Coinbase Accountholders Notified

We recently blogged about a federal court judge ordering Coinbase to release information about certain Coinbase accountholders. On February 23, 2018, Coinbase sent messages to approximately 13,000 of its customers, informing them that information regarding their accounts will be provided to the IRS for tax information purposes in accordance with the...

The IRS Criminal Investigation Division Releases Its Annual Report for 2017

The purpose of the IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS CI) Division is to investigate criminal violations of the Internal Revenue Code and other related financial crimes to ensure compliance with the law and public confidence in our tax system. Every year, the IRS CI releases an annual report of the agency’s...

Maximize The Tax Benefit Of Charitable Donations Through “Bunching”

Congress may have intended to simplify tax filings by doubling the standard deduction to $12,000 (single) and $24,000 (married filing jointly), but for individuals who itemize and deduct their charitable contributions, the new tax law has made matters a bit more complicated. According to the IRS, a total of 36,624,000...

Challenge To Sales Tax “Physical Presence Test” To Be Heard By The Supreme Court

The Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case that stands to change sales tax collection and remittance laws for out-of-state and online retailers. Rapid growth and an outdated law In 1992, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Quill Corp. v. North Dakota that states may not collect sales tax...

Using Software For Your Mileage Logs And Other Business Expenses

Keeping track of mileage and business expenses for tax purposes can be a hassle for any self-employed person. Fortunately, there are a number of mobile apps that can help you gather and store your business receipts, and can simplify production of records required for tax preparation. Why use an app?...

Court Rules that Coinbase Accounts Must Be Reported to the IRS

Last year the IRS issued a “John Doe” summons on all U.S. Coinbase customers who had used convertible virtual currency between 2013 and 2015. Coinbase’s challenge to the summons has failed in part and succeeded in part – a federal court judge recently ordered Coinbase to release information about Coinbase...

The Use of Expert Testimony in Tax Court, Part II

In Part I, we introduced the Feinberg vs. Commissioner of Internal Revenue case, which demonstrates the financial challenges faced by marijuana businesses due to their inability to deduct ordinary and necessary business expenses under 26 U.S. Code §280E. It also provides us with guidance as to the limits of expert...

The Use of Expert Testimony in Tax Court, Part I

The IRS is very aggressive in its audits of marijuana businesses, doing “random audits” of nearly everyone in the industry – particularly if their operations are large and profitable. A recent case involving the owners of a Colorado medical marijuana dispensary highlights the devastating impact of federal tax law on...

Update on IRS Offshore Initiatives: Investigations and agreements with financial institutions worldwide

In our last post, we noted that the U.S. government goes to great lengths to identify and prosecute noncompliant taxpayers, as well as promoters and financial institutions who assist U.S. taxpayers avoid their tax obligations by hiding their offshore income and assets. Some recent plea agreements with large financial institutions...