On September 21, 2011, the IRS announced the launching of the Voluntary Classification Settlement Program. This program will provide employers with the ability to resolve past worker classification issues and achieve certainty under the tax law at a significantly reduced employment tax rate by voluntarily reclassifying their workers. Under the program, eligible employers can obtain [...]
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MORE BREAKING NEWS: IRS Announces New Voluntary Worker Classification Settlement Program
September 21, 2011THE INK IS STILL WET: IRS, DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND STATES TEAM TOGETHER -SHARING OF INFORMATION ON WORKER CLASSIFICATION
September 20, 2011On September 19, 2011, Commissioner Shulman and Secretary of Labor Solis signed a memorandum of understanding that will allow for the sharing of information intended to combat employee misclassification. The sharing of information and collaboration between the two agencies is intended to help reduce the incidence of misclassification, reduce the tax gap, and improve compliance [...]
Who Will Be Subject to Employment Tax and at What Rate?
September 15, 2011The American Jobs Act submitted to Congress this week calls for a temporary payroll tax cut and a temporary credit for increased payroll. The specific tax breaks in the proposal include: For 2012, the employee’s portion of Social Security tax would be 3.1%; the employer’s portion would also be 3.1%, up to the [...]
Employment Tax Cuts – Stay Tuned
September 9, 2011In a speech to a joint session of Congress on September 8, 2011, President Obama proposed cuts to both employee and employer payroll taxes for 2012 and tax credits meant to encourage hiring of unemployed workers. The President’s proposal, the American Jobs Act, would cut employee Social Security payroll taxes in half in 2012. It would [...]
Increased Employment Tax Scrutiny: IRS Continues to Crack Down on Tool Plans
July 29, 2011In Chief Counsel Advice 201120021, the Service concluded that an enterprise’s tool reimbursement plan failed the accountable plan business connection requirement because it impermissibly recharacterized wages and reimbursed employees for tool expenses incurred before the start of employment. The IRS reiterated its view that for an expense to satisfy the business connection requirement of the [...]
Voluntary Compliance: Will it be more difficult to come clean?
July 22, 2011The IRS allows employers that determine that they are not in compliance with various employment and income tax laws to step forward and be accountable by entering into an agreement with the IRS. Generally, the agreements are structured so that the taxpayer is better off than if the IRS had identified the issue on exam. While this assists [...]
Announcement 2011-42: IRS to Discontinue High-Low Per Diem Method for Travel Expenses
July 20, 2011Last, year the IRS requested public comment on the continuing need for the high-low method for substantiating under IRC section 274(d), lodging, meal and incidental expenses incurred in traveling away from home. The IRS received no comments. On July 19, 2011, IRS Announcement 2011-42 indicated that the IRS intends to discontinue authorizing the high-low substantiation [...]
Trust Fund Recovery Penalty: Has the IRS Found Deeper Pockets or Just More Pockets?
July 14, 2011IRS’s Small Business/Self-Employed (SB/SE) Division has issued an internal memorandum which provides that the trust fund recovery penalty may be imposed against third-party payroll service providers as well as the employer. IRC section 6672 imposes the TFRP on any person who: 1) is responsible for collecting, accounting for, and paying over payroll taxes; and, 2) willfully fails [...]
Chamberlain Hrdlicka presents the Austin Tax Forum on July 28, 2011
July 12, 2011A Year of Change (2010-2011): Through Heightened Employment Tax and Comptroller Audits, the Government Seeks to Increase Revenue This presentation will focus on understanding employment tax, franchise tax and sales and use tax audit risks, mechanisms to mitigate exposure strategies to develop robust audit techniques and a working knowledge of recent changes. Speakers: Paul H. Masters (Comptroller [...]
Employment Tax: Expect More Audits
July 8, 2011In February 2010, the IRS began a study to estimate the tax gap for underreported employment taxes and determine compliance rates for business taxpayers, the first study of its kind since 1984. The National Research Project intended to be a comprehensive review of 6,000 taxpayers over a three year period. The goal was data collection [...]
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Phil Karter
Jonathan Prokup
David Shakow
George Connelly, Jr.
Buck Buchanan
David Bernard
Dustin Covello
Heather Pesikoff
Hale Sheppard
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