Tax Matters - The Top Tax Defenders Blog

The IRS assesses underpayment penalties for taxpayers who don't pay in enough income tax during the year. This penalty is typically enforced against those who are self-employed or those who don't have enough tax withheld from their pay to cover their assessed tax. If the IRS imposes an underpayment penalty on your account, you'll have to pay in the additional taxes you owe as well as the penalty. Here are six tips you can use for tax help and to learn how to prevent underpayment penalties.

If you owe back taxes to the IRS you might be worried about how you'll resolve your account with the agency. The IRS has plenty of resources to track down and penalize potential tax cheats so it's always best to find a way to pay your balance as soon as possible. The good news is that you can pay your back tax bill in an affordable way by using an IRS payment plan. Before you're able to set-up payment plan arrangements though, you'll need to learn the different types of available plans for you.

Empty nesters that have recently sent their children to college may be searching for ways to save on their income tax bills. For these taxpayers, the loss of dependent children may also mean the loss of significant tax deductions which can cause their tax bill to rise considerably. Taking advantage of tax savings for empty nesters can help these individuals keep more of their money at tax time.

Some taxpayers think that the IRS can garnish wages without warning but the agency actually has several procedural rules that it follows when agents begin the wage garnishment process. By learning about the IRS rules for wage garnishment taxpayers who have outstanding back tax balances can prepare themselves to stop the wage garnishment process and avail themselves of the options they have.

Many tax deductions and credits have been extended through 2012. This means that taxpayers may be able to claim some additional credits on their tax returns for 2011. However, there may also be some additional taxes due on specific transactions this year so it's wise for taxpayers to find out about the following 12 tempting tax tips for 2012 in advance.

The IRS only audits about one percent of all submitted returns each year. Why do some returns raise audit red flags while the vast majority skates by without a hitch? There are specific items that may trigger a deeper tax review on certain returns. To avoid being subjected to an audit, here are the dirty dozen IRS audit red flags you'll want to watch out for.

Do you owe back taxes to the IRS because a life emergency prevented you from filing your return on time? If so there's a possibility that you'll qualify for an IRS relief provision called penalty abatement. If you're able to get an abatement, you may be able to have your late filing penalties forgiven. However, qualifying for this provision is not easy and the IRS will not offer it to you simply because you made an error on your forms or forgot to send in your return on time. If you'd like to inquire about receiving penalty abatement don't deal with the IRS alone. Request the assistance of a qualified tax resolution specialist.

As tax time approaches taxpayers may be wondering if there are any options they can use to lower their income taxes. In order for any deduction to count for the tax year, it must have been made by December 31. Here are 6 tips to reduce your 2011 taxes. 

If the tax deadline for last year passed you by you might think it's too late to file your return. The truth is you can file a tax return at any time even if the deadline has come and gone. However, the sooner you submit your return the better off you'll be. Here are five reasons to file delinquent tax returns to the IRS.