Dwayne Briscoe's (dbriscoe) Blog

Nonprofessional amateur taxpayers are treated on a different level, and their rental activities are often difficult to challenge in order to write off losses for tax purposes. Normally as a taxpayer, if you actively participate in a rental activity, you can deduct up to $25,000 of your losses in ...

In previous years, the IRS was adamant that couples who chose to Married Filing Separately (MFS) were expected to be considered legally separately. However, the IRS has changed its policy and allowed couples to choose MFS instead of Married Filing Jointly (MFJ) of their own accord without any con...

InsolvencyWhen a business or taxpayer has assets, it’s difficult to determine what is considered fair market value (FMV) for those assets, and whether those assets are available to creditors or not. In a business, most if not all assets could be available if owned outright. However, a Schedule C ...

1099-C Cancellation of DebtIn the event a legally recognized bona fide lender sends a business or taxpayer a Form 1099-C, it is due to having failed to repay a loan due to: foreclosure, credit card debt, return of property, commercial or private loan, etc. The lender must issue a 1099-C to legiti...

A Hobby vs. a For-Profit Business is defined by the IRS as the gross income being greater than the amount of deductions in three or more tax years in a period of at least five consecutive tax years, which ends with the current tax year. This is not a hard and fast rule but it is something that yo...

Right to a Fair and Just Tax SystemTaxpayers have the right to expect the tax system to consider facts and circumstances that might affect their underlying liabilities, ability to pay, or ability to provide information timely. Taxpayers have the right to receive free assistance from the Taxpayer ...

Introduction - Taxpayer Bill of RightsWhether a taxpayer is an individual or a business, they are afforded the same rights to confidentiality and representation from the Taxpayer Bill of Rights. Right to ConfidentialityTaxpayers have the right to expect that any IRS inquiry, examination, or enfor...

The IRS will reverse a certification when:- The tax debt is fully satisfied or becomes legally unenforceable- The tax debt is no longer seriously delinquent- The certification is erroneous- The IRS will make this reversal within 30 days and provide notification to the State Department as soon as ...

Fixing America’s Surface Transportation (FAST) ActIn 2015, Congress passed the FAST Act, which allows the IRS to restrict a taxpayer’s ability to utilize their passport if they have delinquent tax debts of a certain amount. This could also affect U.S. citizens who are also located overseas, for w...

C Corp entities are different than any other entities, in that they are separate and are not pass-through entities. They are the only entity that pays its own taxes, and due to the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, has a flat rate of 21%, which before had a graduating tax rate based on profit. Just as ...