Tax Matters - The Top Tax Defenders Blog

The IRS offers innocent souse relief in very limited tax situations. This arrangement allows spouses who were not involved in the tax fraud or errors perpetrated by their husbands or wives to be absolved of tax liability. However, qualifying for IRS innocent spouse relief can be a complicated process.

Did you know that the IRS has the authority to seize your assets if you owe back taxes? The Internal Revenue Service is one of the most powerful government agencies when it comes to seizing control of individual assets so it's wise for any taxpayer to understand the agency's authority and how it exercises asset seizure in cases of income tax debt.

Most people are familiar with IRS payment plans, which are extended payment periods available for those who are unable to pay their balances in full. However, in rare cases, the IRS also offers tax settlements - payment options that allow taxpayers to settle their accounts for less than owe. Qualifying for these IRS tax settlements is rather difficult, though, since the agency has very strict standards for granting these types of requests. Learning about IRS tax settlements and how they work can help you decide if you may qualify for these options.

The IRS offers payment plans for taxpayers who are unable to pay their entire tax debt in a lump sum. The program is rather easy to initiate, which makes it a great option for those who are unprepared to pay a large tax bill at the deadline. Most individuals will use IRS Form 9465 to apply for an installment agreement. They can complete and submit this form along with their income tax returns.

Are you looking to make a few dollars over summer vacation? If so, you may not be thinking about the tax implications of your extra earnings but you may have to deal with a few tax issues particularly if you make more than a certain amount over the summer. Here are a few tax tips for summer jobs that you'll need to be aware of before you get hired.

If you've been dealing with some tax issues with the IRS, you might be wondering what result you can expect. The answer is that there are usually only a small number of possible results to any tax trouble with the IRS but the one you receive depends largely on your particular situation.

Did you know that some taxpayers are more likely to be audited than others? It may seem unfair on its surface but the IRS considers some returns to be more likely to contain fraud. You might be inviting an IRS audit even if your figures are legitimate. While it's impossible to completely avoid being audited, it is wise to find out which actions may actually be a trigger for an IRS audit so you can prepare yourself in case your return is red-flagged.

Self-employed taxpayers are some of the most frequently audited individuals each tax year. These taxpayers are particularly susceptible to tax audits because many of their expenses are subject to their own documentation. One of the most commonly investigated claims is the home office deduction since some taxpayers have abused this provision over the years. You could be inviting an audit if you don't take steps to ensure your deduction is well documented.

Business owners who have employees on their payroll are legally required to submit federal and state payroll taxes to the government every quarter. Since these taxes can become rather costly over time, some entrepreneurs may be interested in learning how they can reduce their payroll tax burden while keeping their workforce intact. Here are three ways to cut payroll taxes without cutting payroll.

In most tax years several changes are made to the existing federal tax code. 2012, however, included a few additional adjustments that affected the deductions that were allowed in previous years. Here are seven tax law changes for 2012 and what you need to know about how they could affect you.