Practice and client management

H&R Block has filed suit against its refund anticipation loan provider, HSBC, seeking to require the bank to provide the funding for RALs and refund anticipation checks next tax season.

The Internal Revenue Service’s ability to process the growing number of Health Coverage Tax Credit claims under the 2009 stimulus bill is doubtful, leading to questions about the agency’s ability to handle its new responsibilities under the new health care reform law.

The worldwide decline in top personal income tax rates over the past seven years has come to an end, as this year’s average rate increased 0.3 percent globally.

The Internal Revenue Service needs to improve its ability to identify tax preparers who submit improper Earned Income Tax Credit claims, according to a new government report.

BookKeeping Express has launched a contest to award $25,000 in bookkeeping and accounting services to small businesses suffering from a “financial-recording disaster.”

The Internal Revenue Service said it is delaying until further notice the renewal period for enrolled agents whose Social Security numbers or tax identification numbers end in 4, 5 or 6.

The Internal Revenue Service said that homeowners can deduct interest on up to $1.1 million in mortgage debt, $100,000 more than the previous limit of $1 million.

There may be some jobs tougher than beach master for the initial landing force at Omaha Beach during the Normandy invasion, or Commissioner of Internal Revenue, but off-hand I can’t think of any. Both positions are intense, all-consuming, and attract a great deal of incoming fire. And Mortimer Caplin has done both.

The Internal Revenue Service has issued over 50,000 Preparer Tax Identification Numbers since opening its online registration system less than a month ago, but the system has experienced a number of birth pains, the IRS reported.

Some of the $203 million in stimulus funds provided to the Internal Revenue Service through last year’s Recovery Act are at risk of being misspent due to continued problems with contract oversight, according to a new government report.

The financial firms that suffered the greatest stock-price declines during the economic crisis tended to be those with the highest proportion of independent directors, according to a new study.

The Internal Revenue Service has added new lines to the Schedule M-3 for research and development costs and Section 118 exclusions.

The Internal Revenue Service has released a draft Form W-2 for 2011, which employers use to report wages and employee tax withholding.

The Internal Revenue Service has issued final regulations under a law change that will require reporting of basis and other information by stock brokers and mutual fund companies for most stock purchased in 2011 and all stock purchased in 2012 and later years, making it easier for investors to report their gains and losses next year on their tax returns.

The average U.S. state sales tax rate increased to a record average of 5.52 percent in the first nine months of 2010, the highest level since at least 1982, according to a new report.

The Internal Revenue Service continues to prepare the rollout for the registration of return preparers, with the first step being Preparer Tax Identification Numbers, followed by testing and continuing education requirements. Although the rules with respect to practice before the IRS as set forth in IRS Publication 947 are not changing, there continues to be a great deal of confusion, which will only be increased by the new registration requirements.

The numbers tell the story and it all boils down to time management. If you bill for your time directly or on an hourly basis, diligent timekeeping is something you must do in order to get paid for all of the work you perform for clients. If you bill on a fixed-fee basis, accurate time records help determine how profitable specific clients and projects really are - and if they're unprofitable, time records help us realize the viability of a client for the long term.

When given the opportunity to get in front of a prospective client, the expected and unfortunate inclination of most accountants is to try to impress the client with how great their firm is, and make every effort to convince them to engage.

IRS RELEASES HEALTH CARE TAX CREDIT FORM

While some states are now passing legislation that favors lenders, at the same time there are tantalizing federal and state tax benefits being offered to distressed homeowners who are facing foreclosure or considering short-selling.