Tax planning

Since this is our first column of the New Year, it may be particularly appropriate to look back into 2007 to try to predict some of what will happen in 2008. The history of important tax developments that took place in 2007 is rich and varied. Shakespeare's "What is past is prologue" was never so apt.In that spirit, we have selected 10 developments as standouts in terms of their impact on the future, and especially on 2008 tax strategies. We explain each of these top 10 below. And, of course, respecting the difficulty of prioritizing just 10 2007 tax developments as most significant, we conclude by listing several more as runners up!

Intuit said its Lacerte and ProSeries professional tax prep products would flag any returns that cannot be filed until mid-February because of the delayed patch for the alternative minimum tax.

President Bush is reportedly mulling an economic stimulus package that could include further tax cuts this year.

The Internal Revenue Service and the Treasury Department have released final regulations and a revenue procedure requiring tax preparers to obtain consent before they can distribute taxpayer information to third parties, along with a proposal to restrict the marketing of refund anticipation loans and similar products.

The Internal Revenue Service kicked off tax season this week, saying it plans to mail 16.5 million tax packages to taxpayers this month who have filed paper returns in the past, but the packages won't include any tax credit forms because of delays in patching the alternative minimum tax.

Banking giant HSBC USA has said it would sell its Wealth and Tax Advisory Services USA business to some of its managing directors for up to $65.9 million as part of a management buyout.

The Treasury Department said a new income tax treaty and protocol with Belgium has gone into effect, along with three protocols amending existing tax treaties with Germany, Denmark and Finland.

The president of a company that hosted tax forums for the Internal Revenue Service has been sentenced to five years in prison for defrauding the IRS of more than $1 million.

The American Institute of CPAs has written to the Internal Revenue Service and the Treasury Department requesting them to revise their proposed regulations on foreign tax credits.

The IRS often takes a beating in the reports from the Treasury Department’s inspector general, and two of the latest pointed to problems with security at the IRS and how the agency is spending money on security projects.

The Internal Revenue Service and the Treasury Department have implemented enhanced standards of conduct for tax preparers.

Accounting firm Weaver and Tidwell said it planned to merge with Patterson, Newman & Associates on Jan. 1, allowing Weaver and Tidwell to expand its energy practice.

Snodgrass, Dunlap and Co. plans to merge its office in Iola, Kan., with Jarred, Gilmore & Philips, an accounting firm based in Chanute, Kan., on the first of the year.

Kahn, Litwin, Renza & Co. said it is merging in Daniel Ryan & Co. on Jan. 1, adding between 10 and 16 professionals to its staff and giving KLR more expertise in tax planning.

The Internal Revenue Service said the upcoming tax-filing season would start on time in mid-January, except for up to 13.5 million taxpayers who will have to wait until Feb. 11 if they need to file any of five forms affected by the late enactment of a patch for the alternative minimum tax.

Wesley Snipes' tax evasion trial will occur next month in Ocala, Fla., even though the actor's lawyers claim he won't be able to receive a fair trial in the city because of pervasive racism.

The Internal Revenue Service has told FedEx that it has been misclassifying its delivery drivers as independent contractors and is ordering the shipping company to pay back taxes and penalties.

The U.S. Court of Federal Claims has issued a ruling in a tax shelter case that could have far-reaching implications in similar cases.

An appeals court judge has ordered that a tax protestor is entitled to a new trial because he was denied the opportunity for expert testimony from his psychiatrist.

Texas plans to begin imposing a $5-per-customer fee at strip clubs across the state starting in the New Year, in what some are referring to as a "pole tax."