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Welcome to Tax Resolution Talk. Dealing with the IRS is hard and stressful. Tax attorney James Wade lays out what the IRS can and cannot do to you. If you have unfiled taxes, are being audited or dealing with unpaid taxes then this podcast is for you. Need help now to end your IRS nightmare? Call 207-502-7181 today.
Episodes
Wednesday Oct 28, 2020
Wednesday Oct 28, 2020
Do you know what the IRS says about you? In every case, I obtain transcripts or reports produced by the IRS. I want to know what my client owes and if there is anything else out there that may help my client. Here are just some of the things you will learn:
- What your current balance is
- If you have any unfiled tax returns
- If certain taxes may be written off soon or may qualify for discharge in bankruptcy
- If the IRS has identified your return for an audit or examination
- If the IRS intends to take collection action against you, such as by filing a lien or levy
- How the IRS applied any tax payments to your account
If you have a tax problem then it will behoove you to get this information and see if there are any potential problems out there that might make resolving your IRS matter more problematic.
Read the rest of this entry »Tuesday Oct 20, 2020
Tuesday Oct 20, 2020
Recently, a fellow attorney asked me to help his client with a tax problem. He asked me to give a call to the IRS and just tell them the client can settle for $10,000. Sadly, nothing is quite that easy when dealing with the IRS.
This podcast is my attempt to lay out how I handle 95% of my client's tax problems. I call it my roadmap to resolution or the 5 steps to resolving your IRS problem once and for all.
- Investigate the client's IRS file
- Financial investigation of the client's assets, income and expenses; discussion with client on best options for resolution
- Preparation and submission of IRS paperwork
- Negotiation of a resolution with the IRS
- Appeal of any disagreements with the IRS to IRS Appeals or to US Federal Courts
Some cases require more or less work but this is the general workflow for my case load. As you can see, it is a lot more than just calling the IRS. Hope you find this information enlightening and I always welcome questions about what I've discussed.
Read the rest of this entry »Thursday Oct 15, 2020
Thursday Oct 15, 2020
In honor of October 15th, the final day to file tax returns on extension, I am presenting an episode on how to avoid unscrupulous tax preparers. As the saying goes, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is!
In fact, unscrupulous tax preparers are one of the top 12 tax schemes identified by the IRS (called the dirty dozen). So if you want to avoid being taken advantage of you should listen in.
I discuss the four main areas to watch out for:
- Inflated or fictitious itemized deduction
- False credits, such as child tax credit or earned income tax credit
- Fictitious business losses or false business income (to qualify for the earned income tax credit)
- Other schenanigans, such as false or ineligible dependents
Ultimately, it is your responsibility to prepare an accurate return and if you get your taxes prepared by a bad apple preparer you may be facing significant taxes, interest and penalties! Don't let that happen to you.
Read the rest of this entry »Tuesday Sep 08, 2020
Tuesday Sep 08, 2020
Benjamin Franklin has been quoted as saying that nothing in life is permanent except death and taxes. Well what happens when you die owing back taxes?
In this episode, I discuss some of the issues that crop up if you die and owe the IRS or state tax authorities. I will be talking about: tax claims in probate, joint tax liability, unfiled taxes, and non-probate assets.
Just a note, the issue of tax debts and probate is complicated. You should really contact a tax professional, specifically a tax attorney who deals often with handling back tax problems, if you have concerns. Tax problems in an estate are often tricky to deal with and expensive to handle if not handled properly.
Read the rest of this entry »Thursday Aug 20, 2020
Thursday Aug 20, 2020
Do you outsource payroll? If you do then you need to watch out! Unscrupulous or desperate payroll service companies can steal your tax deposits, leaving you high and dry.
Uncle Sam doesn't care that you didn't make payroll. Your company (and maybe even you, if you are an owner or officer) are on the hook. You can outsource payroll but you can't delegate the responsibility to pay your required taxes.
In this episode, I discuss the problem for employers who outsource payroll and some tips on how to avoid being burned. As I state in the podcast, your company is responsible for any taxes due and that means you are also responsible for any penalties and interest on any missed payments. Ouch.
I hope you enjoyed this episode. I am always looking for new topics to discuss so feel free to let me know if you want to hear something. My contact information is listed below.
Read the rest of this entry »Tuesday Aug 11, 2020
Tuesday Aug 11, 2020
In this episode, I discuss offer mills, one of the IRS' dirty dozen tax scams.
Did you know only 33% of all offers-in-compromise are accepted (offers are the IRS' debt settlement programs). Of 53,000 offers made in 2019, only 18,000 were accepted. If you listen to the radio and TV ads you'd think the IRS was settling cases left and right for "pennies on the dollar" Not true.
Offer mills are nothing more than snake oil salesmen who prey on desperate taxpayers. In this episode, I discuss what you should look out when talking with a tax resolution firm. Watch out for the warning signs!
- Do they ask you about your finances? Or do they just start in on how they can settle your debt?
- How much do they investigate your assets and income? Or do they just ask a couple of questions and let you know "They will get you something soon to sign."?
- Do they discuss your options once they investigate your situation and give you the pros and cons? Or do they just talk about all the money you'll save by filing the offer-in-compromise?
Be wary of promises that seem too good to be true. The IRS is not in the business of settling tax debts, it is in the business of collecting as much as possible from taxpayers. An offer will only be accepted if it is in the IRS' best interest, not yours!
I hope you enjoy this episode and let me know if you have any questions or show ideas.
IRS Prequalifier Tool: https://irs.treasury.gov/oic_pre_qualifier/
If you or someone you know has a tax problem, call our office at 207-502-7181 or email us at jwade@jdwadelaw.com. We will be glad to help you. Otherwise, please enjoy our content and let us know if there are topics you'd like us to discuss.
Wednesday Aug 05, 2020
Wednesday Aug 05, 2020
In this episode, I discuss what you need to think about if you are divorcing a tax deadbeat. I am specifically referring to a soon to be ex-spouse who hasn't filed his taxes, paid his taxes or maybe fibbed just a little on his taxes.
My intention is to keep you out of as much trouble as possible. As you find out, that is not always possible (especially if you filled a joint return with that tax scofflaw) so then the goal becomes to mitigate it as much as possible.
- What is joint and several liability?
- Should you file a joint tax return before or during divorce?
- We haven't filed our taxes for awhile, what should we do?
- Can I get out of being held jointly liable with my spouse?
- What if we both have some tax skeletons in our closet (omitted income or exaggerated deductions)?
I hope you enjoy this episode and let me know if you have any questions or show ideas.
If you or someone you know has a tax problem, call our office at 207-502-7181 or email us at jwade@jdwadelaw.com. We will be glad to help you. Otherwise, please enjoy our content and let us know if there are topics you'd like us to discuss.
Tuesday Jul 28, 2020
Tuesday Jul 28, 2020
In this episode, I discuss the drawbacks to filing an offer-in-compromise. I am going to share with you what those national tax resolution firms won't. Who wouldn't want to settle their tax debts for "pennies on the dollar" or for the "least amount legally possible"!
I believe in telling you how it is. Doing an offer in compromise is a lot of work and there are plenty of drawbacks. So please enjoy this episode and let me know if you have any questions or show ideas.
If you or someone you know has a tax problem, call our office at 207-502-7181 or email us at jwade@jdwadelaw.com. We will be glad to help you. Otherwise, please enjoy our content and let us know if there are topics you'd like us to discuss.
Friday Jul 10, 2020
Friday Jul 10, 2020
In this episode, Jerrod Oltmann and I discuss the myths and misunderstandings out there regarding the IRS offer-in-compromise program. This what those national tax resolution firms are talking about when they say you can settle your taxes for "pennies on the dollar" or for the "least amount legally possible".
The offer-in-compromise is essentially a contract between you and the IRS to settle your tax debt. In a future episode, Jerrod and I will talk about how an offer works in detail. Just understand for now that most people don't qualify. The reason is ability to pay. Something we discuss at length in this episode.
We also puncture the myth that you can't do an offer if you make a decent income or have assets. So you will want to listen for that part of the discussion.
Finally, we talk about the big daddy of them all, the myth that an offer will take care of everything and you don't need to do anything else. One of the biggest stumbling blocks for an offer is the requirement that you be current with your taxes as a condition of the offer being accepted by the IRS. This means filing your current tax return on time and making sure you pay in enough (whether through your wages or by making estimated tax payments) to not come up short on next year's taxes. Fail this and no matter how deserving, you will not get an offer accepted.
In our second segment, we discuss what warning signs you should look for when hiring a tax preparer. Many people are not aware that even if your tax preparer is bad, you are still on the hook for any unpaid taxes, interest and penalties. So it pays to know how you can tell whether or not you are dealing with an honest preparer
Finally, we discuss how the IRS is using the club of penalties to compel tax preparers to "audit" their clients. With the increase in fraudulent claims of refundable tax credits, the IRS has foisted additional due diligence requirements on tax preparers. Jerrod and I go through the different levels of due diligence and discuss some things tax preparers should look for to avoid trouble from the IRS.
As always, I'd like to thank Jerrod Oltmann, enrolled agent, for his help is producing this podcast episode. Jerrod is another tax professional who helps people tackle their IRS tax problem. You can read more about Jerrod's on his bio page at: https://www.jpoea.com/about/
If you or someone you know has a tax problem, call our office at 207-502-7181 or email us at jwade@jdwadelaw.com. We will be glad to help you. Otherwise, please enjoy our content and let us know if there are topics you'd like us to discuss.
Monday Jul 06, 2020
Monday Jul 06, 2020
In this episode, Jerrod Oltmann and I discuss what you can do, if you can't pay your taxes by July 15th.
We talk about various options to avoid trouble if you can't pay the IRS in full (and this goes for both individual and small businesses). We go through some immediate steps you can take to get the problem under control. We then go through such things as setting up a payment plan, obtaining hardship status and why focusing on next year's taxes will help you resolve your back tax problem.
As always, I'd like to thank Jerrod Oltmann, enrolled agent, for his help is producing this podcast episode. Jerrod is another tax professional who helps people tackle their IRS tax problem. You can read more about Jerrod's on his bio page at: https://www.jpoea.com/about/
If you or someone you know has a tax problem, call our office at 207-502-7181 or email us at jwade@jdwadelaw.com. We will be glad to help you. Otherwise, please enjoy our content and let us know if there are topics you'd like us to discuss.