Most of us go through life working, earning, and then grudgingly dealing with the annual grind of preparing our tax returns and sending them in, some with a painful check or payment to take care of taxes due after the end of paper torture.
However, for a few, this process comes back in additional work, stress, frustration, and even risk. When the government tax agencies decide an audit examination or even more is required, they spare no expense in pursuing a conclusion in favor of the government. Given the fact that tax agencies are the bread and butter of government, finding excuses for additional taxes and penalties is an incentive for such reviews.
Tax Audit and Investigation
For the individual taxpayer, an audit or tax investigation can be alarming, even scary. The financial implications can mean hundreds or thousands of dollars in additional tax charges being applied. And, in the case of a tax investigation, it could even mean criminal charges associated with tax evasion or tax fraud. None of those situations are treated lightly by the court once they arrive in litigation.
Tax Preparation
Obviously, the best audit defense is an offense in the form of prevention. Tax preparation of business taxes or personal taxes by a legal expert is one of the best ways to avoid falling into a tax trap in the first place.
The tax code is immense, and it’s also practically impossible for anyone to follow correctly on their own. So, no surprise, once an audit happens, there is almost guaranteed to be a civil tax finding. If the person then tries to lie or omit facts under questioning, the criminal investigation aspect kicks in.
Tax Settlement
Fortunately, there are ways to resolve tax findings less painfully, most notably through a tax settlement negotiation.
Diment & Associates can help, both with prevention as well as with response on tax audit issues. Instead of saying the wrong thing yourself, our team can help guide you through a tax challenge professionally, representing your interests and keeping you protected from exposure to tax traps. For taxpayers in Louisiana and Texas call us to find out more. It costs far more to do damage repair than to avoid mistakes in the first place.
