At the recent National Institute on Criminal Tax Fraud and Tax Controversy, senior IRS and Department of Justice (Tax) officials sounded the proverbial warning alarm to taxpayers with undisclosed or offshore financial accounts. The message was clear: “We are getting information daily, and we will find you if we have not already.”
Voluntary Disclosure Results Reported
Officials report that the voluntary disclosure programs have generated over 100,000 combined submissions and over $10 billion dollars in tax, penalties and interest. The government believes that there are billions more to be collected.
Warning to Taxpayers: The Government Is Using Aggressive Data Collection Techniques To Find You
To date, over 175 “John Doe” summonses to financial institutions have resulted in millions of pieces of data. Spontaneous exchanges from international financial institutions are now commonplace. In other words, clients of foreign financial institutions may not even be aware that their information has been shared with the U.S. government. The United States plans to issue more John Doe summonses regarding crypto currencies seeking account holder information. They will match the data to tax filings and information and look for inconsistencies. Criminal and/or civil examinations will follow.
Crypto Currency Investigations Also On The Horizon
The IRS has also noted the emergence of crypto currency. They have established a special unit concerning cyber-crime related to crypto currencies and crypto currency markets. Of particular interest is how actual currency enters and exits the crypto-currency system.
Minimizing Exposure
Time is of the essence to minimize exposure both financially and criminally. Contact us to evaluate your particular situation and to determine if a voluntary disclosure, or other action is appropriate for your circumstances.