Landmark Tax Group - May 2022

Landmark Tax Group - May 2022

Landmark Ledger

(813) 406-4612 Professional | Experienced | Licensed Expert IRS & State Tax Relief

May 2022

SO, YOU OWE THE IRS FOR 2021 … Here’s What You Can Do About It

Last year at tax time, 44 million people got bad news from the IRS: Instead of getting a refund, they owed the agency hundreds, thousands, or tens of thousands of dollars in taxes. We don’t know yet just how many people owe the IRS this year, but I’m sure that number is in the millions. If you’re one of the people who got bad news, you’re not alone. That said, you probably still feel scared and confused right now. Back when I worked at the IRS, it felt like every taxpayer I talked to was terrified. It’s okay to be scared, and it’s okay if you don’t know what to do — but it’s NOT okay to do nothing. If you don’t take action, the feeling in the pit of your stomach won’t go away. It will actually get worse because the IRS’s automated collection process will kick in and put more pressure on you, your business, and your family. There is a bit of good news. The IRS has streamlined its collections unit more and more over the last few years. Today, taxpayers have more options for resolving their tax liabilities than they did when I was at the IRS years ago. I’ve kept up with those changes so that I can help people like you resolve their back taxes as quickly as possible in whichever way works best for them. If you can’t make a full payment with your tax return, that’s not nearly as big of an issue as it used to be, but you still need to face the problem head-on. If you don’t, the IRS’s collection process could escalate to enforcement action. They could levy your income, tap your bank accounts, or even go after your home — all terrifying options.

and dentist. It’s a little bit of work and investment now to prevent a painful and expensive disaster later.

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Fortunately, the IRS runs on procedures — it’s as predictable as the sun rising in the east and setting in the west. This makes taking proactive action fairly easy. Once you know those procedures like I do, you can help steer your case to a favorable resolution. That looks different for everyone, but you have plenty of options, including securing an extension to pay in full, paying your debt over time through a payment plan, taking steps to reduce or remove penalties and interest, getting a hardship approval, receiving a tax settlement, and more. Since the IRS is overwhelmed with case work these days, they actually want the taxpayers (you!) to help them close out their back tax cases. That means resolving an IRS back tax problem right now is easier than you may think. Discover five ways to pay less to the IRS today at LandmarkTaxGroup.com/Book

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Think about it this way: Being proactive with your tax problem is like scheduling checkups with your doctor

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Paddle Your Way to Better Health Big Benefits of Canoeing and Kayaking

Mental Benefits

The weather is getting warmer, which means you can do more activities in the water. Canoeing or kayaking is an excellent way to get outdoors and be active. Besides looking at the beautiful scenery around you, taking to the water confers several physical and mental health benefits.

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While canoeing or kayaking, your body releases serotonin, dopamine, and endorphins from neurotransmitters. This will help boost your mood and self-confidence and improve your focus. These activities can enhance your memory and learning ability. This is because it exercises your hippocampus, one of the largest portions of your brain that is responsible for verbal memory and learning. If you have trouble sleeping, this activity can improve your sleep. Exercising during the day can make you naturally tired, which helps you fall asleep and stay asleep throughout the night. Since you’ll be in the sun, your body can produce more vitamin D. This vitamin is essential for strong bones and an effective immune system.

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Physical Benefits

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Paddling can help improve your upper-body strength and muscle tone — because you’re using your arms to guide yourself through the water with the paddle. Paddling helps strengthen your arms, shoulders, chest, and back. You use your legs to balance, maneuver, and change directions in the vessel. In turn, this movement helps strengthen your lower-body muscles.

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While trying to stay centered and balanced on the water, you will develop more core strength. Paddling helps work your lower back, abs, and oblique muscles.

Canoeing and kayaking are great outdoor activities to help you get your daily dose of physical activity and a mental health boost. So, enjoy the warm weather and be one with nature — this may be your new favorite summer hobby this year!

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It’s a form of cardiac exercise that will help your heart circulate more blood throughout your body. It will also improve your endurance, enabling you to go longer distances faster.

When to Expect an IRS Penalty (And What to Do If One Hits You)

When it comes to penalties, the IRS is like a Wild West gunslinger with unlimited ammunition. The agency has more than 148 different penalty types it can use to hit taxpayers where it hurts: in the wallet. Even worse, the IRS can stack those penalties on top of each other — charging interest and fees on the original penalty! Here at Landmark Tax Group, we’ve seen clients come in with extreme back tax debt that was doubled or even tripled by IRS penalties.

Those numbers may sound small, but they add up quickly! Say you owe the IRS $10,000. Your starting penalty would be $500 and could quickly climb as high as $2,500, bringing your tax burden up to $12,500. 2. Failing to pay the tax you owe by April 18: If you filed on time but didn’t pay — or didn’t file or pay — you can expect a “failure-to-pay” penalty. This fee is usually .5% of your unpaid taxes. Like the “failure to file” penalty, the “failure to pay” penalty applies for each month, or part of a month, after the due date and starts accruing the day after the tax-filing due date.

To avoid a penalty, it’s important to know when you can expect one. Here are two of the most common situations that trigger IRS penalties.

Ideally, you will have filed and paid your 2021 tax return on time. But if not, all isn’t lost! You may be able to remove these penalties if you act now. Follow this QR code or visit LandmarkTaxGroup. com/Penalty to download our FREE report “10 Ways to Get IRS Penalties Removed.” You won’t believe how much you can save!

1. Failing to file your tax return by April 18: If you don’t file on time, the IRS can slap you with a “failure to file” penalty. This is a fee totaling 5% of your unpaid taxes for each month, or part of a month, that your tax return is late. That penalty starts accruing the day after the tax filing due date. The only silver lining is that it won’t go over 25% of your unpaid taxes.

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GOODBYE, IRS PENALTIES!

How to Remove Pesky Fees

On Page 2, we shared a couple of common penalties the IRS uses to scare taxpayers into settling their back tax debt. If you’re hit with one or more of these fees, the cost might feel insurmountable, but you shouldn’t give up! It is possible to get IRS penalties removed. You just need to know your rights. There are 10 main ways to remove IRS penalties, and one of the most effective is first time abatement . This provision is designed to let taxpayers who normally file and pay their taxes on time off the hook based on past behavior. Specifically, the provision states that “the IRS can abate a penalty if you did not incur a penalty during any of the three preceding years of the oldest liability year.” In plain English, that means that if you owe for 2021 and the IRS slams you with a penalty, you can ask to have that fee waived if you weren’t penalized in 2020, 2019, or 2018. This also applies if you owe for multiple years. Say you still owe back taxes for 2017, 2018, and 2019 and have racked up penalties on all three years. As long as you didn’t have any penalties on your record in 2014, 2015, or 2016, you can have your 2017 penalties waived. In this scenario, you would still have

to pay the fees for 2018 and 2019, though — unless there were other circumstances at play.

One of those circumstances could be a death in the family, a fire at your home, or a problem accessing your tax records. Those are just a few of the things that fall under the reasonable cause abatement. There are a lot more penalty removal options in that category, too! Want to learn them all? Follow this QR code to download our FREE report, “10 Ways to Get IRS Penalties Removed” or visit LandmarkTaxGroup.com/Penalty

S UDOKU

TAX QUOTES

“Taxation with representation ain’t so hot either.” –Gerald Barzan, humorist

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Inside This Issue

Sudoku Answer Key

Do This to Fix Your 2021 Tax Bill 1

Strengthen Your Entire Body! How to Avoid an IRS Penalty 2 Your Guide to Penalty Removal Tax Quotes 3 Hate Souvenir Shopping? Let’s Make It Easy 4 Picking the Perfect Souvenir

A way to preserve or share a piece of your trip is to bring home a souvenir, but choosing a souvenir isn’t always a stress-free experience. How do you pick the perfect souvenir and not just the first thing you see in a tourist shop? Here are some tips for picking a truly meaningful gift for yourself or your loved ones. Who are you buying for? What are your recipient’s interests, or what do they spend the most time doing? If you’re buying for yourself and enjoy coffee, you might buy a local coffee blend to enjoy from home. However, if your recipient doesn’t enjoy coffee or rarely drinks it, that type of gift might not mean much to them. Is it legal to bring home? Whether you’re traveling domestically or internationally, there are many regulations that affect which souvenirs you can bring home. Even if you find the item in a tourist

shop, that doesn’t mean it’ll be allowed into the country or even onto the plane. And the TSA does take this seriously. In 2012, two tourists were detained at the U.S. border for trying to bring home chocolate Kinder eggs — a specific kind that are illegal in the U.S. due to the potentially hazardous small toys inside. Purchase a handicraft. Handicrafts — items created by local artisans — are awesome souvenirs! But make sure you buy where artisans actually sell their own goods, such as an open-air market. Unfortunately, while some popular tourist shops may sell “locally made goods,” many souvenirs intended for tourists are actually made by cheap manufacturers in other countries. Keep something from the adventure. Bringing a glass bottle to take home some sand is a popular way of creating your own souvenir from a beach vacation. But you

can do this with almost any item! Whether it’s stones, ticket stubs from favorite shows and activities, or a handmade item from a class, make sure to look out for souvenirs that’ll remind you of great memories and experiences.

We hope these tips will help you make the best choice. Bon voyage!

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