AMNESTY FOR TEXAS TAXES

AMNESTY FOR TEXAS SALES TAX & FRANCHISE TAXES 

The Comptroller of Public Accounts has announced an AMNESTY for sales tax. The amnesty is of limited duration. It will not help with audits or tax debt. It will help non-filers and under-reporters. This does not apply if you reported tax and did not pay. The amnesty also applies to franchise tax and other taxes and fees managed by the comptroller. The program does not cover P.U.C. gross receipts taxes for utilities.

The comptroller's office call this a FRESH START PROGRAM.

This expires August 17, 2012. Take advantage of this program. For representation contact William Kunofsky, a tax attorney and also a CPA, at (214) 369-1040 or go to our website www.debtfighters.com .
 Our email is wfkunofsky@gmail.com.

Filing Bankruptcy Too Soon

There is a serious risk when you file bankruptcy to stop tax levies. The bankruptcy filing may not discharge the tax debt in a Chapter 7 case. The filing may require payment in full of the priority tax claim (taxes typically less than three years old).
Waiting or taking alternative action may allow for the discharge  or conversion of the priority tax claim (pay tax in full plus interest to date of filing bk) to general unsecured(payment based upon ability).
Panic can cause you to make uninformed choices. Check out the requirements for discharge of tax debt and if you qualify prior to filing.  You will be glad you did.

LET MY CLIENT GO

I received a call from one of my long time clients today. I have been representing this business for close to a year with sales tax and IRS payroll tax problems. The conversation was very emotional. He said, "The comptroller just shut down my business, emptied my cash register, and froze my bank account.
He had skated on thin ice and now was in extreme trouble. The Comptroller wanted 50% of the tax debt in order to allow the business to reopen. A huge bond was also demanded. We are waiting to see if relatives can help.
This problem could have been avoided. I had recommended a Chapter 13 bankruptcy to reorganize the tax debt. My client felt that he could not recover from the filing of a bankruptcy. He was wrong.  The Comptroller would not have been able to demand the bond and could not close the business if the bankruptcy had been filed as recommended.
Think of bankruptcy as a tool needed to reach your goal of resolving the tax debt without losing your business. Listen to your attorney. His advice is based upon experience. Do not let your friends and relatives recite to you their war stories about their friend's bankruptcy. . They don't know the details. Act fast, the TAXMAN COMETH.
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Appeals of Estimated Tax Returns

Taxpayers that have not filed tax returns often receive correspondence from the IRS requesting the missing return. Later the taxpayer will receive a letter with an estimated amount of tax for the year that was not filed. once the deadline has passed, the taxpayer is noticed that they now owe tax, penalties, and interest. and have ninety days to file a U.S. Tax Court Petition. This is often called a 90 Day Letter. Many taxpayers stop here and later learn how bad their decision was for their future.
The Tax Court Petition allows the appeals division to review the tax returns that will be prepared. Should appeals not accept the return or require adjustments to the return that are unacceptable there still is the chance of settlement before the trial. Alternatively, the Court could accept the return.
The decision to fix the problem not filing is important. The audit the IRS completed causes consequences that are truly catastrophic. Procedural protections such as statutes of limitation are based upon assessment after the tax return are actually filed with the IRS. Bankruptcy relief requires the filing and assessment of a tax return.
Signing the audit can be considered the equivalent of filing a return.

PAYROLL TAX REPAYMENT FOR DUMMIES

Every employer is required to pay the tax withheld from their employees. Often businesses do not have the money and fail to deposit the tax as required.  This can be for a myriad of reasons. However, I don't care about the reason. The IRS or state tries to collect the tax. That is this post's topic.
How do you help this desperate position.you have placed yourself into? Designate the payments you make to the IRS are to the TRUST FUND TAX.  The trust fund tax is the tax withheld from the employee. Pay that tax first. The trust fund tax payment is not deductable. However, the IRS treats you as a trustee that screwed both his employees and the IRS. Therefore, mark the payment to be applied to trust fund.
Officers and other responsible persons will discover that they may be treated as personally liable for the trust fund taxes. Therefore, PAY THE TRUST FUND TAX!
You can only designate the application of a payment if it is voluntary. The IRS will treat a non-designated payment or a payment from a levy as non-designated. They will apply the payment to the penalty, interest, non-trust fund tax, and finally trust fund. If you can designate the payment you are decreasing your personal liability potential.

Convenience Stores, the Texas Comptrollers Favorite Target

Sales tax audits of convenience stores are at an all time high. It just seems that the Texas Comptroller is authorized to check what the stores buy from their suppliers. The liquor wholesalers and big box stores like Sam's provide the Comptroller with details regarding the purchases made by the store. The convenience store owner never knew what was going to hit them. If the sales tax reports do not match the reports there is an audit. The Comptroller knows at the beginning that the taxes are underpaid.  Watch out if you are a convenience store owner. You could owe a fortune with penalties and interest.

The Difference Between Federal Tax Liens and Notice of Federal Tax Lien

Most taxpayers owing back taxes worry that the IRS will file a Notice of Federal Tax Lien. They know that it is a public record and will damage their credit. However, the filing of the Notice of Federal Tax Lien is just the tip of the iceberg. The lien is a property right of the U.S. government against the property of the taxpayer. The lien begins soon after the tax debt is assessed. The IRS demands payment and lo and behold, the lien is in effect. However, the lien has not been filed. The distinction is important. A properly filed Notice of Federal Tax Lien is notice to all creditors of the claim of the IRS. The tax lien that is not filed is not superior to later secured debts and is not notice of the lien. Creditors are in a line to get paid. Usually the earlier filed lien is paid earlier if property is liquidated. A lien is inferior if filed after the Notice of Federal Tax Lien and can be wiped out by foreclosure of a higher lien. The proceeds from sale of property of the taxpayer after the lien is filed pays off the superior liens that attach to the property sold and then the tax lien. The filing of a bankruptcy does not release the tax lien from the debtor's property. The lien can be foreclosed by seizure of property of the taxpayer or by judgment.  The lien is far reaching and even affects the purchaser of the taxpayer's property that secures the lien. The lien survives if the tax is not paid at closing. The later sale by the purchaser will have the proceeds of sale reduced by the lien. The IRS can seize the purchased property. The lien has attached to the property sold and travels with the property until the debt is paid and the lien released. The lien is superior to state property exemptions. This info can be easily understood by just reading the Internal Revenue Code, Federal Income Tax Regulations, opinions of the U.S. Tax Court, opinions of the U.S. Bankruptcy Courts, opinions of the different Circuit Courts of Appeals, the United States Supreme Court, and thousands of scholarly articles and writings. Alternatively, you just were given a small taste of the info on this exciting topic. Yawn!  I think I just put myself to sleep.