IRS OFFERS RELIEF TO HURRICANE IRENE VICTIMS
Washington, D.C. - The Internal Revenue Service is giving tax relief to both individuals and businesses affected by Hurricane Irene, which hit the East Coast in late August.
The IRS said that certain taxpayers in North Carolina, New Jersey, New York and Puerto Rico will receive tax relief, and other locations were expected to be added following additional damage assessments by the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
The tax relief from the IRS postpones some tax filing and payment deadlines to Oct. 31, 2011. It includes corporations and businesses that previously obtained an extension until Sept. 15, 2011, to file their 2010 returns, and individuals and businesses that received a similar extension until October 17. The relief also includes the estimated tax payment for the third quarter of 2011, which would normally have been due September 15.
Full details, including the start date for the relief in various locations and information on how to claim a disaster loss by amending a prior-year tax return, can be found in tax relief announcements for individual states on IRS.gov.
ILLEGAL WORKERS GOT $4.2 BILLION IN TAX CREDITS
Washington, D.C. - Individuals who are not authorized to work in the U.S. nevertheless received $4.2 billion in refundable Additional Child Tax Credits from the Internal Revenue Service last year, according to a report from the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration, which found that claims for the credit more than quadrupled in the past five years, from $924 million to $4.2 billion in 2010.
TIGTA recommended that the IRS should require unauthorized workers claiming the ACTC to provide verifiable documentation to support the claim that their dependents meet the qualifications for the credit, including residency. IRS officials did not agree to require additional documentation, noting that they do not have the legal authority to verify and disallow these claims during processing; an examination is required instead.
