Prose by Tax Pros

International tax enforcement has garnered significant attention in recent years, but taxpayers have domestic problems, too. The Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) announced a comprehensive program in November 2018, which outlined a manner for taxpayers, both entities and individuals, to rectify essentially all types of tax issues on favorable terms. The program, referred to here as the updated voluntary disclosure practice (“UVDP”), was positive in theory, but it lacked initial implementation. Fortunately, the IRS recently issued, in April 2020, the new Form 14457 (Voluntary Disclosure Practice Preclearance Request and Application), along with corresponding Instructions. While some issues remain ambiguous, this new IRS guidance clarifies many items and provides a path for taxpayers to pro-actively resolve foreign and/or domestic noncompliance of all varieties.  This article: Identifies the U.S. tax and information-reporting duties triggered by holding foreign assets Explains several...

The IRS has been aggressively challenging partnerships that donate conservation easements for years, with widespread publicity being a hallmark of enforcement. As a result of this information campaign, supplemented by a steady flow of Tax Court decisions, most people have a decent understanding of the current state of affairs. The IRS has taken some critical steps in recent months, though, that have gone largely unnoticed. They consist of appointing a Promoter Investigations Coordinator, creating a new Fraud Enforcement Office, publishing an expanded Form 8886 (Reportable Transaction Disclosure Statement), eliminating certain procedural protections for taxpayers during easement audits, and scrapping a multilevel review process designed to avoid improper appraiser penalties.  This article provides   Overview of the easement donation process Description of many of the well-known IRS enforcement techniques Analysis of the significance of the more obscure steps, largely proce...