The Internal Revenue Service granted a six-month tax filing and payment extension to those affected by the shootings at Virginia Tech, in Blacksburg, Va. This relief applies to the victims, their families, emergency responders and university students and employees. “Taxes are the last thing the Virginia Tech family should be worried about at this time,” IRS Commissioner Mark W. Everson said. “Our hearts go out to the people affected by this tragic event.”The relief announced today allows taxpayers affected by the events at Virginia Tech to have until Oct.

Taxpayers living in the path of the major storm that affected several Northeastern states on Monday, April 16 will have until Thursday, April 26 to file their federal tax returns, the Internal Revenue Service said. Filers in the storm region were originally given until April 19 to file, but Sen. Charles Schumer of New York said many people were still dealing with the aftermath of the storm and needed more time than the original two-day extension. IRS Commissioner Mark Everson announced the extension during a Senate Finance Committee hearing Wednesday.

Three court cases provide guidance on when to claim tax refunds, according to the Journal of Accountancy Most taxpayers know when to file their annual tax return. But they may be less sure of how much time they have to claim a refund. Three decisions last year may help clarify the rules.In the first, Wachovia Bank (Wachovia Bank v. U.S., 98 AFTR2d 2006-5111 (CA-11)) was trustee for the George C. Nunamann Trust, which was created in 1984 and became a charitable trust in 1991.

New court rulings state payroll tax liability is deductible even if compensation is deferred under Sec. 404, reports The Tax Adviser.A recent ruling states that accrual-method taxpayers may deduct payroll tax liability incurred in the current year, for compensation deferred and deductible in the following year, under Sec. 404, provided the all-events test and recurring-item exception of Sec. 461 are met.FactsX, a corporation, uses an accrual method of accounting and files its Federal income tax returns on a calendar-year basis.

IRS revenue agents are now spending substantially more of their time on corporate audits that produce no revenue for the government than they did in the recent past, according to agency data obtained under the Freedom of Information Act by the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse (TRAC).

In response to a congressional mandate for the development of a five-year plan, the Internal Revenue Service submitted to Congress the completed Taxpayer Assistance Blueprint.The Blueprint is the result of extensive IRS research conducted into the needs, preferences and behaviors of taxpayers and partners who assist them in complying with the tax laws, such as volunteer and paid tax return preparers.The plan includes a variety of specific recommendations for improving IRS services for taxpayers and partners, an important element of a comprehensive strategy to reduce the tax gap by helpin

The Internal Revenue Service wants taxpayers who need additional time to complete their tax return to submit their request for an automatic extension electronically by April 17. The IRS expects to receive 9.9 million extensions during 2007 compared with 9.5 million extensions in 2006. The extension allows taxpayers until October 15 to file the tax return. An extension does not give the taxpayer an extension of time to pay.

The Internal Revenue Service is stepping up its withholding compliance program by making more effective use of information reported on W-2 wage statements to ensure that employees have enough federal income tax withheld from their paychecks. In the past, employers were required to submit all Forms W-4 that claimed complete exemption from withholding when $200 or more in weekly wages were regularly expected, or claimed more than 10 allowances. Employers are no longer required to routinely submit potentially questionable Forms W-4 to the IRS.

Jackson Hewitt Tax Service Inc. reports an internal review has begun in the wake of Internal Revenue Service allegations that five franchisees defrauded it out of more than $70 million. "Jackson Hewitt takes allegations against our franchisees seriously," Chief Executive Officer Michael Lister said. Jackson Hewitt, the second-largest U.S. tax preparer, intends to "identify all of the facts related to these allegations and address them appropriately," Lister said.