Following up on yesterday’s story about a disgruntled computer technician who turned over the bank records from the LGT Bank of Liechtenstein, ABC News says that UBS Bank may have helped set up the secret accounts and been responsible for hiding as much as $20 billion dollars of U.S. money.
IRS
Disgruntled Computer Technician Outs Super-Rich Tax Cheaters To The IRS
By 7.15.08
U.S. law allows whistleblowers to collect 30 percent of any taxes recovered as a result of their information, and it seems that one disgruntled computer technician is taking advantage of the program. Meet Heinrich Kieber, a nefarious criminal-type turned “good guy” who will be testifying in front of the “Senate’s Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations Thursday via a video statement from a secret location,” according to ABC News. Mr. Keiber is from Liechtenstein, a tiny country with very secretive banking laws. He stole banking information that showed how the world’s super-rich were skirting their countries tax laws. Keiber then sold the information to tax authorities in 12 countries, including the U.S, hence the whole “secret location” thing.
IRS Increases Business Mileage Deductible From 50.5 To 58.5 Cents
By 6.23.08
To help ease the pain of higher gas costs, starting July 1st the IRS will increase the allowable business deductible for business vehicles from 50.5 to 58.5 cents per mile. The IRS is also going to raise the rate for calculating computing deductible medical or moving expenses from 19 cents to 27 cents a mile, also starting July 1st. The rate for charity services, requiring an act of law to change it, remains at 14 cents per mile. If you’ve been meaning to claim business mileage deductions, July 1st will be a great time to begin. Here’s info on how to get started.
TurboTax Doesn't See Anything Unusual About Your $1,635,335 In Moving Expenses
By 6.16.08
Reader Elijah is glad he gave his taxes a manual check before sending them off. Despite accidentally inflating his cross-country moving expenses from $1,635 to $1,635,335, TurboTax’s audit check said Elijah’s return was “green” — meaning that he was at low risk for an audit. Now, Elijah’s wondering: If $2,000 error on his tax return wouldn’t put him at risk of an audit, what would?
Tax-Relief Company Agrees To Refund $1.5 Million To Scammed Customers In 18 States
By 6.15.08
JK Harris & Company is a tax-relief company in South Carolina that promises to help people settle IRS debts for “pennies on the dollar” by helping them file an Offer in Compromise (OIC) on their behalf. What they didn’t tell consumers is that “the IRS accepts only a small number of these kinds of cases,” writes digtriad. What they also didn’t mention is that they’ll accept your money even if they know you won’t qualify for an OIC, and they won’t give refunds. “In many cases, JK Harris did not even apply to the IRS to help consumers as promised. But the company still refused to give those consumers their money back.” Now JK Harris has made an agreement with attorneys general in 18 states to change its advertising and pay $1.5 million in restitution.
By 5.23.08
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A site where people post a picture and talk about the stuff they bought with their stimulus payment. [How I Spent My Stimulus]
IRS Sends 15,000 Stimulus Checks To The Wrong Bank Accounts
By 5.17.08
That economic stimulus check you were expecting may have accidentally stimulated your neighbor’s bank account. Newsday is reporting that 15,000 checks tumbled astray thanks to an IRS “computer programming glitch.”
By 5.12.08
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H&R Block says you paid it $2.8 billion to do your taxes this year. It was their best tax season in 9 years thanks to the company’s decision to increase fees by 7%-9.8% [CNNMoney ]
Your Economic Stimulus Payment Questions Answered By The IRS
By 5.8.08
The IRS has a new and improved stimulus payment FAQ up and running on their website, so if you have additional questions you should check it out. Of note, the IRS has now definitively said that those who owe back taxes, or have delinquent child support payments or student loans will have their payments offset.
Where's My Stimulus Payment?
By 5.7.08
The IRS has a tool that lets you find out when your Stimulus Payment will arrive. Just punch in your social, filing status, and number of exemptions on your 2007 taxes. Its usefulness is limited, though, as it can’t tell you when your payment arrive until about a week before they send out the check.
I Underpaid My Taxes, Will I Still Get A Stimulus Rebate Check?
By 5.2.08
Reader Adam is wondering if he’ll get a rebate check, considering the fact that he underpaid his taxes for 2007:
Help! My Tax Stimulus Rebate Was Direct Deposited Into My IRA! Noooo!
By 5.1.08
Silly tax payer! You’re not supposed to deposit your tax rebate into your IRA. You’re supposed to spend it on blu-ray players and expensive diet pills and GPS systems! No more maps for you! Sadly, if you asked the IRS to deposit your tax refund into your IRA, they’re going to deposit your rebate there too.
What Will You Do With Your Economic Stimulus Check?
By 4.30.08
The first of the economic stimulus rebate checks…
Rebate Checks Start Arriving Monday!
By 4.24.08
Monday is your lucky day, taxpayer, that’s when rebate checks start arriving, ahead of schedule. That’s right, the rebates were originally slated for May 2nd, but thanks to “a new computer program that updates records daily – faster than an older program that updates weekly,” Americans will start getting their free beer money on April 28th. Wow, IRS and efficiency together in the same sentence?
5 Myths About The Upcoming Tax Rebate Stimulus Check
By 4.16.08
There are a lot of myths and rumors going around out there about the upcoming stimulus check. Tax Cat is in full debunk mode this morning. Careful of the claws, ladies and gentlemen. He gets touchy when tax season ends and he has to retire the glasses for another year and go back to ruining things in Chad’s apartment.
Scammers Want Your Stimulus Check And Tax Refund
By 4.14.08
Phoung Cat Le from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reports that a colleague of hers is the victim of income tax ID theft. A scammer filed her income taxes before she did, hoping to get a hold of her refund and stimulus check.
Tax Tip For Lazy People: How To Get An Extension On Your Income Taxes
By 4.11.08
You need an extension.
