Inside This Issue
- Virtual information session on BOI reporting requirements April 30
- Tax Pros: Register now for the 2024 IRS Nationwide Tax Forum
- IRS Appeals forms new office
- Final guidance on transfers of certain credits under IRA
- IRS accepting 2025 Low Income Taxpayer Clinic grant applications
- National Small Business Week begins April 28
- Direct File pilot officially closes after more than 140,000 taxpayers successfully use system in 12 states
- Upcoming webinars for tax practitioners
- News from the Justice Department’s Tax Division
1. Virtual information session on BOI reporting requirements April 30
A new law requires many companies doing business in the United States to report information to the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) about who ultimately owns or controls them. Join FinCEN on April 30 at 2 p.m. ET for a virtual information session on beneficial ownership information reporting requirements and how to comply with the law. Learn more about beneficial ownership information reporting at https://www.fincen.gov/boi.
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2. Tax Pros: Register now for the 2024 IRS Nationwide Tax Forum
The IRS encourages tax professionals to register now for the 2024 IRS Nationwide Tax Forum, coming this summer to Chicago, Orlando, Baltimore, Dallas and San Diego.
The Nationwide Tax Forum is the IRS’s largest annual outreach event designed and produced for the tax professional community. This year’s agenda will feature more than 40 sessions on tax law and ethics as well as hot topics like beneficial ownership information, cybersecurity, tax scams and schemes, digital assets and clean energy credits. Attendees at the forums will also learn how the IRS is evolving to meet their needs and those of their clients.
“This is a historic time at the IRS, with change taking place across the agency with our ongoing transformation work,” said IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel. “This summer you’ll have a chance to learn more about these changes. We encourage you to register soon. Some of these locations will fill up quickly.”
For more information, and to register online, visit IRS Nationwide Tax Forum.
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3. IRS Appeals forms new office
The IRS Independent Office of Appeals has created the Alternative Dispute Resolution Program Management Office (ADR PMO), which will collaborate with business operating divisions to help taxpayers resolve tax disputes earlier and more efficiently. ADR PMO will remove barriers to participating in Post-Appeals Mediation - a program that introduces a new mediator if the parties are unable to reach agreement during traditional Appeals settlement negotiations.
“This new office will revitalize existing programs and pilot new initiatives as part of IRS transformation efforts in alignment with the IRS Strategic Operating Plan,” IRS Commissioner Daniel Werfel said in a statement. “We’re committed to providing taxpayers who wish to resolve their issues without litigation a choice of early resolution options, and the Alternative Dispute Resolution Program Management Office will ensure taxpayers are aware of those options.”
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4. Final guidance on transfers of certain credits under IRA
The Department of Treasury and the IRS released final guidance detailing the transfer of clean energy tax credits, a provision that permits tax credit holders to sell their credits to interested parties. The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and the Creating Helpful Incentives to Produce Semiconductors Act (CHIPs) allows taxpayers to take advantage of certain manufacturing investment, clean energy investment and production tax credits through elective pay or transfer provisions. The final guidance provides defined guidelines, with detailed rules for partnerships and S corporations. Companies must obtain a pre-filing registration number to complete a tax credit transfer.
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5. IRS accepting 2025 Low Income Taxpayer Clinic grant applications
The IRS is accepting 2025 Low Income Taxpayer Clinic grant applications from all qualified organizations through June 12. The funding and the period of performance for the grant will be Jan. 1, 2025, to Dec. 31, 2025.
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6. National Small Business Week begins April 28
Tax pros: As part of National Small Business Week, April 28 to May 4, the IRS has a variety of resources available for small business owners to help them understand and meet their tax responsibilities.
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7. Direct File pilot officially closes after more than 140,000 taxpayers successfully use system in 12 states
The Internal Revenue Service announced the closure of the Direct File pilot with several hundred thousand taxpayers across 12 states signing up for Direct File accounts, and 140,803 taxpayers filing their federal tax returns using the new service.
By design, the Direct File Pilot started out small, and in mid-March the IRS incrementally ramped up availability of the option. During the final days and weeks of the filing season, there was steadily increasing interest from taxpayers in pilot states using the new tool. By the final week of the filing season, Direct File processed more than 5,000 accepted returns each day, bringing the total number of returns filed to more than 140,000.
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8. Upcoming webinars for tax practitioners
The IRS offers the upcoming live webinars to the tax practitioner community. For more information or to register, visit the Webinars for Tax Practitioners webpage:
- Tax Implications of Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Filing for Individuals on May 1, at 1 p.m. ET. Earn up to 2 CE credits (Federal Tax). Certificates of completion are being offered.
- Tax Implications of Chapter 11 Bankruptcy Filing for Business Entities on May 15, at 1 p.m. ET. Earn up to 2 CE credits (Federal Tax). Certificates of completion are being offered.
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9. News from the Justice Department’s Tax Division
Vervia Watts, an Illinois tax preparation business owner, was sentenced to one year and one day in prison for preparing false tax returns. The complaint alleges, Watts prepared and filed over 900 fraudulent income tax returns from January 2017 through June 2023. In addition to the term of imprisonment, Watts is ordered to serve one year of supervised release and to pay approximately $1.3 million in restitution. IRS Criminal Investigation investigated the case.
The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida, filed a civil injunction suit to permanently bar Nia Daniel, a Florida tax preparation business owner. The complaint alleges that Daniel prepared over 2,000 federal income tax returns from 2020 through 2024. By repeatedly understanding her customers’ tax liabilities, the complaint alleges that the United States has been harmed by Daniel’s conduct resulting in the loss in tax revenue of more than $500,000 in 2023 alone.
