Tax

In an effort to assist taxpayers who pay their taxes owed with a credit card, H&R Block Inc. has teamed with payment processing company Link2Gov to lower the convenience fee to 1.99 percent, from 2.49 percent.

Everyone has a story of the email they accidentally sent to the wrong recipient, or the computer that crashed and lost an entire day’s worth of work.The disaster recovery industry has proven to be a lucrative one in the age of information, and recent snafus at the Alaska Department of Revenue and the Canada Revenue Agency only serve to underscore that problems can happen -- and illustrate the different ways in which an organization can be prepared for the worst-case scenario.

Although I have been in professional publishing and writing for tax practitioners for over 30 years, a good Internal Revenue Service letter ruling or a Tax Court decision still excites me. This is especially true when they are taxpayer victories that tax practitioners can use to benefit clients that are similarly situated.

Financial services conglomerate JPMorgan is expanding JPMorgan E-Tax — its Internet-based tax service providing institutional investors with global tax intelligence, rates and breaking news.

In spite of legal woes over its refund anticipation loan program, tax preparation services giant H&R Block recently announced that it had passed the 1 million mark with its tax refund card - a figure that it said could reach 3 million by the close of tax season.Block's Emerald MasterCard, a prepaid debit card issued through the company's H&R Block Bank, is issued to customers who are expecting a tax refund. Rather than waiting for refund checks or arranging for direct deposits of a refund to a bank account, taxpayers can acquire the card when the tax return is prepared.

Backed by a 20-year resume in claims experience, Redwood City, Calif.-based Camico Mutual Insurance Co. has identified the areas and sources of frequent tax claims lodged against CPAs.With tax season in full swing, here are some of the fruits of the company's experience with practitioner claims - and things to watch for as you wade through all those 1040s.

The Internal Revenue Service needs to do a better job of reviewing the non-cash charitable contributions deductions taxpayers are claiming.

The Internal Revenue Service has posted the 2006 Data Book on its Web site.

The Internal Revenue Service issued guidance identifying dozens of frivolous positions that taxpayers should avoid when filing their tax returns.The guidance lists 40 positions which have no basis for validity in existing law or which have been deemed frivolous by the U.S. Tax Court, or another federal court. If these or other frivolous positions are contained in a tax return, taxpayers could face a $5,000 penalty -- 10 times the previous maximum.

At least one in five workers eligible for the Earned Income Tax Credit will leave that money on the table this tax season, and Congress is looking to accountants and other tax professionals to help address the problem.During hearings before the House Ways and Means Oversight Subcommittee, congressional leaders said that while 22 million low-income families and individuals claimed EITC wage subsidies last year, millions more who are eligible for the tax credits don't receive them.