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When you need assistance in resolving a tax issue, you can rely on our experience and knowledge to efficiently and effectively respond to the IRS and find a reasonable resolution to your tax problem. The IRS and ADOR will not allow you to delay dealing with your tax problems. However, there is assistance that we can provide to help you deal with the IRS and ADOR.

Rather than let the IRS take your property or bank accounts, you can negotiate a collection alternative to those actions. You can enter into an installment payment plan to pay the full liability. You
Continue Reading What to do when you cannot pay your taxes

McFARLANE LAW-A Tax Law Firm is now a virtual law firm!
Send any mail or correspondence to:
PO BOX 30405, PHOENIX, ARIZONA 85046-0405
Our phone number and email address remain the same.
With over 30 years of experience in Tax Audits, Appeals, Tax Court Litigation, Collection, and Payment Plan Negotiations, we can assist you or your clients resolve tax problems.
Referrals: We regularly work with attorneys, CPAs, and bookkeepers. We are especially respectful of your relationship with your clients in a referral situation.
Thank you for your continued confidence in our practice !

McFARLANE LAW – A Tax Law Firm
Continue Reading WE’VE GONE VIRTUAL!!

Understanding the tax responsibilities that come with starting a business venture can save taxpayers money and help set them up for success. Contact your local tax attorney for advice and answers to help you through the process of starting a new business.

Here are five tips for new business owners.

Choose a business structure.

The form of business determines which income tax return a business taxpayer needs to file. The most common business structures are:

  • Sole Proprietorship: An unincorporated business owned by an individual. There’s no distinction between the taxpayer and their business.
  • Partnership: An unincorporated business with ownership shared


Continue Reading Tips for people starting a new business

Several of my clients received IRS Notices with due dates that already expired by the time I received the Notices because the mail date stated on the Notices was months ago-this despite being recently mailed!! The pandemic shutdown really messed things up with all agencies.

The National Taxpayer Advocate stated that the IRS generated more than 20 million notices that were printed but not immediately mailed. As a result, the notices bear dates that now have passed, some by several months. Many of the Notices are time sensitive and require taxpayers to respond by deadlines that have also passed.

The
Continue Reading Beware: The IRS is Sending Important Notices with Bad Dates

Taxpayers need to keep a careful eye on their IRS Notices. Many IRS Notices, many with statutory deadlines were dated during the IRS shut-down due to COVID-19, but not immediately mailed. Consequently, there are many IRS Notices with expired action dates.

The TaxpAyer Advocate stated that during the shutdown, the IRS generated more than 20 million notices, many of which were not mailed.  As a result, the notices bear dates that now have passed, some by several months and some of the notices require taxpayers to respond by deadlines that have also passed.

This IRS mishandling creates a false entry
Continue Reading The IRS has been sending notices with bad dates

So what if I owe past-due taxes. Can the IRS take my $1,200 Economic Impact Payment?

Generally, the answer is no. The exception is if the taxpayer owes child support arrearages.

Under the CARES Act guidelines and subsequent direction, Economic Impact Payments/recovery rebates/stimulus checks cannot be offset to pay any debt except child support.

However, “normal” federal tax refunds remain fair game in the absence of an Offset Bypass Refund (OBR) request. NOTE: OBRs may be slightly easier to come by in these coronavirus times.

If you will have a refund on your 2019 return, but owe past due
Continue Reading Past-due taxes and your $1,200 Economic Impact Payment

A: Taxpayers should file on time even if they cannot pay their full tax bill
You should file your tax return by the deadline even if they cannot pay the full amount due. Otherwise, you will be assessed a late filing penalty and end up owing even more. If you owe tax, but cannot pay by the July 15, 2020 deadline, you should:

  • File your tax return or request an extension of time to file.
    If you cannot file your return on time, request an extension to file on Form 4868. Without this extension, if you owe 2019 tax, you


Continue Reading Q: What if I cannot Pay my Taxes by the July 15 Deadline?

In previous blogs The Honeymoon is Over – It’s Time to Think Taxes! and It’s Time to Prepare and File your 2019 Tax returns, I discussed the upcoming, looming tax return filing and payment deadline of July 15. You can extend the time to file, but not to pay – so budget accordingly.Other extension, deffal or benefits bestowed to Taxpayers due to COVID-19 also expire July 15 or the end of this month. For example, federal IRS tax returns are due or can be extended to October 15. 2019 taxes are due. The $600/month supplemental unemployment payments end. The
Continue Reading The honeymoon is over – Part III

The IRS continues its pursuit of “US Citizens” who own a foreign bank account, foreign real estate, interests in a foreign company, and other assets such as brokerage accounts with credit card access. They are looking for US Citizens with foreign based assets who fail to report the existence of those assets.
US Citizens are required to report their worldwide income, but also report their assets such as real estate or business interests on informational returns.
In 2019, tax agencies around the world shared information on 84 million accounts holding foreigners’ assets; this to fight tax avoidance and evasion in
Continue Reading Do you have a foreign bank account or own an interest in foreign real estate or in a foreign entity?

There has been stories that nursing homes and other care facilities have been taking their resident’s/patient’s Economic Impact Payments (EIPs).

If you have a loved-one in a nursing home or other care facility, check to see that the facility has not absconded with the EIP. If so, you may to hire an attorney to send a demand letter to recoup the EIP. Under the IRS guidelines, the EIPs belong to the recipients, not any organizations providing care for the recipients. Be aware and check on this as there has been stories that people and businesses may be taking advantage of
Continue Reading Nursing homes, care facilities and Economic Impact Payments

If you or your spouse collects social security benefits and have been assessed past due taxes or have other debts, those SS benefits may be subject to collection action by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the Arizona Department of Revenue (ADOR). This can be particularly distressing if you are retired and in debt and your only source of income is social security.

The IRS has statutory authority, via the Federal Payment Levy Program, to garnish up to 15 percent of Social Security benefits to pay delinquent taxes. Other creditors, such as banks and credit card companies, cannot touch your
Continue Reading The IRS can garnish your Social Security

<h2<Important Tax Record-keeping Advice:
If you received an economic impact payment in 2020 need to keep Notice 1444, entitled Your Economic Impact Payment, with your other 2020 tax records such as W-2s, 1099s, and any virtual currency transactions. This Notice 1444 provides important information about the amount of your payment, how the payment was made, and how to report any payment that was not received.

Note that the IRS mails this Notice 1444 to each recipient’s last known address within 15 days after the payment goes out. It is important for people to keep this Notice 1444for their 2020 tax
Continue Reading Keep Economic Impact Payment Notice with Your 2020 Tax Records

The Honeymoon is Over: Part Deux

If you have not filed your 2019 individual income or business tax returns yet or paid the tax liability, you have until July 15 to file those returns and pay the tax due without incurring penalties for late filing and for late paying.As I discussed in a prior blog, there are 2 penalties that attach to the failure to file on time and the failure to pay the tax due. You want to file even though you cannot pay or fully pay the tax liability. Further, you can request a filing extension if submitted
Continue Reading Its Time to Prepare and File your 2019 Tax returns

There are certain tax problems that require the assistance of a tax attorney, and determining if an offer-in-compromise (OIC) can resolve your tax issues with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) or Arizona Department of Revenue (ADOR) is one of those cases.
So you owe taxes that you will not be able to pay in a reasonable period of time. Although despair sets-in, there is tax relief assistance. You should seek such assistance from an experienced tax attorney – don’t waste your time or money with non-lawyer national outfits claiming they can resolve your tax problems.
McFarlane Law – Your Tax
Continue Reading Can’t Pay Your Tax Liability? Is an Offer-in-Compromise Right for You?

There are certain tax problems that require the assistance of a tax attorney, and determining if an offer-in-compromise (OIC) can resolve your tax issues with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) or Arizona Department of Revenue (ADOR) is one of those cases.
So you owe taxes that you will not be able to pay in a reasonable period of time. Although despair sets-in, there is tax relief assistance. You should seek such assistance from an experienced tax attorney – don’t waste your time or money with non-lawyer national outfits claiming they can resolve your tax problems.
McFarlane Law – Your Tax
Continue Reading Can’t Pay Your Tax Liability? Is an Offer-in-Compromise Right for You?

Remember: An extension to file is not an extension to pay taxes

For most taxpayers (including individual, businesses, and fiduciaries), the filing and payment deadline for their 2019 federal and state tax returns was postponed to July 15. Those who need more time to file beyond the postponed date (July 15) can request an extension to file and must request that extension to file by July 15. The federal extension gives taxpayers until October 15 to file their federal tax return.Taxpayers need to check with their individual state’s laws to determine the effect of an extension. In Arizona, a federal
Continue Reading The Honeymoon is Over – It’s Time to Think Taxes!