Stand Up to the IRS

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Cover Title Page Table of Contents Introduction 1: Inside the IRS: What You Need to Know About IRS Operations IRS Inefficiency Communicating With the IRS Rules of the Game—Tax Laws Interpreting the Tax Code Self-Assessment of Income Taxes Winning the IRS Game 2: Filing Tax Returns How Long Must You Worry About Not Filing a Tax Return? Consequences of Not Filing It’s Better to File Before the IRS Contacts You What Will Happen When You File Late Requesting an Extension to File Filing a Return When You Can’t Pay What You Owe Filing a Tax Return When You Live Out of the United States Reducing the Chance of an Audit When Filing Amending Tax Returns A Word About “Aggressive” Tax Filing 3: Winning Your Audit How Long Do I Have to Worry About an Audit? What to Expect at an Audit Do I Have to Learn Tax Law to Win My Audit? Audit Selection—Why Me, O Lord? When the IRS Increases Your Tax Bill Without an Audit Types of IRS Audits How a Field Auditor Approaches an Examination Preparing for an Audit Who Should Attend the Audit? How to Act at an Audit Finishing Audits Serious Audit Problems 4: Appealing Your Audit Within the IRS Pros and Cons of Appealing an Audit How to Appeal an Audit How the Independent Office of Appeals Works Preparing for an Appeals Hearing Dealing With the Appeals Officer Presenting a Case to an Appeals Officer Negotiating a Settlement Should You Hire a Tax Professional for Your Appeal? If You Don’t Settle on Appeal 5: Going to Tax Court: No Lawyer Necessary Tax Court Facts Small Tax Cases—People’s Court Regular Tax Court Cases—Over $50,000 Other Federal Courts—Paying First Is Required Bankruptcy Court 6: When You Owe the IRS: Keeping the Tax Collector at Bay When You Can’t Pay With Your Tax Return Getting Time to Pay After the Tax Bill Comes IRS Tax Billing Process IRS Automated Collection System Revenue Officers—Frontline Collectors of the IRS Offers in Compromise (OICs) Using the Bankruptcy Code to Stop the IRS Protecting Your Assets From the IRS Suspending Collection of Your Tax Bill Collection of Tax Debts by Private Debt Collectors 7: IRS Enforced Collection: Liens and Levies Federal Tax Liens Getting a Tax Lien Withdrawn Tax Levies = Seizure of Assets Dealing With the IRS Levy Process Assets the IRS Can’t or Won’t Seize Avoiding a Levy Getting a Tax Levy Released IRS Sales of Levied Assets 8: The Taxpayer Advocate: A Friend at the IRS Who Qualifies for Help From a Taxpayer Advocate? Contacting the Taxpayer Advocate Service Emergency Help: Taxpayer Assistance Orders 9: Family, Friends, Heirs, and the IRS It’s a Family Affair Owning Property Jointly Death and Taxes 10: Fraud and Tax Crimes: Do You Really Have to Worry? How People Commit Tax Fraud If You Are Caught Cheating IRS Criminal Investigations If You Are Prosecuted 11: Small Business/Self-Employed: When IRS Trouble Comes Self-Employed—You’re a Prime Audit Target Employees or Independent Contractors? Payroll Taxes—IRS Dynamite The Dreaded Trust Fund Recovery Penalty Cash Transactions Over $10,000 12: Penalties and Interest Penalties Added to Tax Bills Interest on Tax Bills Understanding Penalty and Interest Notices Reducing or Eliminating Penalties and Interest Designating Late Tax Payments 13: Help Beyond the Book: Tax Professionals and Tax Information Finding and Using a Tax Professional Tax Pros for Serious Problems Hiring a Tax Return Preparer Researching Tax Questions 14: When You Owe State Income Taxes The IRS and State Taxing Authorities Does Your State Have a Taxpayer Bill of Rights? State Time Limits to Assess and Collect Income Taxes State Tax Collection Departments State Tax Bills When All Else Fails, Try Your Political Connections 15: The Taxpayer Bill of Rights Taxpayer Bill of Rights I Taxpayer Bill of Rights II Taxpayer Bill of Rights III 16: The 25 Most Frequently Asked Questions Glossary of Tax Terms Index Book Registration Addtional Tax Law Resources at Nolo.com