Under federal law, the penalties for tax evasion include six-figure fines and up to five years of federal imprisonment. Other tax-related crimes carry even greater penalties. While it is possible to avoid criminal prosecution through the Internal Revenue Service’s (IRS) Voluntary Disclosure Practice, there are several critical factors you need to consider before admitting to the commission of a federal crime. Here, New Jersey IRS voluntary disclosure lawyer Kevin E. Thorn, Managing Partner of Thorn Law Group, provides an introduction to what you need to know.

While the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) extended Tax Day to July 15 and offered various other forms of relief to taxpayers in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the nation’s tax collector is still vigorously enforcing taxpayers’ legal obligations. One of its primary means for doing so is by conducting audits, and many New Jersey residents and businesses can expect to face audits of their 2020 income tax returns.

As 2020’s revised Tax Day approaches, New Jersey taxpayers who bought, sold or used cryptocurrency in 2019 are likely to find that complying with their income reporting and tax payment obligations presents a challenge. Even though the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has acknowledged that its guidance on cryptocurrency reporting has been less than clear, it has also clearly signaled its intent to target individual and corporate taxpayers that fail to accurately report and pay what they owe.

The IRS’s recently announced the formation of a new Fraud Enforcement Office housed within its Small Business/Self Employed Division. This new office will be specifically targeting tax fraud perpetrated by small businesses, and the Small Business/Self Employed Division’s Commissioner has stated that the Division will be enhancing its fraud enforcement efforts in 2020.

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has extended the federal income tax deadline for all taxpayers from April 15 to July 15. This applies to filings and payment, and it is an automatic extension so taxpayers do not have to file anything on April 15.