Taxes

Topline A report from the New York Times reveals a decade of Donald Trump’s unsuccessful business activities in China, including an undisclosed bank account that paid nearly $200,000 in taxes, undermining his own exaggerated claims of Hunter Biden’s business dealings there, as well as his rhetoric that his Democratic opponent, Joe Biden, is soft on

Economic Security Planning, Inc. Today’s column addresses questions about the effect of having collected a spousal benefit before filing retroactively for retirement benefits, potential effects of business losses on Social Security benefit rates and which full retirement age (FRA) applies to the earnings test. Larry Kotlikoff is a Professor of Economics at Boston University and

TOPSHOT – People dine in plastic tents for social distancing at a restaurant in Manhattan on October … [+] 15, 2020 in New York City, amid the coronavirus pandemic. (Photo by Angela Weiss / AFP) (Photo by ANGELA WEISS/AFP via Getty Images) AFP via Getty Images It’s been an especially rough year for the restaurant

Hi Fantasy Sports Owners! I know it can be tough to pull yourself away from the all-important decision of whether to start Dalton Schultz or Jace Sternberger at tight end this week, but if you’ll lend me a few minutes, I’ve got some tax news that might just interest you. MANCHESTER, NH – SEPTEMBER 13:

getty A Michigan man has pleaded guilty to conspiring to defraud the IRS and to stealing from an organization receiving federal funds. According to court documents, Mathew Schwartz owned a law firm called Legal Genius, P.L.L.C. (“Legal Genius”) in Southfield, Michigan. Another man, Jayson Rosett (also charged as a defendant) owned a company called Accident

Economic Security Planning, Inc. Today’s column addresses questions about a spouse taking retirement benefits on their own record before potentially taking survivor’s benefits, when to apply in order to begin receiving benefits in a certain month and when spousal benefits may be available. Larry Kotlikoff is a Professor of Economics at Boston University and the

Economic Security Planning, Inc. Today’s column addresses questions about what’s possible after suspending a retirement benefit, survivor pensions based on a spouse’s non-covered pension, responding to a notice of overpayment from Social Security and why spousal benefits may not have been available. Larry Kotlikoff is a Professor of Economics at Boston University and the founder

Stimulus spending sent both the FY 2020 deficit and the national debt to all time highs. Here are the numbers that show the breathtaking scope of the cost of the stimulus packages to date and the likely cost of the next round of stimulus. US Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin testifies during the Senate’s

WASHINGTON DC, OCTOBER 15: Albert Lauber, left, and Craig Hoffman pose in the front yard of thier … [+] Victorian Home off just off Logan Circle in Washington DC, October 15, 2014 (Photo by John McDonnell/The Washington Post via Getty Images) The Washington Post via Getty Images In a recent interview Judge Albert Lauber of

UNITED STATES – CIRCA 1931: Al Capone, pictured in court during his trial, Chicago, 1931. He was … [+] sentenced to a 10 years in federal prison and one year in county jail for a total sentence of 11 years. (Photo by Chicago Sun-Times/Chicago Daily News collection/Chicago History Museum/Getty Images) Getty Images On this day

On October 14, 2020, FinCEN, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network unit of the Treasury Department that handles millions of FBAR reports on foreign bank accounts, announced that you had until December 31, 2020 to file your 2019 FBAR. Extra time, what a relief! Then, late on October 15, the due date for extended IRS tax

Democrats are betting that they can get voters to go along with big tax increases as long as they ostensibly hit only “the rich” and businesses. In this episode of What’s Ahead, we look at three state referendums that will test this hypothesis. California’s Proposition 15 would remove caps on taxing commercial real estate above

The US Attorney General’s Cyber Digital Task Force recently issued a comprehensive report outlining the United States’ framework for enforcement against cryptocurrency-related crimes. This report explains emerging threats, enforcement challenges, and case studies. According to the task force report, tax evasion is one of the three major ways bad actors use cryptocurrency. This report adds

Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden speaks during a campaign event in Fort Lauderdale, … [+] Florida on October 13, 2020. (Photo by JIM WATSON / AFP) (Photo by JIM WATSON/AFP via Getty Images) AFP via Getty Images Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden’s current campaign plan would raise taxes by $2.4 trillion over the next decade,

getty Together with the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Criminal Investigations (CI) division announced what is being called the largest ever tax charge against an individual in the United States. Robert T. Brockman, a 79-year-old resident of Texas, and the chairman and CEO of The

On the latest episode of Willis Weighs In, Benjamin Willis, contributing editor for Tax Notes Federal, and Victor Fleischer, professor at University of California, Irvine School of Law and former Senate Finance Committee Democratic chief tax counsel, discuss possible post-election tax reform. Here are a few highlights . . . On changing the corporate tax rate Victor

In this photo illustration the Internal Revenue Service (IRS… SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images Regulators all over the world are struggling to come up with an effective tax policy for virtual currency transactions. Recently, the IRS was scrutinized by the government watchdog, The Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA), about this very issue. A

Economic Security Planning, Inc. Today’s column addresses questions about how retroactive filing affects benefit rates, when spousal benefits may be available and whether it’s possible or advisable to take a retirement benefit before a survivor’s benefit. Larry Kotlikoff is a Professor of Economics at Boston University and the founder and president of Economic Security Planning,

A torn piece of paper warning about the U.S. Debt rests on top of a U.S. one dollar bill. George … [+] Washington’s eyes are bulging as a result of a failing financial situation. getty Most people take for granted that the federal government will pay its debts in full and on time. After all, the Constitution

Both the news and the social media have been abuzz in the past couple of weeks with the report that President Donald Trump paid only $750 in federal income tax in 2016 in 2017. On the face of it, this seems totally absurd. After all, $750 is a fraction of what the average middle-income household pays