Tax Law Blog | IRS Tax Attorneys

U.S. Sen. Max Baucus, a Montana Democrat and chairman of the Senate Finance Committee:

* Repeats objection to provision in the Senate’s $14 billion auto rescue bill that would reinstate tax loophole for banks in transit agency leaseback deals.

* Says he was prevented from offering amendment to Senate auto bailout bill to strike the unrelated tax provision.

* Says measure is ‘an abusive tax shelter’ and would undermine negotiations now underway by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service in related cases.

* Says ‘this provision has no business being in the auto bill.’

Source: Forbes

Today is the day for the veterans. The people that fought and fight for all of our freedom. I am proud to be an American, but even more lucky because of all of you veterans. Thank you!

This post was inspired by the Tax Girl. Who actually wrote a great article here.

And remember it will be tax season before we know it. Keep everything in order!

Quite often, too much tax is collected. Just because the tax has been paid does not necessarily mean that the government is entitled to keep all of it.

Many people discover that too much tax has been paid when they complete the required information or tax return. For example, when you complete your personal income tax return - after taking into account the available exclusions, exemptions, deductions and credits - you may discover that more tax has been paid than what was due to the government. On the tax return, there is a place for you to tell the government that you want a refund of the excess tax that they collected. After reviewing the return, if the government agrees that too much tax was paid, the government will cut a check for the excess and send this check to you.

In general, a claim for credit or refund of an overpayment of tax must be filed within 3 years from the time the tax return was filed or 2 years from the time the tax was paid (whichever is later). If no return was filed, the claim must be made within 2 years form the time the tax was paid. There are longer periods with respect to net operating loss, capital loss carrybacks, bad debts and worthless securities.

If you believe that too much tax has been collected from you, don’t sleep on your rights - file a claim or a credit or refund today.
Source

Rep. Charles Rangel has been using a House of Representatives parking garage for years as free storage space for his old Mercedes-Benz –a violation of congressional rules and a potential new tax woe for the embattled lawmaker …  House rules forbid use of the garage for long-term storage more than 45 days - and congressional aides told The Post that Rangel’s car has been sitting there for years.

A House Web site on parking regulations informs anyone with a space that, under IRS regulations, the benefit of the free parking is considered “imputed income” and must be declared to the government. The spaces are valued by the House at $290 per month, the site says — about the monthly cost of leasing a space in a private DC-area garage. If the car has been in that space since its license plates were surrendered four years ago, the imputed income would be nearly $5,000.
Source

A few days ago, I saw Senator John McCain on television saying something I had heard a few times before. Basically, he said that if you want to have your taxes raised, don’t vote for him.

Let me start by saying that I am a huge fan of Senator McCain. He’s got guts. He had a harrowing five years in captivity for his country. His son serves in Iraq and the senator never talks about it.

And, I do not want my taxes raised. I already pay a staggering amount of tax and I don’t care for it. In fact, I would like to pay no tax at all. I could have so much more to prepare for onrushing old age.

But the unhappy fact is that it’s necessary to raise my taxes and the taxes of all upper-income Americans. (I do wish, however, that “upper income” started just a dollar above me.)
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The IRS (Internal Revenue Service) recently mailed an information package to 130 million households and individuals who regularly file tax returns related to the recently signed Economic Stimulus Payments.

It is important to understand that the tax stimulus payments are not applicable or available to the following individuals:

* Non resident aliens.
* People who are claimed as dependents or eligible to be claimed as dependents on another’s tax return.
* Those individuals that do not have a SSN (social security number).
The IRS (Internal Revenue Service) recently mailed an information package to 130 million households and individuals who regularly file tax returns related to the recently signed Economic Stimulus Payments.

It is important to understand that the tax stimulus payments are not applicable or available to the following individuals:

* Non resident aliens.
* People who are claimed as dependents or eligible to be claimed as dependents on another’s tax return.
* Those individuals that do not have a SSN (social security number).

Please click here for more information.

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) office serving all U.S. taxpayers living or working overseas is located in Austin, Texas. This office provides U.S. Federal tax assistance to Americans in Japan, and is also the destination for all returns filed from abroad. The IRS office at the American Embassy in Tokyo has been closed since 2004.

The IRS Home Page, www.irs.gov, provides a lot of useful information for taxpayers and should be your first stop for tax questions and forms. In particular, the IRS Publication 54, Tax Guide for U.S. Citizens and Resident Aliens Abroad is an invaluable resource for anyone living abroad or with income from a foreign source.

One point that all international taxpayers should keep in mind is that the United States taxes its citizens on their worldwide income. Even if you are eligible to exclude a certain amount (or all) of your earned income in a given year, you must file a U.S. tax return in order to claim that exclusion. Also, the foreign income exclusion does apply to self-employment tax.

Questions about U.S. state taxes and/or Japanese taxes should be directed to the appropriate agencies. Neither the IRS nor the Embassy can advise you or provide forms for U.S. state or Japanese taxes. More information about Japanese tax issues for foreign residents of Japan is available online here.

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