Personal Taxes
The first thing to do is to carefully read the letter because it is valuable information. If there has been a change in your return, compare the information that the IRS has provided in the notice or letter side by side with the information in your original return.
Look carefully if there is a certain date that you need to respond by. Make sure you do it in that time frame to minimize additional interest and penalty charges and or to preserve your appeal rights if you do not agree.
If you owe money, pay as much as you can even if you can’t pay the full amount. You may pay online or apply for an Online Payment Agreement or Offer in Compromise.
Make sure you make a copy of the letter to keep with your tax records just in case, you might need them later.
The IRS provides you with contact information in the letter. You can call or write them back if you don’t agree with the information, if the IRS has requested additional information, or if you have a balance due. If you decide to write the IRS back, allow for at least 30 days for their response.
If you need help with contacting the IRS or understanding what has been requested of you from the IRS, our company, MC Tax Group are full of skilled and experienced people and we would be sure to help you find a solution.
The chances of being audited are slim but those chances go higher the more money you make annually. People often get an audit letter because the IRS does not have a lot of information about them. With most taxpayers, the IRS has access to all their information, their total wages and how much mortgage interest they paid. However, returns filed by self-employed people and the wealthy tend to have a lot more self-reported items that the IRS may question.
If you do get an audit letter, the first thing is to determine what part of your tax return is being audited. Sometimes IRS auditors will have questions on a portion of the tax return rather than the entire thing. You should also always make sure that everything on your return is accurate.
Once you know what the IRS is looking for, the next step is to getting records and documentation that proves your claim. The IRS has up to three years to audit your tax return so that just-received letter could be from your 2011 taxes, which is why you should keep tax documents for at least three years. If you haven’t kept any proof that your claim is correct, MC Tax Group can help you find a solution. We will analyze your situation and help you find the best method in proving your claim.
Do not ignore the letter or put it off until later, it could make the situation worse. The IRS will give you a certain deadline to respond, make sure to meet it. If you don’t feel comfortable doing the talking, have us at MC Tax Group handle the discussions for you, we will take care of the situation, and more.
If you do not meet his or her child support obligations can face serious consequences. Penalties for not paying back child support vary from state to state, and the federal government may become involved.
Some of the penalties imposed by state or federal governments include:
- License Suspension. - Denial of Passport. - Wage Garnishment. - Seizure of Tax Refund. - Property Seizure. - Jail Time. - Cross- Border Enforcement.If you have suffered a change in financial circumstances and have trouble with child support obligations, go to the court and explain your situation. In many cases, courts can adjust child support payments, or allow you to stop paying them for a period of time. Just ignoring the problem, and allowing back child support to accrue, can cause more issues later.
If you do have back child support payments to make, you have some options. You can begin by finding a lawyer that specializes in family law. Do what you can to show that you want to meet the obligation, and the court may help you find a reasonable solution.
When you owe child support, you need to fulfill your obligation as soon as you can. There are several consequences that come with not paying on time. Make sure you communicate with everyone involved in the child support agreement, and respond quickly to the court.
Come to MC Tax Group to get all your questions answered and your problems solved. We are highly experienced and we are here to make your life easier.
The IRS issues most refunds in less than 21 calendar days. You can use the IRS2Go mobile app or the Where’s My Refund? Tool to start checking on the status of your tax return within 24 hours after the IRS has received your e-filed return or 4 weeks after you mail a paper return. You have access to these tools 24 hours a day and 7 days a week. Remember that you will not get a refund date right away. The IRS has to receive your tax return, process it, and approve it. You usually don’t get a refund date until after your tax return is approved.
Calling the IRS will not speed up the process. Their phone and walk-in representatives can only research the status of your refund if it has been 21 days or more since you filed electronically, more than 6 weeks since you mailed your paper return, or Where’s My Refund? directs you to contact us. If the IRS needs more information to process your tax return, they will contact you by mail.
If it has been longer than 21 days since the IRS received your return and you still have not received your return, it could be one of these reasons:
- Your return has errors. - It is incomplete. - It needs to be reviewed further. - It is impacted by fraud or identity theft. - Or your return includes Form 8379, injured Spouse Allocation, which can take up to 14 weeks to be processed.If you need help understanding why you have not received the refund you are entitled to, MC Tax Group is here to help. We are experienced with these kind of situations and would help you find a quick fix.
Identity theft takes many forms and if you do not report it as soon as possible, it can get worse.
Put a fraud alert on your credit reports. A fraud alert puts a red flag on your credit report and notifies lenders and creditors that they should take extra steps to verify your identity before extending credit. To place a 90-day fraud alert on all three of your credit reports, you only need to contact one of the three credit reporting agencies Experian, Equifax, or TransUnion. When you place the alert, they will automatically notify the other two agencies for you. When you place a fraud alert on your credit reports, you’re entitled to a free copy of your credit report from each of the three agencies, make sure you obtain them.
Place a security freeze on your credit reports. A security freeze prevents creditors (except with those you already do business with) from accessing your credit reports at all. New applications will automatically be declined. With a security freeze in place, you will need to take extra steps if you wish to apply for a new credit.
If you know if something was directly affected contact the institution. For example if you are sure that your checkbook has been stolen, contact the bank. For this reason it is important to keep a list of what you have in your wallet, along with the contact information for each item.
Contact The Federal Trade Commission (FTC). You can file an Identity Theft Affidavit and create an Identity Theft Report. The FTC will give you information on what you should do next depending on the type of fraud that may have been committed. To complete the report you’ll need to file a police report, and make sure you make a copy of it.
If you need to find more options or solutions to your problem, relax! MC Tax Group is full of experts all over Dallas, Texas that can point you in the right direction and more.
If your tax preparer did do something wrong, you may have to pay for their errors. Taxpayers are responsible for their own returns. It is crucial to talk to them more than just about your income and deductions. Make sure you know that if the bottom line turns out to be wrong because an error was made on your return, who pays if the IRS comes knocking, who is responsible if your preparer will stand by you during an audit, or will you be on your own. Tax preparers often will pay penalties that result from a mistake they made, although they won’t pay any additional taxes. Assuming responsibility for penalties on the part of tax preparers isn’t automatic. Before you choose a tax preparer, find out what the policy is.
If you find something wrong with your tax return you should get into contact with your tax preparer as soon as possible and present your concerns. If there is something incorrect and it means you owe more, the IRS says to file an amended return and pay as soon as you can to keep penalties to a minimum. You might find that amending will get you some money back instead. If so, and you are waiting on a refund based on the original return, hold off submitting the amended return until the refund check arrives. Don’t put off filing an amended return for a refund too long, though. You can only amend to get a refund for three years after the original due date of your tax return.
This is why it is important to trust who does your taxes. Sometimes big corporations just worry about getting the job done, rather than getting it done correctly. MC Tax Group is fully invested in following up with you and helping you get through situations as quickly and efficiently as possible.
The Internal Revenue Service and the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration both continue to hear from taxpayers who have received unsolicited calls from individuals demanding payment while fraudulently claiming to be from the IRS.
Additionally, it is important for taxpayers to know that the IRS: - Never asks for credit card, debit card or prepaid card information over the telephone. - Never insists that taxpayers use a specific payment method to pay tax obligations. - Never requests immediate payment over the telephone and will not take enforcement action immediately following a phone conversation. Taxpayers usually receive prior notification of IRS enforcement action involving IRS tax liens or levies. - Never demands that you pay taxes without giving you the opportunity to question or appeal the amount they say you owe.If you get a phone call from someone claiming to be from the IRS, here’s what you should do:
- If you know you owe taxes or you think you might owe taxes, call the IRS at 1.800.829.1040. The IRS employees at that line can help you with a payment issue, if there really is such an issue. - If you know you don’t owe taxes or have no reason to think that you owe any taxes (for example, you’ve never received a bill or the caller made some bogus threats as described above), then call and report the incident to TIGTA at 1.800.366.4484.It is rare to get a call from the IRS, but when it does occur they usually will send a letter before hand letting you know that will you probably receive a call. Our company, MC Tax Group has been working with the IRS for a long time and we could help you detect a hoax call.
Even if you don’t have the money to pay the IRS what you owe when your return is due, you still have to file your return on time. If you don’t, you’ll also pay a late-filing penalty along with the taxes you owe.
If you owe tax and you don’t file your return on time:The late-filing penalty is usually 5% of the tax you owe for each month — or part of a month — that your return is late. This applies up to a maximum of 25% of the tax owed.
If your return is more than 60 days late, the minimum penalty for late filing is the smaller of these: -$135 -100% of the unpaid tax Interest is usually charged on any unpaid tax from the due date of the return until the payment date. The interest rate is the federal short-term rate plus 3%. The rate is set every three months, and interest is compounded daily. The interest rate recently has been about 3%. Interest is also charged on late-filing penalties.
If you file on time but you don’t pay the total amount due, you’ll usually have to pay a late-payment penalty. This is 0.5% of the tax you owe per month or until the tax is paid completely. You’ll be charged up to a maximum penalty of 25% of the tax due.
If you think paying off everything is your only option, you are wrong. MC Tax Group can help you figure out other options that you may qualify for to reduce or completely wipe out what you owe. If you want to know how much you really owe, call us.
