount of the exclusion varies each year. For 2013, the maximum exclusion was $97,600 per individual taxpayer. Married couples could conceivably claim a larger exclusion.
The IRS has established strict guidelines for taxpayers who wish to claim the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion for a given tax year. Taxpayers must meet all the guidelines listed below to qualify for the exclusion.
Must have foreign earned income
Must have established a tax home in a foreign country
Must pass either the bona fide residence test or the physical presence test
The bona fide residence test requires that you are a bona fide resident in a foreign country for a period that includes at least a full tax year. The physical presence test requires you to be physically present in that foreign country for at least 330 days during a single 12-month period. You need not be present for 330 consecutive days, however.
What to do as a U.S. Government Employees Living Overseas
Income earned by employees of the U.S. government, including military personnel on active duty, does not qualify for the Foreign Income Credit or for the Foreign Earned Income Tax Exclusion – even if the income was earned overseas. However, spouses of government employees who earn income from foreign sources may be eligible for either the foreign tax credit or the foreign income exclusion. It is necessary to consult with an attorney or accountant who specializes in this subject with specific questions about your particular circumstances.
Foreign Income Earned While Living in the U.S.
If you reside within the U.S. full time, in most instances, you must report income earned from foreign sources on your federal income tax return, even if you are taxed on that income by the foreign government. This requirement pertains to earned and unearned income. Self-employed workers who earn income from foreign clients must also report their foreign earnings on their federal income tax returns.
How to Report Income with a W2 or 1099
The requirement to report foreign income applies even if you do not receive a W2 Form, Form 1099 or equivalent form from the foreign income source. It is your responsibility to provide an accurate calculation of your income by calculating payments from pay stubs, wire transfer records, dividend reports, bank statements, or PayPal monthly statements.
Once you calculate your foreign income, you must combine it with any domestic income you have earned in order to calculate the adjusted gross income to be included on your federal income tax return. Failure to report foreign income is considered tax evasion, and if you are caught, the consequences could be dire. You could be hit with hefty fines or even face jail time.
Need to speak with a licensed tax professional? Optima Tax Relief offers a comprehensive range of tax relief services. Schedule a consultation with one of our professionals today.
If you have decided to dive into the sharing economy by renting your home or part of it out — whether it’s through a service like AirBnB or independently — you need to be aware of how the rental income will affect your taxes.
Renting any part of your home requires some work up-front and ongoing management. You have several tasks ahead of you. You’ll most likely want to spruce up the place with comfy furnishings and linens, and maybe a fresh coat of paint. You’ll also need to check the legal regulations for renting in your local area. You may discover there are limitations on the type of rentals you can offer, be they short-term or long-term.
And then, there’s landlord tax. Running afoul of the IRS can potentially wipe out any financial gains you may reap from renting your home – be sure to abide by the laws of landlord tax. Fortunately, you can reduce your potential tax bite with diligent record-keeping. Here’s everything you need to know about renting out a room and applicable taxes.
The 14-Day Rule & Paying Rental Income Taxes
The most convenient and potentially lucrative scenario would be to completely avoid reporting or paying rental income taxes on what you earn from renting out your home or a spare room. Well, you can, IF you meet two relatively easy requirements set by the IRS.
First, you must use the residence as a home at least 14 days out of each calendar year. Second, you must limit the time that you rent any part of the residence that you use as a home to 14 days or less each tax year. That’s it.
So if you have a primary residence plus a vacation home where you spend at least two weeks of the same year, you could rent out rooms in both and collect rental revenue for 28 days (14 days for each residence) completely tax-free. It gets better: the IRS places no upper limit on how much income you earn as long as you don’t exceed 14 total days of rental per property. (IRS.gov)
If you live near the town where the All-Star game for a major sport is being played that year, you could rent out one room or the entire place for the week, rake in major cash, and never report a dime on your tax return. Pretty sweet. But, if a renter burns a hole in your floor, you’re stuck paying for the repairs.
Rent Your Home for More Than 14 Days?
Should you exceed the 14-day threshold, things become a bit more complicated. First, you must determine whether you or family members will reside in the residence or use it for personal purposes for at least 10% of the time that you rent at a fair rental price. You don’t have to be there at the same time you’re renting, but your time in the residence must equal at least 10% of the total rental time. So if you rent out your vacation home for 300 days each year, you or another qualifying person will need to live there for at least 30 days during the same year for the IRS to qualify the residence as a home. For the purposes of this article, the assumption will be that the residence qualifies as a home for IRS purposes. (IRS.gov)
The rules differ for rental properties that are used for what the IRS calls “personal purposes” rather than as residences. There are also different regulations that apply if you use the rental property as a residence, but don’t live there enough of the time for the residence to qualify as a home. To sort out those types of issues, consult with a professional such as a tax attorney from Optima Tax Relief.
Which IRS Form Do You Need to File Rental Income?
As a contractor with AirBnB living within the U.S., you would complete Form W-9, Request for Taxpayer Identification Number and Certification. You would also receive Form 1099, Miscellaneous Income before you file your federal income tax return for the following year. (International contractors need to complete different forms.) If you operate as an independent, you will need to maintain your own records for rental income and expenses, preferably separate from your personal household expenses.
If you provide sleeping space, but no frills, report income and losses on Schedule E, Supplemental Income and Loss, attached to Form 1040, Form 1040NR or Form 1041. If you splash out on fluffy towels, turn-down service, and catered breakfast in bed for your guests, report income and expenses through Schedule C, Profit or Loss from Business, also filed with Form 1040, Form 1040NR or Form 1041.
In either case, you are also allowed to deduct the costs of repairs, depreciation (by filing Form 4562, Depreciation and Amortization), uncollected rents and actual operating expenses. But if a renter trashes the place and you file Schedule E, you will also need to complete Form 6198, At-Risk Limitations or Form 8582, Passive Activity Loss Limitations. If you’re not sure which form you should complete, consulting a tax professional is your best strategy.
Fair Rental Prices and How They’re Calculated
If you live in the heart of Manhattan or in a condo overlooking Lake Michigan in Chicago, you might think that setting your rents at bargain basement levels will help you beat the competition. If you set your prices too low, you may well attract the unfavorable attention of the IRS.
That doesn’t mean that you must charge exactly what every other landlord or private renter in your area charges for rent. It does mean that you must set prices for your rental that are comparable to the going rent for similar properties in your area – what the IRS calls “fair rental price.”
If you fail to charge fair rental prices or if you never report a profit from your rental, the IRS may decide that you’re not serious about making money. You don’t have to show a profit every year, but the IRS assumes that you have a genuine profit-making motive if you show gains during at least three of the most recent five years, including the current year. (IRS.gov)
The Hobby Loss Rule
If you fail to show profit, you could be hit by the so-called “hobby loss rule,” which prevents you from using losses related from your venture to offset other income on your federal tax return. Instead, you use most losses related to your rental activities as itemized deductions on Schedule A. Deductions would be limited to the following strict limitations.
Deductions such as mortgage interest and taxes are allowed in full
Deductions like advertising, insurance, and premiums are allowed only to the extent that gross income exceeds deductions from the first category
Deductions such as depreciation and amortization are allowed only to the extent that gross income exceeds the amount of deductions taken for both of the prior two categories.
How the Sharing Economy Works
Knowing the ins and outs of renting your home and taxes can be tricky. However, this article is not intended to discourage you from renting out your home, being a live-in landlord, or otherwise participating in the sharing economy. It’s a potentially exciting way to meet interesting people from all over the country or even other parts of the world.
But just as you want your house or apartment to look its best, you’ll also want your financial house to be in order, too. That way you can concentrate on being the best host you can be, without being hit with unpleasant surprises at tax time.
Need some help with landlord tax? Consult one of our tax professionals to learn more about renting out a room and taxes.
