Tax practice

SMALL CHARITIES GET EXTENSION ON IRS DEADLINE

Despite performing admirably in a difficult environment, the Internal Revenue Service still needs to improve on strategies to narrow the tax gap and hone its information technology systems, according to the IRS Oversight Board

The Internal Revenue Service has released an application form that will allow small firms to begin applying for certification for tax credits or grants available under the Qualifying Therapeutic Discovery Project Program, created by the Affordable Care Act.

An outside advisory committee recommended that the Internal Revenue Service follow a three-year phase-in approach to implementing a new requirement for tax preparers to electronically file individual tax returns.

The House passed legislation to incentivize community banks to increase their small-business lending.

A case decided earlier this week by the South Carolina Supreme Court may have nationwide implications on tax reporting.

Corporations that issued stock options to their executives claimed tax deductions that were collectively $52 billion larger than the expenses shown on their books in 2008, according to newly released data.

Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus, D-Mont., has scaled back the carried interest and S corporation tax provisions, in addition to several others, after the tax extenders and unemployment legislation hit a speed bump in the Senate.

The upper and lower houses of the Swiss Parliament have ratified a deal between the Swiss and U.S. governments to share information on approximately 4,450 U.S.-based customers of Swiss bank UBS with the U.S. government.

The Senate has approved an amendment to extend the closing deadline for homebuyers who qualified for the First-Time Homebuyer Tax Credit.

The tax extender and unemployment benefits bill failed to clear a 60-vote hurdle in the Senate on Wednesday.

The American Institute of CPAs and the National Society of Accountants are voicing their opposition to a provision in the tax extenders and unemployment legislation that could increase the self-employment taxes paid by some professional services firms organized as S corporations.

The Internal Revenue Service has awarded a five-year contract to consulting firm Accenture to design, implement and operate its tax return preparer registration program.

The House approved the Small Business Jobs Tax Relief Act of 2010 on Tuesday by a bipartisan majority of 247-170.

The lower house of the Swiss Parliament voted Tuesday to approve a deal signed by the Swiss and U.S. tax authorities last year to disclose the identities of up to 4,450 U.S.-based taxpayers who have secret bank accounts at UBS.

A married couple was convicted of running an elaborate tax shelter scheme for over a decade in which they marketed tax trusts to clients, filed lawsuits against IRS employees, and prepared a $108 million tax lien against former Treasury Secretary John Snow.

A new report finds that the majority of financial institutions and companies that received funds from the Troubled Asset Relief Program have resolved the unpaid federal taxes they had owed.

The Internal Revenue Service has issued regulations outlining how the 10 percent excise tax on indoor tanning services in the health care reform bill should be administered.

The Internal Revenue Service is not processing taxpayer checks quickly enough, causing the government to lose money on interest payments, according to a new report.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., has introduced an amendment to the tax extenders bill that would extend the transaction closing date for the First-Time Homebuyer Credit from June 30 to Sept. 30.