Tea Parties

As I hope everyone realizes, yesterday was tax day. It was also a day filled with civil demonstrations being called “tea parties” that took place all over the country. Some were larger than others, but the turn-out was greater than we expected it would be at Tax Masters. While we have been watching this grass roots movement from afar, we decided it was time to go ahead and comment on the situation. I want to clearly state that we don’t support or condemn this movement, but there are some things about some of the rhetoric being thrown around that concern us.

The Law is the Law

Civil demonstrations are incredibly important in a republic, especially when the press is able to cover such events and to make them known to a wider audience. The key concept in civil demonstration to us at Tax Masters is the first word in the phrase: civil.

Not only does “civil” imply courteous, but it also refers to following the rules established by law. In other words, while it is perfectly legal and in fact moral to demonstrate for or against something you believe, you must still follow all current laws in order to avoid being labeled a criminal. It is incredibly important that you not use the fervor and fanfare of these tea party demonstrations as an excuse to not pay income tax and to not file tax returns. While demonstration is a great method for delivering a message to those who have the power to change the law, it is not a method by which you should disobey existing law.

A Warning About Tax Protesters

There are many issues being cited as relevant at the tea party demonstrations, including misuse of tax dollars, deficit spending, irresponsible use of tax dollars to bail out unworthy entities, and increased federal control over certain state-run programs like unemployment. While we have no first-hand knowledge of tax protesters joining the ranks at the tea parties, we have no doubts that this contingent will attempt to influence this movement as much as they can.

Our advice to the tea parties is to keep the tax protesters at arm’s length. They can be very convincing if you don’t have all the facts and they are capable of quickly dismantling the genuine spirit with which the tea parties have demonstrated. For those who have not dealt with tax protesters in the past, the most common argument they use is that the Sixteenth Amendment was not properly ratified, or that the state of Ohio was not actually an official state at the time of ratification. This argument is simply not true and has been repeatedly challenged and upheld in United States courts of law. At a time when Stuart Varney of Fox News (www.foxnews.com) is reporting a twenty-five percent collections shortfall at the IRS so far for the 2008 tax year, being affiliated with tax protesters might not be a great move. Also be aware that these protesters advance their agenda based in large part on paranoia. This may or may not be something tea party organizers can control, but they need to be aware that the tax protest crowd has a past and a reputation.

Tax Representation for Those In Need of It

We suspect that most of the people at these tea parties are law abiding people who are a bit upset about how much they are paying in taxes and about how that money is being spent. However, we’ve been in this business long enough to know that people can make innocent mistakes that get them into trouble with the IRS very quickly. One such mistake we are seeing more of is people taking money out of their retirement accounts before they are of retirement age. This can lead to significant tax debt if the financial institution doesn’t withhold the tax and early withdrawal penalties. For those who are having problems paying their taxes, we can help at Tax Masters. We offer comprehensive tax representation services, from audit representation to settling outstanding tax debt, to suspending levies, liens, and wage garnishment. If you are having trouble with the IRS, contact us today. We can help you solve your tax problem.

A Word to the Tax Protesters

Okay, here we go. I appreciate your frustration at paying taxes, but the law of the land demands that you file yearly tax returns and pay income tax to the United States government. Plainly stated, the IRS is a legal division of the United States Department of Treasury and has the constitutional duty to collect federal income tax from the citizens of the United States. The Sixteenth Amendment argument has survived all these years because proponents mistakenly believe that the courts have refused to address the issue.

Per information put out by the IRS itself (www.irs.gov), the courts have consistently upheld the constitutionality of the federal income tax. Just three years after the Sixteenth Amendment was ratified in 1913 by forty states (including Ohio), the Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of the income tax laws that were based on the ratification of the Sixteenth Amendment in Brushaber v. Union Pacific R.R., 240 U.S. 1 (1916).

A surge of cases were brought in the 1980’s, all set on debunking the Sixteenth Amendment. In Knoblauch v. Commissioner, 749 F.2d 200, 201 (5th Cir. 1984) cert. denied, 474 U.S. 830 (1986), the court admonished the case as having no merit whatsoever and fined Knoblauch for bringing such a frivolous appeal before the court, stating that “Every court that has considered this argument has rejected it.”

In United States v. Stahl, 792 F.22d 1438, 1441 (9th Cir. 1986), cert. denied, 479 U.S. 1036 (1987), the court upheld Stahl’s conviction for not filing returns and for making a false statement. The court clearly declared that “the Secretary of State’s certification under authority of Congress that the Sixteenth Amendment has been ratified by the requisite number of states and has become part of the Constitution is conclusive upon the courts.”

In Miller v. United States, 868 F.2d 236, 241 (7th Cir. 1989) (per curiam), the court sanctioned the plaintiffs for having advanced a “patently frivolous” position. The court stated that “We find it hard to understand why the long and unbroken line of cases upholding the constitutionality of the Sixteenth Amendment… and those specifically rejecting the argument advanced in The Law That Never Was, have not persuaded Miller and his compatriots to seek a more effective forum for airing their attack on the federal income tax structure.”

The Tax Masters Conclusion

At Tax Masters, we believe it is our duty and privilege to pay our fair share of income tax to the government of the United States of America. Our role as a tax representative and tax resolution firm is based solely on our ability to help taxpayers regain compliance, settle outstanding tax debt, avoid unnecessary interest and penalties, and get back in the good graces of the IRS.

We stand ready to assist any US taxpayer who is in need of our services. To the tea party demonstrators and organizers, we stand behind your right to demonstrate, but we strongly encourage you not to use this movement as an excuse to avoid filing and paying your federal income tax. Running afoul of the IRS at a time of shortfall is tantamount to running headfirst into a brick wall. You’ll probably survive, but it sure is going to hurt.

Until you need us,

Patrick Cox Tax Masters

One of the tax consultants that works for us here at Tax Masters shared some particularly sad news with me this week. He had been working with a potential client to customize a solution that would eventually free the potential client from some significant IRS tax problems.

Unfortunately before we could get the process started to help this individual, we learned from family members that he had taken his own life. The family cited the man’s IRS tax problem as a key contributing factor in the suicide.

First, we want to offer our condolences to the family. Losing a loved one is always difficult. But to lose a loved one because of IRS problems or financial problems must be incredibly difficult. We wish you peace and healing in this time of loss.

Next, I want to express to everyone reading this that no matter how bad your IRS problems seem, they are never bad enough to cause you to take your own life. Particularly as tax day approaches, many people are feeling the stress and anxiety of having to deal with the IRS. Don’t let mistakes from your past get the better of you. No matter how you wound up with the tax problems you have–whether you failed to file a return, made honest mistakes about deductions, or even if you outright lied to the IRS or are being prosecuted for tax evasion–there’s always a way out. While that way out may not be exactly the outcome you wanted, we all know that life is not perfect. Mistakes happen. Don’t let tax debt turn into something more than it is. At the end of the day, it’s just debt.

If you are having tax trouble, seek representation. We would prefer that you call us, but even if you don’t, call someone and get the help you need before it gets to be too overwhelming. Whatever mistakes have led to your tax problems, they can be overcome with the right help. As a good friend said to me recently, it is always easier to regret a poor decision than to make the right decision in the moment. Doing the right thing is seldom easy and is often the most difficult path. But there are people who can help.

When you get to the point where you can’t see a way out and you feel like you have no one you can talk to, there’s a number I want you to call. If you are considering taking your own life, please make a call first to the National Suicide Hotline at 1-800-784-2433. They are always on and always ready to talk and to listen. If you are a person of faith, I would encourage you to call or visit a spiritual leader in your community just to talk about the things going on in your life. Sometimes talking things through helps you see the best way through a crisis.

If you want to talk specifically about your tax issues, we are here. You can reach any of the departments at Tax Masters listed below:

Tax Consultations: 888.497.5937 | Billing and Finance: 877.668.8082 | Operations: 800.682.3679

In particular, if the IRS is harassing you unlawfully, we can generally get them to curb their behavior. And if we can’t do it on our own, we know how to deal with the National Taxpayer Advocate’s Office, or your Congressman,  to get them to rein in unlawful and outlandish collections behaviors of agents at the IRS.

I would just like to close this email with a final simple statement.

You have been given a life to use as you wish. It is yours and no one else’s. You can do what you want. But before you take drastic action, please consider the effects your actions will have on those you love and on those who love you.

Patrick Cox

Why Not Represent Yourself with the IRS?

I had a conversation this week with a bright enough fellow. He had gotten behind with bills and taken his 401(k) out to live on. Before he knew it, he was hit with the early withdrawal penalty and was soon in serious trouble with the IRS, owing tens of thousands without a way to pay it. He basically called to get as much information as he could out of us in hopes of taking what little information he could glean from our conversation so he could represent himself with the IRS. I strongly encouraged the gentleman not to take that course of action, but at the end of the day, sent him on his way with our best wishes and the reassurance that we would be here to help pick him up even after he made all the mistakes he was sure to make with the IRS. For the record, the worse off your problem, the harder it is to fix, the more it costs to fix, and the longer it takes. So the sooner you address your issues in the right way, the better off you’ll be.

From the Horse’s Mouth

I commented in January about Nina Olson’s report from the National Taxpayer Advocate’s office regarding her take on just how well the IRS did in 2008. One of the things she discussed at length is the fact that the tax code has become so complicated and convoluted that an entire industry is currently being supported by taxpayers who are simply trying to comply with existing tax laws.

It comes as no surprise that she goes on to discuss the fact that taxpayers with serious tax issues tend to benefit from IRS tax representation. Based on the statistics given by Ms Olson, we were able to draw the natural conclusion she could not explicitly state because of political reasons: Taxpayers are achieving more favorable results if they engage a qualified IRS tax representative.

Dangers of Engaging the IRS on Your Own

I’m going to remove my TaxMasters-hued glasses for a moment and simply record some things you might expect from the IRS if you are one of the self sufficient few who insists on doing this yourself. Before I continue, let me emphatically state that I do not recommend that you engage the IRS by yourself unless you are an enrolled agent, CPA, tax attorney, or another type of tax professional accustomed to dealing with the IRS routinely. With that caveat out of the way, here’s what the IRS has been reported to do when engaging in audits and aggressive collections activities. The IRS can:

• Assume the worst about you–that you are a tax cheat, that you are lying, that you are intentionally and criminally defrauding the US Treasury of funds
• demand that you pay immediately all the money you owe
• When you inform them you can’t pay the full amount they say you owe, set up payment plans you might not be able to afford because the IRS doesn’t ask you about all your expenses and you don’t know which expenses qualify, which don’t qualify, and how to present your bills to benefit your case
• File returns for you when you fail to file, excluding any non-standard deductions to which you are entitled, and then send you a bill to pay the full amount immediately along with all penalties and interest
• Ask you questions in an audit specifically designed to catch you off-guard to uncover additional information the IRS can use against you to collect even more revenue
• Ask your family, friends, neighbors, coworkers, clients, business associates, and employers leading questions about your financial situation, your purchases, your habits, and even your criminal history (whether you have one or not) in an attempt to get as much information against you as possible; and if they refuse to cooperate, there is always the fear of the IRS looking more closely into their affairs
• Take your money and assets regardless of how much you need to make payroll or to pay the bills necessary to keep your household or business solvent

The TaxMasters Benefit

We have made a living at TaxMasters by knowing what to expect from the IRS and by using their own rules, tendencies, and habits to protect our clients. For the do-it-yourself tax negotiators, I have a vital point to make. If you are facing an IRS problem, regardless of how you arrived at that problem, you are different from TaxMasters in one very important aspect. While you are facing uncertainty and fear about facing the IRS head on, we don’t have that fear at TaxMasters. We don’t fear negotiating with the IRS because we know their rules and we study their tactics and tendencies. We don’t get caught off guard or surprised by the IRS tactics that tend to strike fear into taxpayers.  We are successful at negotiating with the IRS because we do it every day and understand what constitutes a real threat and what IRS actions amount to nothing more than a toothless bark. It’s far easier to stop a punch if you know exactly when and how it will be thrown.

It’s Your Call

So think about it, yes? Those of you feverishly working through the latest do-it-yourself book or tax prep for dummies paperback, take a minute to think this through. Even if you are up to all the technical aspects of negotiating with the IRS, do you know when your negotiation tactic can be considered criminal? Do you know what questions the auditor can ask in an audit and how to redirect the auditor if they step out of line? Are you ready to use the law not only to represent yourself, but to hold the IRS agent pounding on your door accountable?

But even more important than any of these things… If you are afraid of the IRS, they will exploit that fear and are likely to take from you far more than you, or we, think is fair.

Until you need us,

Patrick Cox TaxMasters

Tony Rivera Wins Debut in SPEED World Challenge GT

It was an exciting weekend for us at Tax Masters. Alex Clamon, our Vice President of Sales, was on hand at Sebring International Raceway to watch Tony Rivera in the #97 TaxMasters Porsche 911 GT3 pass Eric Curran, driving a Chevrolet Corvette, to take the lead and go on to win the first SPEED World Challenge GT race of the season by 2.049 seconds. The victory by Tony is the first for a driver making his World Challenge GT debut since Wolf Hinzler won at Infineon Raceway in 2004.

While we had high hopes for Tony on the season, a win in his debut race was more than any of us expected. Tony, Jeff Stone at Kelly Moss Motorsports, and all the crew at Brass Monkey Racing did an outstanding job working together to achieve victory. This is the kind of synergy we encourage and nurture at Tax Masters, where the team members work together to create better overall solutions than the simple sum of each individual’s contribution. In the world of tax representation and IRS tax relief, we are accustomed to achieving success because we work together to find solutions that surpass a client’s expectation. My hat’s off to Tony, Jeff, and the guys at Brass Monkey for their outstanding victory at Sebring last Friday.

A Win for Tony is a Win for USA Archery

As we pledged before the SPEED World Challenge GT kicked off this year, we are contributing another $5,000 to USA Archery each time the TaxMasters Porsche finishes in the top three at a World Challenge event. This pledge is in addition to the initial donation we made early this year for use in developing Olympic archer hopefuls.

Everyone at Tax Masters is thrilled that we had the opportunity to donate the additional $5,000 to USA Archery.  We have seen our 2009 contributions pay big dividends already in the results Coach Kisik Lee has achieved in competitions in Poland and Mexico.  The Tax Masters pledge to donate $5,000 to USA Archery every time the #97 TaxMasters Porsche finishes in the top three at a World Challenge event is our way of drawing attention to the tremendously successful program Coach Lee is running to develop Olympic hopefuls.  Just like Tony Rivera and the Brass Monkey Racing team, these young men and women have seen great success, and we are proud to support them on their way to Olympic Gold.  We’re pleased to be a part of that success and excited about the possibility of adding an additional $5,000 every time Tony reaches the podium.

I’ll post updates after each World Challenge GT event here on the blog. The next race in the series takes place in Long Beach, CA on Sunday, April 19 right ater the Indy car race.

If you’re interested in watching the races on television, check out the TV schedule at SPEED.

Until you need us,

Patrick Cox Tax Masters

Tax Masters this Week

As a highly successful tax representation firm offering IRS tax relief to taxpayers across the United States (with some clients outside our borders) we are watching the events of government buy-outs and bonus-blame unfold with particular interest. Like most people, we are uncertain exactly what all the implications of current policy will be. However, what we see in the near term is an increase in IRS activity. Our advice is unwavering. If you have been contacted by the IRS, you have a tax problem. Call us and talk about your options sooner rather than later. We’ll continue to comment here on policy and government programs from the tax representation perspective, as we have done with Madoff, Geithner, and other relevant people and policies, so check back often.

On the lighter side, Tax Masters has made it into the news a couple times over the past week or so. We’re excited to be in a position to contribute funding to help prepare USA Archery Olympic hopefuls in their bid to make the 2012 Olympic Archery team. We have also reached an agreement with Brass Monkey Racing to sponsor a Speed GT Porsche in this year’s SPEED World Challenge. And in typical Tax Masters fashion, we even found a way to link the two sponsorships.

Tax Masters Sponsors Olympic Hopefuls

USA Archery (http://www.usarchery.org) reported last week that we agreed to a one year sponsorship of the Resident Athlete and Jr. Dream Team programs at the Arco Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista, CA.  The Tax Masters sponsorship provides a large base contribution with a $5,000 bonus to be paid every time the Tax Masters / Brass Monkey Racing Porsche #97 finishes in the top three during the 2009 SPEED World Challenge GT race series. 

Sponsorship of Brass Monkey Racing

Brass Monkey Racing announced this week that Tax Masters will be their primary sponsor for the 2009 SPEED World Challenge GT racing series. Brass Monkey Racing will run the full 2009 season with Tony Rivera driving the #97 TaxMasters Porsche.  

AJ Brass, owner of Brass Monkey Racing, enlisted Jeff Stone of Kelly Moss Motorsports, absent from the SPEED World Challenge for 15 years, to form this new team effort and build the TaxMasters Speed GT Porsches for the season. If Stone sees success like he did 15 years ago in the 1994 World Challenge season, we will have many victories to report.

Success Builds on Success

Though interested in racing from afar, this year marks the first time Tax Masters has been directly involved with a racing team. If we were going to commit to a sponsorship, we wanted to make it worthwhile and exciting. When the USA Archery opportunity happened, we saw that the two contributions meshed nicely.

Tax Masters has already contributed over $25,000 to developing Olympic hopefuls for USA Archery. We have committed an additional $5,000 each time the TaxMasters #97 Porsche finishes in the top three at a SPEED World Challenge event. With 10 races on the season, that’s a potential $50,000 more dollars to go to Olympic hopefuls. If Rivera takes the podium in all ten races, that means Tax Masters will have donated a total of $75,000 this year for USA Archery to use to develop their hopefuls.

The fact that Rivera took the podium 13 of 14 times last year in the IMSA Challenge Gold Cup has everyone excited about this SPEED World Challenge season. We’re certainly rooting for wins at Tax Masters, and now USA Archery is behind him as well. We are especially proud to include the USA Archery logo on the car for the season.

The first race takes place this weekend at storied Sebring International Raceway. I hope to have good news for you about the results next week.

Until you need us,

Patrick Cox Tax Masters

Internet Complaints

You can find Internet complaints against Tax Masters on several sites out there. We have even seen claims that we are perpetrating a conspiratorial Tax Masters scam, defrauding people out of their hard-earned money and even helping people cheat on their taxes. There’s no two ways about it, we are incredibly successful at what we do and that puts a rather large target on our back. While we do charge for the services we are hired to perform, let me categorically state that Tax Masters is not a scam. We are not a fraud. We do not cheat people. We never help anyone cheat the IRS. If you know what you are doing, it is not necessary to lie or cheat. We know how to solve tax problems without having to resort to fraud, scam, or cheating anyone.

Client Service is Our Focus 

At Tax Masters, we are dedicated to providing quality, consistent tax representation services designed to bring clients back into compliance with the IRS, fight the IRS audit or appeal audit findings, assure that you are treated fairly, and, when appropriate, to allow us to negotiate with the IRS the best possible payment options for those we represent.

Tax Masters Client Satisfaction–97% Approval Rating

It might surprise you to know that Tax Masters has a 97% customer satisfaction rating. That means 97 out of every 100 clients we work for are happy with our services. If you work at Tax Masters, you are not surprised by this statistic. But if all you see of this company is what is written about us on complaints boards and ripoff reports, then I can see how this information might not jive with your perception of who we are. While even three unsatisfied clients out of 100 are too many, we are proud of our 97% satisfaction level.

Quality Assurance–A Dedicated Team

At Tax Masters, we have a Quality Assurance team dedicated to make sure we treat our clients fairly and provide quality, consistent services. This team works with and monitors our tax consultants and tax professionals to ensure that clients are properly qualified and that all services purchased are completed efficiently and in a timely manner.

If You Have a Complaint, We Want to Help

Our goal is 100% client satisfaction. If you are an existing client and you have a legitimate Tax Masters complaint, please contact  your Case Coordinator. If this does not resolve the problem, please ask to speak with a representative of our Quality Assurance team. They are in place to be sure we help our customers properly. As a matter of fact, we encourage you to contact us with concerns and  complaints because we use them to stay sharp and to improve our services as we grow.

Why We Don’t Respond To Anonymous Internet Complaints

We do not respond to anonymous Internet posts at Tax Masters. This is for several reasons. One is that we are bound by federal privacy laws as an IRS tax representative and we are bound by our even higher standard of confidentiality of client records.  We hold this trust sacred.  By law, we are not allowed to discuss any particulars of a client’s case with anyone except the client unless the client gives us permission. In other words, since all we are comfortable doing is making general statements, no rebuttal we supply will be worth much to the complainer or the reader. Another reason we don’t respond to Internet posts is that we’ve discovered that many of the posters are in fact competitors planting false and erroneous information and are not in fact clients at all. Yet another reason we don’t respond is that any response we provide lends weight to the post, accurate or not, and serves as chum for the inevitable feeding frenzy to follow.

If you choose to post on the Internet, that is your decision. However, posting out there instead of contacting us directly doesn’t get you any assistance with your complaint, and more importantly, it doesn’t help you out of the tax trouble you are in. I know it is easier at times to lash out than to confront your tax problems head on, but this sort of activity does not help your situation.

A Final Word on Tax Masters Complaints

I founded this company because I saw a need for our services. I like the service industry because we get to help people out of tough situations. Our clients come from all walks of life, from doctors and lawyers to mechanics, truck drivers, soldiers, school teachers, and retired persons. We have served politicians, medical professionals, school board presidents, oil executives, mail carriers, and preachers. Tax troubles don’t follow one particular segment of the population. The IRS can go after anyone.

In Tax Masters, I created a company that provides equal protection and representation to every one of our clients. If we fail you, we go out of business. I don’t want to be out of business. Quite the opposite, even in this time of economic strain, we are still serving new people everyday. The reason is because we do what we say we will and we win favorable resolutions for our clients with the IRS. If you have tax problems, you need our help. Don’t let fear control you. Contact us and let us help you through this. Tax representation is what we do for a living, all day everyday. Let us share this burden with you. We know the way to the other side and we can guide you. 

Until you need us,

Patrick Cox Tax Masters 

Tax Masters Patrick Cox–When Tax Representation Needs to be a High Priority

I received an email today from a friend that had a story I’d heard before. It’s been used by Stephen R. Covey and many others to demonstrate a point about priorities. It goes like this, you fill up your bucket with the big rocks first (highest priorities) and then add the pebbles (second-level priorities), then the sand (lower priorities), then the water. The point is to handle your largest priorities first and let the others fill in the gaps. To go at life the other way around is to let the most important things slide off the list, leaving them undone. While we often think of this in terms of our family, health, spirituality, and personal well-being, sometimes our finances force us to shuffle our priorities. Particularly in today’s climate where every other word out of the politicians is “crises” and where scams and fraud alerts are on the rise, you may very well be in a position that forces you to elevate your finances and your ability to pay your taxes to a higher priority. So when does your tax problem become something you can no longer ignore?

Could the IRS Think You are a Scammer, a Schemer, an Evader, or are Guilty of Tax Fraud?

There’s an argument to be made that if you were putting all the large rocks in the bucket first, you would not wind up in tax trouble to begin with. While there is a degree of truth to this, it serves as nothing more than a finger wagging I-told-you-so if you are facing back taxes. As the founder of Tax Masters, I’m not here to point fingers at anyone. If you are someone in this situation, let’s start afresh. Regardless of how you wound up with delinquent taxes and IRS tax debt, the IRS tends to assume the worst about you. They can classify three or more unfiled tax returns as tax evasion. They can allege that serious mistakes or intentional ommissions on a return are in fact tax fraud. As we’ve seen in recent headlines, tax scams and schemes to perpetuate fraud and even identity theft are on the rise. Even the current Secretary of the Treasury was caught misreporting his taxes and having to pay a hefty amount of penalties and interest to the division of the government he now runs. If some of this feels a bit upside down and chaotic, you’re not alone.

The Longer You Wait, The Worse the Problem Gets

If the IRS has contacted you in any way whatsoever claiming that you owe them more money than you have paid, you have a tax problem. And as much as I want to tell you otherwise, the IRS will stay after you until they get the money they think you owe, making problems for you that don’t go away on their own and that will seriously affect your ability to focus on what should be your highest priorities. If you have been contacted by the IRS, don’t wait until you are facing imminent aggressive collections actions like a tax lien, IRS levy, wage garnishment, or Social Security garnishment to address the issue. If you have been notified that you are being audited or that the IRS has not received even a single past-due tax return, it is time for you to make tax representation a big-rock priority. And if you have received notice of intent to levy or intent to place a lien, you are in an extremely precarious position and you need to hire tax representation immediately.

At Tax Masters Complaints about the IRS are Not New

As always, Tax Masters is here to help. You can spend the next several months aggravated, angry, fearful, and complaining every step of the way about what the IRS is doing to you. But you could also call us today and let us get between you and the IRS. Tens of thousands of people with tax problems have engaged us and been completely satisfied with the services provided by Tax Masters. Complaints about the IRS and IRS tactics are many. We see agents do unconscionable things to try and strong arm taxpayers into payment arrangements they can’t afford. If you have IRS tax debt, call us. The sooner you get us involved as your IRS tax representative, the better shot you have at saving money and regaining full compliance quickly and with as little distraction to you as possible.

Don’t Evade, Scam, or Scheme–Seek Representation Instead

If you are a tax evader, scamming and scheming to avoid paying the IRS at all costs, or if you are one of the unlucky few who are attempting to challenge the constitutionality of the IRS, you are heading into serious trouble. We strongly encourage you to turn from either of those paths and call us. While we do not condone tax evasion and will not represent tax cheats, scam artists, or fraudulent filers, we can help you if you are genuinely seeking to return to compliance with the IRS. We have heard probably every complaint there is about the IRS. Yours will likely not be new to us. And the good news is, you don’t have to lose sleep over this any more. Make tax representation a big-rock priority and call us. We’re here to help.

Until you need us,

Patrick Cox Tax Masters

Tax Masters Patrick Cox Fighting the Back Tax Trap

Another case just came across my desk that made me want to revisit what I’ve coined the back tax trap, discussed previously in the post titled Avoiding Unfiled Tax Returns - Patrick Cox Tax Masters and in Unfiled Taxes and Back Taxes - The Back Tax Trap.

Unable to Pay Back Taxes

Every year, we see an increasing number of taxpayers falling into this category. They typically arrive at the back tax trap by one of two routes. The first involves carrying tax liability past the time it’s due. If the taxpayer still doesn’t have the tax paid in full when they need to file taxes for the following year, they are discouraged and less likely to file on time. Particularly if tax debt increases over several years running, the taxpayer, out of frustration and despair, simply stops filing tax returns. The tax debt quickly builds and spirals out of control. This is not a good place to be and is the situation many retirees and fixed-income taxpayers find themselves in.

One, Two, Three Unfiled Returns

The second route typical of people who wind up in the back tax trap involves people who don’t have tax debt or tax problems, but for whatever reason fail to file a tax return for a given tax year. This happens for all kinds of reasons, from plain forgetting to file to not being able to file due to military service or a number of other situations. If the IRS doesn’t contact the taxpayer or file an SFR (substitute for return) in that first year, the taxpayer can be lolled into a sense of apathy, thinking perhaps that the IRS isn’t paying close attention. So they miss the second year, then the third. This can go on for a number of years, but when the IRS finally decides to act, the ramifications of the taxpayer’s non-compliance can be overwhelming. This tends to be the situation that plagues younger taxpayers.

When Unfiled Tax Returns Become Tax Evasion

Regardless of how a taxpayer winds up in the back tax trap, the weight of mounting IRS debt soon grows from a molehill into an unmovable mountain. Penalties and interest are the enemy of everyone with a tax debt. And continuing to allow tax years to go by without filing compounds and complicates the problem, making the taxpayer look like a tax evader to the IRS.

At Tax Masters, we take the time to understand your specific situation from your perspective and then recommend a course of action to solve your tax problem. We then contact the IRS on your behalf to make sure there is nothing in your file that you don’t know about or that might have been overlooked. At this point, we share with you exactly what the IRS thinks you owe and what collection actions are pending. Often our clients are in a bit more trouble than they realize. This review process with the IRS lets us redirect tactics and adjust the strategy for combating your specific tax problems.

File Every Year

The worst thing you can do as a taxpayer is to not file your tax return every year, regardless of what you owe and of how much the return might increase your tax debt. The IRS won’t even consider negotiating with you until all unfiled tax returns have been filed. And if the IRS has filed SFRs for you, there is still a possibility that you can reduce the amount you owe by letting us help you file a replacement return that takes advantage of all available deductions.

Call Tax Masters to Climb Out of the Back Tax Trap

If you are in the back tax trap, call us today. Depending on the severity of your situation and tax debt, every day that goes by without acting increases what you owe. If you are one of the taxpayers struggling with the fact that you still owe from 2007, make sure you file your 2008 tax return, regardless of whether you can pay the tax liability when you file.

Being in the back tax trap can be absolutely deflating. If you’re in this situation, we can help and the relief can start today. All you have to do is call us and tell us about your situation. You can reach our tax consultants at (866) 694-4018. We’ll tell you what we can do to correct the problem, discuss the options available to you, and talk about what it will cost to get the IRS to take the bulls eye off your back.

Until you need us,

Patrick Cox Tax Masters

IRS Tax Problems Can Strike Anyone

I deliberately tried to refrain from commenting on this topic, but I can’t ignore it any longer. First there was Timothy Geithner. Yeah, okay. Mistakes happen. I’ve seen just about everything from my perspective here at Tax Masters, so I’m seldom surprised by how people get into trouble with the IRS. However, I must admit even I have never seen someone go from having a tax problem to running the United States Treasury Department in the span of just a few months. Ironic to say the least.

After Geithner came Tom Daschle. Odd, but understandable given the situation he was in. Then came Nancy Killefer. That’s three high-level nominees of the current administration with tax problems of one sort or another in as many weeks. The way things have played out, I imagine Geithner is breathing a sigh of relief that he came forward first in this fiasco. As we now know, the other two, Daschle and Killefer, have since bowed out of the game.

With nominees to the highest levels of government admitting to having tax problems, our hope at Tax Masters is that more of you will realize your situation, understand that you are not alone and that you have done nothing to be ashamed of,  and act to get yourself out of the tax trouble you are in. Tax representation can be your ticket out of this mess.

When to Hire Tax Representation

As soon as Geithner knew he had no choice but to address his tax problem, he wrote a check for the tax liability and all penalties and interest. The same is true of Tom Daschle, who wrote a check to cover the $146,000 he owed in back taxes. I even noticed that Dick Morris, who recently paid nearly $2M in back taxes, was commenting on the situation in a pedantic, finger-pointing manner.

The message is simple. No one is immune from running afoul of the IRS. Not in Washington DC, or Houston, Texas, or anywhere else in the country. And if you have a tax problem, the quickest way to end the problem is to take out your checkbook and fill it out to cover the full amount of your back taxes, interest, penalties, and anything else the IRS says you owe. However, if you’re not in a position to cut a check for thousands of dollars to the IRS, it’s time to call in some support from Tax Masters, the premier tax resolution firm in the nation.

Tax Masters Reviews Your Case, Offers IRS Tax Relief

Regardless of how you wound up with a tax problem, the tax consultants at Tax Masters will review your situation and find the best way to get you some real IRS tax relief. There are multiple programs we can use to help you regain compliance, negotiate down your tax debt, and work out a payment plan you can live with. We are professional tax representatives, meaning we do this all day every day. If you find yourself in tax trouble or unable to pay your back taxes, call us. We can help you solve your tax problem and we can start today. We promise we won’t ask you to step down from your current political position or remove yourself from any nominations. You can get your life back. But first you have to call.

Until you need us,

Patrick Cox, Tax Masters

Avoid Need for Tax Representation and IRS Tax Relief

I spend so much of my time concerned about those of you already in need of tax representation and IRS tax relief that I don’t discuss ways to stay out of IRS trouble as much as I probably should. As much as I want your business if you have a tax problem, I started Tax Masters to help people stay on the right side of the IRS. To that end, I thought I’d let you know some of the surest ways to stay in compliance with the IRS.

Tax season always gives us a boost in attention. We get more Internet hits, more calls, and more contacts from January through late March. Most of those people are not actually in need of IRS tax relief, but are contacting us for tax preparation. While we don’t offer current year tax preparation for non-clients, we do have a little-known program for preparing current returns for previous clients. It should come as no surprise to learn that we have quite a few former clients who continue to come to us each year for tax preparation after we helped them resolve their tax problems. As with any business, having clients come back time after time speaks to our level of success and professionalism. And this program also keeps them out of any future trouble they might otherwise encounter with the IRS.

The Secret to Avoiding IRS Problems

The secret to avoiding IRS problems is really no secret at all. Step 1, keep good records, receipts, mileage logs, and track your deductible expenses carefully. Step 2, file your tax returns every year. Step 3, pay what you owe on time every time. That’s it.

Of the three steps listed above, step 2 is the most critical. The National Taxpayer Advocate commented recently in the annual report for 2008 that there were more than 500 changes in the tax code in 2008 and that the code has now grown to over 3.7 million words in length. Reading 10,000 words per day, it would take you over a year to read the United States tax code. It’s no wonder that people who hire quality tax professionals come out better in the long run than those who prepare taxes themselves. If you read my post on the odds of winning a tax case if you hire a qualified tax representative from a couple weeks back, you’ll see a pattern emerging in the National Taxpayer Advocate’s observations.

By and large, taxpayers who have representation or help in preparing their returns are more likely to stay out of trouble with the IRS and develop fewer tax problems.

Complication Keeps Audits Simple for IRS

As long as the tax code is as complex as it is, the IRS has a good chance of finding something wrong in self-prepared tax returns. More than any other factor, taxpayers who prepare their own returns (including those who use online or consumer-targeted tax prep software solutions) run a greater risk of being audited or having their taxes adjusted by the IRS. While complicating the tax code is probably not an intentional ploy to ensnare more taxpayers and charge them more money, that’s in effect what the complication causes. Self-prepared returns make auditing easy for the IRS. By their own admission, the IRS studies more closely every self-prepared return. So why not spend the little bit of extra money it takes now to avoid future problems?

Tax Masters, Patrick Cox: Offering Tax Representation and IRS Tax Relief

As ever at Tax Masters, we offer sound tax representation. While we don’t accept clients who need only the current year’s tax return completed, we do happily help current and former clients with current year tax returns. And we strongly encourage you to seek the assistance of a good tax advisor on your 2008 taxes. If you already have back taxes or are being targeted for an IRS audit, go ahead and take advantage of our free consultation today. We can help you reach a favorable settlement with the IRS that both you and they can live with.

Until you need us,

Patrick Cox, Tax Masters