TAXLITIGATOR – Tax Controversy (Civil & Criminal) Report

AGOSTINO & ASSOCIATES –To download two great articles prepared by our very close friends at the Law Firm of Agostino & Associates in Hackensack, NJ ( http://www.agostinolaw.com ), see the Agostino & Associates Monthly Journal of Tax Controversy – http://files.constantcontact.com/f7d16a55201/c21d62be-4a0e-46dc-8d5e-efeebf699f6c.pdf?ver=1514328871000

PROTECTINGTHETAXPAYER FACINGPASSPORTREVOCATION by Frank Agostino, Esq. and Edward Mazlish, Esq. – Some taxpayers subject to passport revocation may have foreign assets. There may be agreements the taxpayer signed in connection with those foreign assets which require the taxpayer to provide his passport number for purposes of linking him to the foreign asset. If the passport is revoked, this may trigger obligations of disclosure for the taxpayer with regard to those foreign assets. The diligent tax professional should raise this issue with the taxpayer, and evaluate any foreign or domestic reporting requirements that might be triggered by a passport revocation that precludes the taxpayer from supplying a valid passport identification to the foreign custodian of the taxpayer’s assets. It may even be necessary to file amended tax returns, depending on the taxpayer’s circumstances.

If a taxpayer owes the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS” or “Service”) more than $50,000 ($51,000 after January 1, 2018) in unpaid tax liabilities (including interest and penalties) he may be subject to passport revocation. Specifically, Congress has given the IRS the ability to request that the State Department deny, revoke or limit the passports of certain delinquent taxpayers. This article explores this new tax collection device and suggests strategies for representing taxpayers facing passport revocation.

What Does the Payment of Taxes Have to Do with Issuance of Passports? What Tax Debts Could Result in the Loss of a Taxpayer’s Passport? What Should a Taxpayer Do to Avoid Passport Revocation? Does Filing for Bankruptcy Stop or Delay Passport Revocation? How Will the IRS Notify a Taxpayer That It is Requesting That the State Department Deny, Revoke, or Limit His or Her Passport? When, If Ever, Should a Taxpayer with a Seriously Delinquent Tax Debt Invoke the Right to Remain Silent? Where and How Does a Taxpayer Challenge the Certification that He or She Has a “Seriously Delinquent Tax Debt”?

FOR THE FULL ARTICLE –  http://files.constantcontact.com/f7d16a55201/c21d62be-4a0e-46dc-8d5e-efeebf699f6c.pdf?ver=1514328871000

FIFTH AMENDMENT PRIVILEGE IN TAX: HOW TO KEEP THE CASE MOVING WHILE PROTECTINGTHE TAXPAYER By Frank Agostino, Esq. and Valerie Vlasenko, Esq. – This column reviews how taxpayers and tax professionals should evaluate IRS information and document requests and when a taxpayer should decline to respond to IRS requests for testimony, documents, and other information. More specifically, this column addresses:

(1) The Fifth Amendment privilege in tax matters and its limitations;

(2) The obligations tax professionals have to their clients and the IRS;

(3) The consequences of invoking the privilege during examinations of offshore transactions; and

(4) The impact that asserting the privilege during an examination has on future proceedings before the U.S. Tax Court (“Tax Court”), U.S. District Courts (“District Courts”), and U.S. Court of Federal Claims, and during Collection Due Process (“CDP”) Cases.

FOR THE FULL ARTICLE – http://files.constantcontact.com/f7d16a55201/c21d62be-4a0e-46dc-8d5e-efeebf699f6c.pdf?ver=1514328871000

AGOSTINO & ASSOCIATES, an internationally recognized tax controversy law firm and the recipient of numerous professional awards and honors with a national practice based in Hackensack, NJ, specializes in tax and tax controversies (civil and criminal), offers in compromise, domestic and foreign voluntary disclosures, tax lien discharges, innocent spouse determinations, forfeitures, estate planning and probate, contract and contract litigation. A firm comprised truly great, caring people diligently representing their clients!

For further information, contact Frank Agostino, Esq., Edward Mazlish, Esq. or Valerie Vlasenko, Esq. directly at (201) 488-5400 or visit http://www.agostinolaw.com