Tax Blog/Blawg

After MF Global filed for bankruptcy protection just over a month ago, investigators discovered that approximately $1.2 billion of assets in customers’ accounts had somehow disappeared.  Although no one at the firm has confirmed where the money went, news reports have suggested that the money may have been used to cover bad trades and debts to other financial institutions.  For example, the New York Times recently reported that investigators believe MF Global, in a frantic attempt to remain solvent, may have paid at least $200 million in customer funds to JPMorgan Chase.  Also, late ...

Two weeks ago, the Fifth Circuit summarily rejected a taxpayer request for an en banc rehearing in Southgate Master Fund LLC v. United States.  The appellate court had previously concluded that the taxpayer was not entitled to a claimed capital loss from a transaction involving the acquisition of distressed debt via a partnership because the partnership was a “sham” that should be disregarded for federal tax purposes.  The taxpayer's petition for rehearing, along with two amicus briefs, raised the specter that the Fifth Circuit's opinion would require taxpayers to have a non-tax ...

As reported earlier this week in the tax press, the recently completed initial filing season for Schedule UTP produced at least one major surprise in the eyes of IRS officials, who had anticipated a much greater number of items listed on the average Schedule UTP than actually materialized.  In fact, the IRS’s predictions were off by a wide margin, with the number of disclosed positions of the 1,500 or so Schedule UTPs filed averaging only slightly more than three items per schedule for CIC taxpayers, and less than two items for non-CIC taxpayers.  Pre-filing expectations of item ...

Peter Pappas at the Tax Lawyer's Blog takes note of a recent report from TIGTA regarding audits of small corporations (those with less than $10 million in assets, according to the IRS).  As Mr. Pappas says, language from the report suggests that Treasury may consider the closely held nature of many small businesses to be an indicator of a propensity to structure transactions to avoid taxes.

Many corporations in the United States are considered closely held because they are owned by one shareholder or a closely knit group of shareholders. As such, these shareholders typically have a ...

Over the weekend, a variety of Canadian news sources (see, e.g., the Financial Post and the Edmonton Journal) reported on anticipated guidance from the IRS, which would result in the waiver of penalties on certain U.S. citizens living in Canada for past failures to file Form TD F 90-22.1, commonly known as the "FBAR."  According to the news reports, the IRS will waive failure-to-file penalties for such individuals who file delinquent tax returns and FBARS so long as the individual owes no taxes.  In addition, taxpayers who were unaware of the FBAR filing requirement will be able to file ...

As discussed in a story in this morning's Tax Notes, the IRS intends to begin requesting electronic files as part of  taxpayer examinations so that it can analyze the "metadata" contained in those files.  Metadata, sometimes referred to as "data about data," generally shows information about a computer file, such as its editing history.  The IRS claims that such information "may be relevant" to taxpayer examinations because the information "may support or undermine the credibility of the records offered to substantiate the accuracy of the [taxpayer's] return."  See Chief Counsel ...

For taxpayers who entered the IRS’s second Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Initiative (“OVDI”) prior to August 31, 2011, November 29th marked the end of the extended deadline that some taxpayers requested for submitting all of the materials included in the disclosure (e.g., amended returns, FBARs).  Coincidentally with the timing of this deadline, many individuals who only recently learned of their reporting obligations (or, in some cases, of the existence of their accounts in the first place) are asking themselves what they can do now, having missed the opportunity to ...

Our in-house and private-practice corporate readers will likely enjoy one of the Tax Foundation's newest reports: Rethinking U.S. Taxation of Overseas Operations. As the abstract describes:

The United States produces a third of the world's wealth but contains less than 5 percent of the world's population. This disparity pushes many U.S. businesses and entrepreneurs to embrace globalization to improve productiv­ity and expand market reach. Large and small businesses alike are increasingly using the tools of faster information, cheaper transporta­tion, and overseas ...

According to the Financial Times, companies around the world are preparing for the possibility of a breakup of the euro.  Given the currency devaluation that would likely occur in countries coming out of the euro, these companies are preparing for the impact that such an event would have on balance sheets (e.g., asset prices) and income statements (e.g., import costs).   (For additional FT coverage of the issue, see here.)

As we noted in the TaxBlawg a while back when the euro crisis was still focused primarily on Greece, a partial or complete breakup of the eurozone would give rise to a host ...

When the IRS audits a tax return involving a business, its agents invariably get involved in questions of recordkeeping and how transactions are conducted and recorded.  All too often, an IRS Examiner will suggest that a taxpayer's records are not "adequate," or that in some fashion the taxpayer is not operating in "a businesslike manner."  This most often occurs in situations where the taxpayer is attempting to operate a ranch and has incurred losses, or claims that shareholder advances to the company should be recognized as bona fide loans rather than an investment of capital.

This ...