Tax practice

The Internal Revenue Service opened 19 percent fewer criminal investigations in fiscal 2014 than in the previous year, reflecting a decrease in budget and staffing, according to the agency.

One time I was reviewing a time run and noticed a certain staff tax person, Elliot, kept appearing on clients he wasn’t assigned to and I wondered why.

Frustrated taxpayers are encountering ever longer wait times on phones when seeking assistance from the Internal Revenue Service as tax season draws to a close, according to the head of the union representing IRS employees.

The IRS is requesting membership nominations for the Information Reporting Program Advisory Committee, a federal advisory committee that advises the service on tax administration issues.

Taxpayers who make cash contributions on or before April 15 to charities providing relief for the families of two slain New York police officers can receive an immediate tax benefit.

The consumer finance site WalletHub has released a new report ranking the states with the highest and lowest real estate and vehicle property taxes across the country.

Former UBS AG executive Hansruedi Schumacher pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the U.S. as part of the government’s prosecution of financial industry officials who help Americans dodge taxes.

For the Internal Revenue Service to stay in business, it needs a youth bomb. More than half its employees are over 50 years old.

Some of our favorite recent tax fraud cases.

Tax preparers share their clients' strangest misconceptions

While New York County, also known as Manhattan, topped the list of counties in 2013 ranked by average wages and salaries with $96,941, the richest county in the country during filing year 2013 in terms of average adjusted gross income was Teton County, Wyo.

April is Financial Literacy Month and Fred Slater, CPA, and Ellen Minkow, CPA, of MS 1040 LLC in New York City are offering some special tax advice.

The Internal Revenue Service and the Treasury Department have issued guidance aimed at making it easier for taxpayers to be automatically enrolled in retirement plans such as 401(k) and 403(b) plans by their employers, simplifying the correction methods if errors are made.

Practitioners need to be aware of the tax-free IRA rollover rules that took effect on Jan. 1, 2015 to protect their clients from major tax problems and penalties.

"Abolish the IRS" is a staple of Ted Cruz's stump speech.

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

Lois Lerner, the former IRS official whose office gave improper scrutiny to Tea Party groups seeking tax-exempt status, won’t be charged with contempt of Congress.

Small businesses should ask these five questions about software when selecting a tax preparer.

Better processes are needed to reduce the risks of employment tax fraud, according to a new government report.

A former Swiss asset manager pleaded guilty to helping U.S. clients hide millions of dollars in offshore accounts and avoid paying federal income taxes.