Protecting Clients From Fraud Incompetence and Scams
Published by John Wiley &
Sons
Chapter 1
Lance Wallach
Some of the
areas SB/SE will be examining include pass-through entities, high-income
filers, and abusive transactions. S corporations are likely to receive
particular scrutiny. Further review would not be limited to S corporations, but
would extend to pass-through entities like partnerships, which can expect to
receive a “significant amount of attention” because SB/SE has found an area of
abuse and would like to curb what is called a growing trend of abusive
transactions. There also will be a renewed effort to address high-income
filers, typically classified as those with an adjusted gross income of more
than $200,000.
The IRS has been cracking down on what it
considers to be abusive tax shelters. Many of them are being marketed to small
business owners by insurance professionals, financial planners, and even accountants
and attorneys. I speak at numerous conventions, for both business owners and
accountants. And after I speak, I am always approached by many people who have
questions about tax reduction plans that they have heard about.
I have been
an expert witness in many of these 419 and 412(i) lawsuits and I have not lost
one of them. If you sold one or more of these plans, get someone who really
knows what they are doing to help you immediately. Many advisors will take your
money and claim to be able to help you. Make sure they have experience helping
agents that have sold these types of plans. Make sure they have experience
helping accountants who signed the tax returns. IRS calls them material
advisors and fines them $200,000 if they are incorporated or $100,000 if not.
Do not let them learn on the job, with your career and money at stake.
Fear will
not adjust your opponent’s motive. Strategic action on your part, though, will
make your business adept enough to handle adversarial challenges. You need
advocates with tax law knowledge who can strategically allocate your business
assets, utilizing legal methods synchronized to an understanding of the most
recently updated IRS code provisions. You should meet the IRS challenge as an
opportunity to advance your business and wealth-growth goals.
Let us
discuss an integrated team approach to protecting your assets, a strategy that
should be in place long before the IRS, or other vampirical entities seeking to
drain your assets appear at the doorstep. Nothing you do as a business owner is
as important as understanding how to minimize your risk.
Summary
Macroeconomic
conditions have resulted in stupefying losses to the investment portfolios of
both the public and private sectors. The country is rife with projected pension
fund insolvencies totaling literally hundreds of billions of dollars. Our
(read: taxpayers) share is staggering. The government is looking for revenue
wherever it can find it. Cue the Internal Revenue Service!
LanceWallach, National Society of Accountants Speaker of the Year and member of the
American Institute of CPAs faculty of teaching professionals, is a frequent
speaker on retirement plans, financial and estate planning, and abusive tax
shelters. He speaks at more than ten
conventions annually and writes for over fifty publications. Lance has written
numerous books including Protecting Clients from Fraud, Incompetence and
Scams published by John Wiley and Sons, Bisk Education's CPA's Guide to
Life Insurance and Federal Estate and Gift Taxation, as well as
AICPA best-selling books, including Avoiding Circular 230 Malpractice Traps
and Common Abusive Small Business Hot Spots. He does expert witness
testimony and has never lost a case. Mr. Wallach may be reached at
516/938.5007, wallachinc@gmail.com, or at www.taxaudit419.com or
www.lancewallach.com.
The information provided herein is not intended as legal,
accounting, financial or any type of advice for any specific individual or
other entity. You should contact an appropriate professional for any such
advice.
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