Tax practice

1. What do you see as the main lesson of last tax season?

Cumulative filing statistics through April 25, 2008, and April 24, 2009

Tax seasons past and future are on the minds of many practitioners despite the summer slowdown. Many, like Kim Cooney, ponder the way things worked this year and wonder what's on the horizon for next year.

1. What do you see as the main lesson of last tax season?

IC-DISCs can help keep your export clients in the game

IRS COMMITTEE RECOMMENDS MANDATORY E-FILING

Many tax professionals are experiencing clients coming out of the woodwork this year to discuss foreign bank accounts and what they should do about them. The clients have become concerned about publicity concerning accounts held by Swiss bank UBS for U.S. citizens and whistleblowers identifying holders of foreign accounts at UBS and in Liechtenstein.

Tax collection rates around the country have dropped precipitously in recent months, prompting local and state governments to get tougher and tax more.

The Internal Revenue Service issued an alert about new identity theft scams from fraudsters using the IRS’s name, logo and Web address.

The Internal Revenue Service wants to hear from taxpayers, associations and other interested parties about any business tax controversies or disputes that its Industry Issue Resolution program can resolve.

The U.S. and Swiss governments have reportedly reached an agreement on the secret bank accounts of U.S. citizens that the IRS has been seeking from UBS.

The Treasury and Energy Departments plan to distribute at least $3 billion for renewable energy projects to companies that agree to forgo future tax credits.

Consumer taxes on items such as gasoline, cigarettes and retail sales are trending higher, according to a report by CCH.

Toy industry executive Jeffrey P. Chernick has pleaded guilty to charges of filing a false tax return, the third U.S. client of Swiss bank UBS to plead guilty to tax charges.

National Society of Accountants president James H. Nolen testified at an Internal Revenue Service hearing that his group supports the registration of tax preparers, penalties for non-registrants and continuing education requirements.

The Internal Revenue Service plans to issue guidance on the taxation of “fails charges” for failed deliveries of U.S. Treasuries.

The Internal Revenue Service has prosecuted a tax preparer who used the First-Time Homebuyer Credit in a fraud scheme that appears to be an increasing trend.

As Congress struggles to produce a health care reform bill that can be sold to voters during and after the August recess, one idea that’s emerging is a tax on plastic surgery.

Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., and John McCain, R-Ariz., have introduced legislation aimed at curbing excessive corporate tax deductions for stock options.

A nonprofit foundation run by Harvard professor Henry Louis Gates Jr. is filing an amended 2007 tax return after it was found to have mischaracterized $11,000 in payments to officials as research grants.