IRS Moves to Ban Tax Returns Filed By All But ‘Experts’

reply to post by Bhadhidar


the IRS is going to demand that you can prove that you know what you're doing.

Then the IRS needs to PROVE it knows what it's doing! What a joke! Next tax season, call several of the IRS "answer man" 800 numbers and ask a simple question and you'll get several different answers. The IRS can't answer a boatload of questions they are asked, so how the h*ll can they demand that someone prove they know what they are doing.

reply to post by inthesticks



I suppose that you've never heard the old saying, "You get what you Pay for"?


When you call a "1-800" toll-free number, you're getting "Free" advice.

And "Free" advice can't be expected to be worth any more than you've paid for it!



It all comes down to training, expensive training. Training you should expect to have to pay for when you consult it.

But you'd prefer to expect something for nothing, right?


As it happens, I'm one of those "Answer Men" you disparage, except for the fact that I work for the state of California.

My training is on-going, I have to take refresher courses every year.

My "basic" training took just over 2 months and cost the State over $10,000; an investment I've repaid many times over through the course of my 15 years on the job.

Dealing with clueless taxpayers (clueless in that many of them can barely add 2+2, comprehend the the instructions to open a box of cereal, or even know the difference between the State government and the Federal government!), coniving business owners, and under-trained CPA's is a daunting task: many people just can't take the stress of my job.


Most of the "drop-outs" go on to become Tax Preparers for places like H&R Block.


Get the picture?



[edit on 20-6-2009 by Bhadhidar]

Just more bull.

Money for the license.
More taxes because we have to pay for the license department.
More games for people to play that abuse the system.
More loop holes for major corporations
More finger pointing... so more outs for white collar criminals

How about we make it real easy and do a percentage and thats it.

Goverment getting smaller ?

Are people forgetting that any fees paid to a registered accountant can be claimed back the following year?

It sounds like they're trying to weed out all the yahoos who got their accounting 'degree' from some spam email found in the junkmail inbox.

I'd like to get rid of the IRS all together and see a national sales tax, instead of an income tax.

National sales tax

Originally posted by Bhadhidar

Alright everybody, calm down!

Electric, I think you've "short-circuited" your fellow ATS members on this one. You should have done a bit more research on the topic before lending any credence to a biased, slanted and obviously sensationalized article.

Oh boy...perhaps you should listen to your own advice before you start claiming people are "short-circuiting members" and using sensationalized articles...

First of all, even in your own article, which is from June 4th, it says...

While the IRS will consider the role of tax-software providers, human preparers are the focus of the effort to craft stricter standards, Mr. Shulman told reporters in a conference call. "In most states, anyone can charge to prepare tax returns, regardless of training, education, experience, skill, licensing or registration," he said.

online.wsj.com...

And then from an article from June 10th we get...

The IRS announced the plan last Thursday, in conjunction with Shulman’s testimony before a House subcommittee about the IRS’s operations and proposed budget (see IRS Plans to Step Up Tax Preparer Regulation). The IRS is desperate to close the estimated $290 billion tax gap, especially as the deficit widens to astronomical levels.

Too many preparers are apparently helping their clients evade their share of taxes, or at least the IRS believes that to be the case. It’s true that the Justice Department and the IRS have found plenty of instances of tax preparers exaggerating their clients’s earned income tax credits, fuel tax credits, medical expenses, charitable contributions, and the like. A quick look at the press release page from the Justice Department’s Tax Division will bear that out.

www.webcpa.com...

and

Shulman indicated the software vendors aren’t likely to see much increased regulation. They already work closely with the IRS to try to get their software right. Indeed, last time I checked, I didn’t see any tax tip pop up in the midst of preparing my return suggesting that I move some income to an account in the Cayman Islands.

Which means even tax vendors will see some new regulations, just not as much as the tax preparers....

Next time you want to call someone a "shrill voice", you better do some more reading, and research before you show to be the "shrill voice" yourself....

The IRS is more interested in getting more money, than in actually helping Americans...

[edit on 24-6-2009 by ElectricUniverse]