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IRS Unveils More User Friendly Forms For Streamlined Procedures

The IRS has just recently updated the Streamlined Procedure forms for both its “foreign” and “domestic” procedures. All of the information can now be typed directly into the fields. Even the statement of facts can be cut and pasted directly onto the Form. This should help simplify the process. The forms can be found by clicking on […]

Bankruptcy Fraud: A Little-Known Crime That Packs A Powerful Punch

Bankruptcy fraud is a white-collar crime. It can occur in a variety of different ways. Violations run the gamut, from concealing assets, to intentionally falsifying forms, to filing or using inaccurate information of others, to bribing a trustee appointed by the courts. These actions usually occur in tandem with identity theft, mortgage fraud, money laundering, […]

Man With Offshore Account Pleads Guilty To Hiding $ 1.1 Million From IRS

An 83-year-old Florida man pleaded guilty this week to hiding at least $1.1 million from the IRS in secret Swiss and Israeli bank accounts for over a quarter century. Bernard Kramer held the secret accounts from 1987 to about 2012. He used the code phrase “Hot Lips” when referring to them in conversations with Swiss bankers in Zurich […]

Does the IRS Have The Authority to Issue Whistleblower Awards For FBAR Penalties?

Does the IRS have the authority to issue Whistleblower awards under Section 7623(b) to an individual who provides information that results in the assertion of FBAR penalties? In Whistleblower 22231-12W v. Commissioner, T.C. Memo. 2014-157, the Tax Court came close to deciding this issue. The only reason it stopped short was because the jurisdictional pre-requisite […]

An Overview of the IRS’s Overhaul of OVDP And The Streamlined Procedures

On June 18, 2014, the IRS announced sweeping changes to both the Streamlined and the OVDP programs. The effects are generally as follows: Streamlined Program – Opening the Program Up 1. Expanded to include both U.S. citizens living abroad and U.S. citizens living in the United States; 2. Participants are not restricted to those who […]