Tax

Tax News & IRS Insights for Accounting Professionals

Accounting Today delivers news and analysis for accounting and tax professionals on federal and state tax developments, IRS guidance,information reporting, and operational implications for practices and clients. Our coverage focuses on legislative and procedural shifts that tax practitioners must monitor in planning, compliance, and advisory contexts.

  • Wolters Kluwer Tax, Accounting & Legal announced that it will open an office in India for its CCH unit and other related businesses.

    February 14
  • Somewhere in my parents’ attic, there resides a copy of Vanilla Ice’s debut album, “To the Extreme.”

    February 14
  • A Florida auditing firm will pay $500,000 to avoid a lawsuit with officials in Nassau County, located in the northeast corner of the state.

    February 13
  • The New Year began with a symbolic victory for Big Four firm KPMG, as a federal judge here dismissed a criminal conspiracy charge against the U.S. arm of the Big Four firm for conspiring to sell illegal tax shelters.The charge was dropped after prosecutors said that the firm had met its obligations under a deferred-prosecution agreement struck with the government roughly 18 months ago.

    February 12
  • Tax preparation service Jackson Hewitt Inc. will pay $5 million to settle allegations that it violated state and federal laws when marketing its refund anticipation loans to California customers. California Attorney General Bill Lockyer said that the tax preparer will pay $4 million in restitution to customers who purchased same-day "Money Now!" loans and other loan products. The company will also pay $500,000 in civil penalties and $500,000 to reimburse investigative costs.Lockyer's complaint alleged that Jackson Hewitt violated 13 state and federal laws, and also shared consumers' tax information without their consent.

    February 12
  • The latest American Institute of CPAs' Statement on Standards for Tax Services has some practitioners upset that it could hurt smaller firms that are primarily engaged in tax preparation.SSTS 9, available on the AICPA Tax Center Web site, was released a year ago in proposed form and is slated to go into effect on June 30, 2007. It "sets forth the applicable standards for members concerning the obligation to have a system of quality control for their tax practice (public practice) or function (nonpublic practice)."

    February 12
  • Liberty Tax Service announced the acquisition of eSmartTax, the income tax preparation business of San Jose, Calif.-based C&S Technologies. Financial terms of the deal, which does not include C&S's payroll-tax-related filing services, were not disclosed.The eSmartTax acquisition will allow Liberty customers to prepare and file individual tax returns on the Internet through the company's Web site, or through the Internal Revenue Service's Free File Alliance site.

    February 12
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Tax: Key Questions & Analysis:

What IRS guidance on forms and information reporting should practitioners prioritize?

The IRS continues to update thresholds and instructions for critical tax forms. This includes changes to information reporting requirements and guidance on evolving reporting standards, affecting 1099, W-2 and similar reporting obligations.

What procedural developments affect IRS automatic change consent for method changes?

Tax professionals must understand which accounting method changes qualify for automatic consent versus advance consent. This determines whether a Form 3115 must be filed with IRS National Office or via automatic procedures.

How are tip-related tax provisions evolving under current policy?

New tax provisions related to tip income will impact how service industry clients and payroll units handle tax reporting and compliance. This includes draft schedules and withholding considerations.

What IRS guidance will shape compliance for the 2026 filing season?

Practitioners will need to understand procedural updates, forms changes, and reporting shifts that will affect compliance workflows and client expectations for the 2026 filing season. This includes the implementation timeline for new schedules and reporting requirements as well as for emerging areas such as crypto broker reporting.