National Taxpayer Advocate – Pushes for Positive Changes for Americans Abroad

The law requires the National Taxpayer Advocate (NTA) to submit two annual reports to the House Committee on Ways and Means and the Senate Committee on Finance, without any prior review or comment from the Internal Revenue Service. The NTA Report for FY 2025 was just issued and includes various NTA advocacy objectives. Two of the … Continue reading National Taxpayer Advocate – Pushes for Positive Changes for Americans Abroad →

Another Breaking! Farhy Overruled – A Big Loss for Overseas Americans

I have written earlier on the case of Farhy v. Commissioner. There the Tax Court held that the IRS does not have the authority to assess and collect penalties asserted under Internal Revenue Code Section 6038(b). In the Farhy case, the assessed penalties were imposed for failure to file Form 5471, the IRS form required … Continue reading Another Breaking! Farhy Overruled – A Big Loss for Overseas Americans →

Taxpayer Wins Again on 5471 Penalty – IRS Cannot Assess

In a holding by the US Tax Court on April 8, 2024, the case of Raju J. Mukhi v. Commissioner of Internal Revenue brought into sharp focus the principle of stare decisis and its implications for tax law. The Tax Court rejected the IRS’ assessment of penalties under Section 6038(b), for failure to file Form … Continue reading Taxpayer Wins Again on 5471 Penalty – IRS Cannot Assess →

Taxpayer Denied “Reasonable Cause” When Preparer Fails to e-file Returns

How difficult is it for a taxpayer to establish “reasonable cause” such that penalties for various tax mishaps can be forgiven or abated? It’s very difficult. The recent case of Wayne Lee v. United States, No. 22-10793 (11th Cir. 10/24/23) underscores the point and reminds taxpayers to get reliable tax advisors and return preparers. Going … Continue reading Taxpayer Denied “Reasonable Cause” When Preparer Fails to e-file Returns →

Beware TikTok Tax Advice – IRS Tanks a Trust Scheme

This will be a very short post with a few simple lessons I have shared before: Fast tax advice, is like fast fashion. A waste! It's all too often a big mistake with serious repercussions. If something sounds too good to be true, it is. So, if you have not heard of it yet, today’s … Continue reading Beware TikTok Tax Advice – IRS Tanks a Trust Scheme →

Taxpayer Wins! Foreign Gift Not Reported: DOJ Concedes he had “Reasonable Cause”

We have had a taxpayer win in the foreign information reporting arena! I provide a summary of the case of Mr. Krzysztof Wrzesinski below. For readers who wish more, the taxpayer’s complaint is here. Background of the Wrzesinski Case Mr. Wrzesinski (“Taxpayer” or “T”) was a native of Poland who immigrated to the United States … Continue reading Taxpayer Wins! Foreign Gift Not Reported: DOJ Concedes he had “Reasonable Cause” →

US Passport Denied for Delinquent Tax Debt, Actual Notice to the Taxpayer Not Required

A taxpayer's US passport can be denied issuance, renewal and can even be revoked, if the taxpayer has so-called “seriously delinquent tax debt” per IRC Section 7345. I have blogged about this before - here and here. Generally, a "seriously delinquent tax debt" is an individual's unpaid, legally enforceable federal tax debt (including interest and … Continue reading US Passport Denied for Delinquent Tax Debt, Actual Notice to the Taxpayer Not Required →

Is the IRS Being Reasonable when it comes to “Reasonable Cause”?

My recent blog post discussed how I approach “streamlined procedure” filings for taxpayers with unreported income, for example, from offshore assets or accounts. Often, the tax noncompliance for such cases involves unfiled international information returns as well. As discussed in the blog post, I draft the required statement of non-willfulness in such a manner that … Continue reading Is the IRS Being Reasonable when it comes to “Reasonable Cause”? →

Double Whammy – US Owner and Beneficiary of Foreign Trust Held Liable for 2 Separate Penalties! Failure to Report as “Owner” and Failure to Report as “Beneficiary”

When a US person has any involvement in any way with a foreign trust, extreme care is required to make sure that all of the strict US tax filing responsibilities are met. Surprisingly, for US tax purposes, a trust can be treated as “foreign” even if it is created in the US under US laws. … Continue reading Double Whammy – US Owner and Beneficiary of Foreign Trust Held Liable for 2 Separate Penalties! Failure to Report as “Owner” and Failure to Report as “Beneficiary” →