Grant Thornton’s National Tax Office has received a number of inquiries concerning how to best deal with the advance recovery (stimulus) rebate process. The following summarizes our current understanding of the situation and is based on both public pronouncements and informal discussions with IRS and other government officials.Getting the rebate as soon as possibleThe IRS will begin issuing advance rebate payments this May and will continue to issue them through the end of the year.

The annual announcement from the Tax Foundation tells us how many days we have to work each year in order to pay federal taxes. Tax Freedom Day 2008 will fall on April 23, three days earlier than 2007's Tax Freedom Day, which fell on April 26.Stimulus rebates and a projection of slow growth in 2008 are the principal reasons for the earlier celebration, according to the nonpartisan Tax Foundation.Tax Freedom Day is calculated by dividing the official government tally of all taxes collected in each year by the official government tally of all income earned in each year.

Federal prosecutors in New York have charged Robert Pfaff, 57, of Englewood, CO, a former partner at KPMG, with conspiracy to defraud the United States and to commit tax evasion and wire fraud, and obstructing and impeding the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) by concealing fees he and others received for setting up tax shelters for various clients. The indictment charges Pfaff and co-conspirators with hiding millions of dollars in fees by transferring the money from bank accounts in the U.S. and the Northern Mariana Islands into Philippine bank accounts.

Recognizing that many taxpayers who own properties primarily for rental income use them occasionally for personal purposes, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in February clarified safe harbor rules for personal use of properties that are held under IRC Section 1031 as for productive use or for investment. These properties qualify for deferred payment of capital gain.

The IRS is looking for stakeholder input on a new form and process, planned to begin in 2009, that will improve the way employers and payers correct errors on previously filed employment tax returns.The agency has posted a "vision draft" of new Form 941X, Adjusted Employer's QUARTERLY Federal Tax Return or Claim for Refund, for public review.

Douglas H. Shulman, the newly confirmed commissioner of the Internal Revenue Service, said he would concentrate both on enforcement and service and work to ensure the tax agency is fair, according to Associated Press reports."For the majority of Americans who pay their taxes willingly and on time, there must be clear guidance, accessible education, and outstanding service," Shulman said in a statement released by the IRS.

The U.S. Small Business Administration's Office of Advocacy has announced its 2008 Top 10 Rules for Review and Reform. The Top 10 are drawn from over 80 rules nominated by small business owners and their representatives as part of the Regulatory Review and Reform (r3) initiative. The recommendations have been transmitted to the appropriate federal agencies for their action.“The strongest and most compelling cases made our Top 10 list of rules,” said Thomas M. Sullivan, Chief Counsel for Advocacy.

Taxpayers from low income families, military families, and the elderly throughout the country are getting help with their federal and state income tax returns at the Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) Voluntary Income Tax Assistance (VITA) sites, many of which are staffed by student volunteers from accounting and business programs at nearby colleges and universities. For some accounting student volunteers, participation in VITA is considered a part of their academic learning as well as a unique service learning opportunity.

The American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and InvestmentNews have teamed up this tax season to offer online answers to tax questions submitted by financial advisers. Readers of the weekly newspaper will be able to submit tax questions to InvestmentNews for consideration. The answers will be provided by a panel of CPAs who are members of the AICPA's Tax Division.