Practice management

Organizations across the globe are losing an estimated 5 percent of their annual revenues to occupational fraud, according to a new report from the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, with total losses estimated at about $3.5 trillion.

Credit Suisse AG, which pleaded guilty Monday to helping Americans evade taxes, has so far avoided identifying thousands of customers who cheated the Internal Revenue Service. Instead, it promised to point investigators in the right direction.

The recently released discussion draft of the Tax Reform Act of 2014 by the House Ways and Means Committee is intended to simplify the existing tax code, make it fairer to taxpayers and strengthen the U.S. economy by lowering tax rates.

A new report from the advocacy group Citizens for Tax Justice finds that 301 Fortune 500 companies hold a combined $2 trillion offshore, collectively avoiding $550 billion in U.S. corporate income taxes, while a contrasting report from the Tax Foundation found that U.S. multinational corporations reported paying more than $128 billion in corporate taxes to foreign countries on $470 billion of taxable income in 2010—an effective rate of 27.2 percent before also paying U.S. taxes.

The economic benefits of the income exclusion for U.S. citizens working abroad are uncertain, according to a new government report.

Rep. Jim Renacci, R-Ohio, a CPA, has introduced a bipartisan bill to bring more accountability and transparency to the federal government’s financial statements by making the Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board more independent.

The form for reporting foreign bank and financial accounts, or FBAR, must be filed by June 30 through the BSA E-Filing System, the IRS is reminding taxpayers.

The Third Circuit Court of Appeals has affirmed the Tax Court on an appeal arising out of nine consolidated cases regarding the tax implications of an S Corporation’s election to treat its subsidiary as a qualified subchapter S subsidiary, or Qsub, under Section 1361 of the Tax Code.

Thomson Reuters has released a tax act overview and monthly client marketing newsletter focused on the Affordable Care Act that tax, accounting and employee benefits firms can provide to clients, prospects and other contacts.

Democrats in the House and Senate introduced legislation Tuesday to tighten the restrictions on corporate tax inversions, limiting the ability of U.S.-based companies to avoid U.S. taxes by combining with a smaller foreign business and moving their tax domicile overseas.

The Internal Revenue Service needs to better adhere to requirements to justify and document noncompetitive contract awards, according to a new report.

The International Ethics Standards Board for Accountants has released for public comment an exposure draft on proposed changes to certain provisions of the ethics code related to non-assurance services for audit clients.

Credit Suisse AG agreed to pay $2.6 billion in penalties and pleaded guilty to helping Americans cheat on their taxes, making it the first global bank in a decade to admit to a crime in a U.S. courtroom.

The formula for profitability has been established for ages. Every business owner, CEO, freelancer and entrepreneur knows it. It is even supported—scratch that, mandated—by GAAP, which is enforced by the SEC in the United States.

The Association for Accounting Marketing and Hinge Research Institute have released a study that examines overall marketing spending at accounting firms, including compensation for marketing staff, the top five spending categories, and detailed budget breakdowns by firm size and market location.

The IRS is offering tax relief to victims of severe storm, winds and flooding that affected parts of Florida in late April.

A couple of our favorite recent tax fraud cases.

A client wanted to buy a business in Birmingham, Ala., and I went there with the company’s CFO to review the books, do some due diligence, kick the tires and negotiate a deal.

Accountants should take the lead in assessing the impact on their companies of the depletion of natural resources, recommends a new report.

Credit Suisse Group AG is close to reaching an agreement to plead guilty and pay about $2.5 billion to the U.S. Justice Department and regulators to resolve investigations into whether it helped Americans evade taxes, three people familiar with the matter said.