Practice management

Leaders of the Senate Finance Committee are hoping their fellow members of Congress will work on passing tax extenders legislation to renew expired tax provisions for individual and business taxpayers, but the legislation probably will not be passed until after the midterm elections this fall.

A pair of reports were released Monday claiming to rank the most and least fair state tax systems and the most and least competitive international tax systems.

The IRS must be one of the most frequently sued agencies in the federal government, and now it’s facing a challenge over whether it has the right to charge tax preparers for the annual cost of a Preparer Tax Identification Number.

In last week’s column, I discussed how I went about saving a client’s business that the IRS was in danger of closing. Now here is the nitty-gritty.

Mark Vorsatz, CEO of the recently renamed Andersen Tax, wants to clear up some of the misconceptions about the namesake for his firm, Arthur Andersen, and why he decided to change the name from WTAS.

The Internet offers astounding opportunities to market your expertise and corral new clients. It also provides a staggering chance to waste time and money if you don’t know what to put on your primary Net real estate: your Web site.

Some of our favorite recent tax fraud cases.

The U.S. Treasury Department said it’s considering ways to end a “loophole” that allows hedge-fund managers to avoid taxes by routing their investments through an insurance company in low-tax countries like Bermuda.

Republicans and business allies such as House Ways and Means Chairman Dave Camp and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce say they know the way to stop companies from changing addresses to cut their tax bills: Reform the tax code.

If you sold, advised on or had anything to do with a listed transaction, you could be fined by the Internal Revenue Service under recently issued regulations.

Tax and finance executives are concerned they don’t have enough resources at their disposal to navigate a risky tax environment, according to a new survey from Ernst & Young.

A bipartisan majority of the House of Representatives comprising 233 members have signed a letter urging the House leadership to preserve the cash method of accounting for tax purposes, writing that proposals requiring a transition to the accrual method “will have a severely detrimental impact on thousands of businesses in our districts.”

Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Wis., has introduced three pieces of legislation to close tax breaks that enable U.S. multinational corporations to use so-called “inversions” in which they merge with a foreign company and move their tax domicile abroad to a low-tax country to reduce corporate taxes.

Bloomberg BNA has enhanced its Premier International Tax Library with expanded content and new tools from tax practitioners in different countries.

Internal Revenue Service commissioner John Koskinen told a congressional subcommittee about the IRS’s progress on the Affordable Care Act and the impact that tax subsidies will have next tax season.

The Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals has affirmed a Tax Court decision disallowing deductions related to a farmhouse.

The Internal Revenue Service’s Office of Professional Responsibility has released guidance under Circular 230 regarding power of attorney for tax practitioners who are employed by large corporations.

Master limited partnerships, tax-exempt companies that pay investors most of their income at the cost of added risk, are spreading in the shipping industry.

The AICPA recently produced an infographic showing how accountants are viewed by business decision makers.

Highlights of some of our favorite tax-related blogs from the past week.