Tax Entities and CODI

CODI in Partnerships

Exclusion at partner level – The exclusions apply at the partner level, not at the partnership level. The insolvency of the partnership does not affect the pass-through of the CODI. Each partner may use whichever exclusions they qualify for on their individual returns.

Real Property Business Debt Exclusion – The determination of whether debt is qualified as real property business indebtedness is made at the partnership level. Then, the election to apply the provision is made on a partner-by-partner basis. Read More

Posted in sections, this is my Doctoral Thesis on taxpayers rights when audited by the tax authorities in South Africa – equally applicable to many English-based law systems in Africa and abroad (eg. India). This will be of particular use to any tax practitioners doing work in Africa and in other English-based legal systems around the world.

Analysis of Challenging The Commissioner’s Discretionary Powers In Auditing Taxpayers under The Constitution of The Republic of South Africa

CHAPTER 5 – JUDICIAL REVIEW WITH REFERENCE TO SS 74A AND 74B –

5.5.3 Rule 53 of the Uniform Rules of Court Read More

By Michael DeBlis and Virginia La Torre Jeker

Scenario Number 2: Failure to File A Tax Return in Tax Years Four Through Six

Adam is a U.S. citizen with an undisclosed offshore account. He moved to Switzerland in 2008 after taking a job with a Swiss consulting company and has lived there ever since. That same year Adam opened up a checking account at Grosser Schweizer Bank, a Swiss Bank.

Adam’s tax woes go back to 2008, when he relocated to Switzerland. He did not file any U.S. tax returns in 2008, 2009, and 2010. However, he has been fully compliant, at least as far as filing U.S. income tax returns go, since 2011. He has never filed an FBAR. Read More

Documentation

As with all things dealing with income taxes documentation is a must. Since you are dealing with personal, business, or investment use property, it is imperative that you have good documentation for all figures you use in your calculations. The exclusion of CODI and the lack of claiming a deemed sale taxable gain, on the proper forms, is one of the “high risk” audit items at the IRS.

When dealing with your business and investment items you need the same type of documentation that you would use to determine basis for disposition. If the item has been in service and has been depreciated, a copy of the current depreciation worksheets are a Read More

The Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCEN”) proposed rules on July 30 requiring US financial institutions to collect “Customer Due Diligence” information. The FinCEN proposed rules are aimed at non-US persons who have not been tax compliant in their home countries and who are using their US financial accounts to hide income from their home governments.  The full Treasury announcement can be accessed here and the proposed rules can be accessed here.

The information required under the proposed rules mandates the identification of the true beneficial owners of US financial accounts.  One of the main goals for obtaining this information will be so that the USA can comply with the US government’s obligations to any countries with which it has a “reciprocal” Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) under Read More

The IRS has authority to assert FBAR civil penalties. Contrary to popular belief, an FBAR violation doesn’t automatically mean that a penalty will be asserted. Examiners are expected to exercise discretion, taking into account the facts and circumstances of each case, in determining whether penalties should be asserted. For example, the examiner may determine that the facts do not justify asserting a penalty. In that case, the examiner will issue an FBAR warning letter, Letter 3800.

According to IRM 4.26.16.4, the sole purpose of the FBAR penalty is to promote compliance with the FBAR reporting and recordkeeping requirements. In exercising their discretion, examiners should consider whether issuing a warning letter and securing delinquent FBARs, rather than asserting a penalty, will achieve the desired result of Read More

How to Apply the Exclusions

As mentioned above, if a client qualifies for one of the five exceptions you should apply that exception first. If there is still possible CODI after the exceptions are applied, then you should work your way through the exclusions in order until you reach the end of the exclusions or the end of the CODI, whichever comes first. We will work a comprehensive example at the end of the text that shows this theory at work.

All of the exclusions are documented on the Form 982 in one way or another. There is also an IRS provided insolvency worksheet for use in determining that exclusion. Some of the exclusions require you to reduce your Tax Attributes. We will define and discuss this Read More

As I have been helping my Mom transition into life as a widow many interesting facts have begun to resonate. Particularly intriguing for me today under Regs. §1.2-2(b)(4) parent(s) can be claimed as a dependent if you meet the usual support, citizenship, gross income, and joint return tests.

Interestingly enough if you are single you can file as head of household if you claim your parent or pay more than half the cost of keeping them in a rest home or home for the elderly. Fortunately my mom is nowhere ready for that sort of treatment we hope. However in my most recent research efforts I’ve been intrigued by two separate and distinct opportunities worth consideration: Read More

Hiding Receipts By Cash Is A Tax Issue

For many years, small restaurants, bars, pizza parlors, ice cream stands, and other food establishments have used all cash systems to hide their income and not pay sales tax and income tax on the full receipts. In New Jersey, the Division of Taxation has created a very aggressive system where they make up excessively high mark ons from food and liquor purchases, and absolutely slaughter businesses that don’t keep good records.

The way this tack works by the New Jersey division of taxation is they subpoena the records from the major food suppliers and liquor distributors. The tax authorities then compared the expenses listed on the tax return to what these third-party sellers reported. Read More

Posted in sections, this is my Doctoral Thesis on taxpayers rights when audited by the tax authorities in South Africa – equally applicable to many English-based law systems in Africa and abroad (eg. India). This will be of particular use to any tax practitioners doing work in Africa and in other English-based legal systems around the world.

Analysis of Challenging The Commissioner’s Discretionary Powers In Auditing Taxpayers under The Constitution of The Republic of South Africa

CHAPTER 5 – JUDICIAL REVIEW WITH REFERENCE TO SS 74A AND 74B –

5.5.2 Sections 6, 7 and 8 of PAJA50 Read More

In a post on 1/17/14 titled “Marijuana And The Tax Law“, I noted the significant tax dollars that Colorado was to generate from legalizing recreational use of marijuana. I also noted that for tax practitioners who assist these businesses (as well as those selling in other states for medicinal use), there are tax law issues (such as IRC Section 280E) and ethical considerations given that growing, cultivating, distributing and using marijuana is still a federal crime. CPAs and attorneys need to consider the rules of conduct applicable in their state.

I have a 4-page article on this topic in the Tax Talk feature of the Federal Bar’s July 2014 The Federal Lawyer. It is entitled, “Ethical Considerations When Your Potential Tax Client is a Marijuana Business.” I explain the issues CPAs and attorneys face in helping these Read More

The value-added tax (VAT) has been adopted by every developed country and most developing countries in the world. There is, however, one exception –The United States. That may be changing as there is currently discussion regarding its adoption in the U. S.

The value-added tax is a tax on goods and services and is collected at every step in the production chain. This is unlike the sales tax, which is paid only on retail sales. In a sense it is similar to sales taxes that are currently in place in 45 states as it is a consumption tax. VAT rates, obviously, vary from country, but in a survey of Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries, the rate varies from a low of five percent to a high of 24.5 percent. Read More