April 3, 2010

Florida Tax Attorney in 33606 Alerts against Fraud Tax Preparers

As a tax attorney, I come across countless people who have been scammed by fraudulent tax preparers. Granted, the country’s tax laws are not easy to understand, especially for the less educated. This makes it especially tempting to hire a tax preparer and get the job over with. After all, you only need to sign the completed tax returns and pay the tax preparer. That’s an especially inviting proposition, what more if the tax preparer guarantees you a large refund. But if it’s too good to be true, it probably is.

In order to make the large refund materialize, the tax preparer often has to engage in unscrupulous practices such as inflating figures or give false information in your tax returns. For example, a tax preparer who handles hundreds of tax returns may just insert the names of children from another taxpayer into your returns to earn you more child relief deductions or fill up a Schedule C that is used by business owners for you when you do not even have a business.

Needless to say, the IRS views such fraudulent practices very seriously and will hold you accountable for the misdeeds of your tax preparer because of your signature on the forms. As a matter of fact, the IRS has listed fraudulent tax preparers as one of its top ‘Dirty Dozen’ tax scams for 2010. In every case of fraud, you the taxpayer will end up with the charges, penalties and interests.

To circumvent the danger of taxpayers falling prey to fraudulent tax preparers, the Michigan Association of Certified Public Accountants in collaboration with the Accounting Aid Society and the Association of Latino Professionals in Finance and Accounting have produced information leaflets telling people how to spot and avoid a dishonest tax preparer. Each year, these leaflets are distributed freely to the public during the tax season.

1. Here are some signs that should signal a red flag to you:

2. The tax preparer tells you his fees are based on the amount of refunds you receive. This would give the preparer an added reason to cheat.

3. The tax preparer makes it such that your refund is in his name (or the name of his company), rather than yours.

4. The tax preparer does not give you a copy of the completed tax returns and does not return to you all the original documents you furnished him with.

5. The returns were completed in pencil instead of in ink or typed in print.

Finally, if there is any doubt in your mind at all, do not proceed with filing the returns. Check with a tax attorney like myself first. I or the lawyers in my office will give you a free consultation if you call us at (813) 200 4133. Remember, if your tax preparer tells you something that sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Darrin T. Mish is a veteran, nationally recognized tax attorney who has focused on providing IRS help to taxpayers for over a decade. He regularly travels the country training other attorneys, CPAs and enrolled agents on how to handle their toughest cases with the IRS. He is highly ranked among the top attorneys in the country, with an AV rating from Martindale-Hubbell and a perfect 10 on Avvo.com. Martindale-Hubbell has also honored him with a listing in their Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers. He is a member of the American Society of IRS Problem Solvers and the Tax Freedom Institute. With clients on every continent but Antarctica, he has what it takes to solve your IRS problems no matter where you live in the world. If you would like more information about his practice and how he can help you, please call his office at (813) 229-7100 or toll free at 1-888-GET-MISH.

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