Business Advisory & Tax Accounting

Tax Preparation & Planning

Effective tax preparation and planning can help you to minimize your future tax liability. We can help you proactively manage both your personal and your business tax issues, including understanding how upcoming business opportunities impact your tax status and vice versa. Not all tax planning opportunities are readily apparent. By having us on your team, you are more likely to benefit from those opportunities. We understand how the latest federal, state and local tax legislation and other developments affect you and your business and we are constantly identifying new ways to reduce federal, state or local tax liabilities.

IRS Representation

The Role of a Tax Audit Representative

A tax audit representative provides a service to businesses to assist them during an IRS audit. They can help you understand the scope of the audit, streamline the process, safeguard your rights, and potentially save money. Some of the advantages of engaging a tax audit representative include their expertise in tax law, negotiation skills, and experience working with IRS auditors. The best option for helping you with your audit is hiring the services of an Enrolled Agent.

What is an enrolled agent?

An enrolled agent is a tax advisor who has received the highest credentials issued by the IRS to represent you before the Internal Revenue Service—when filing a tax return, dealing with an audit, resolving payment and collection issues, or appealing a fine (for example).

What is the difference between a CPA, an enrolled agent, and an attorney?

The first major difference is that enrolled agents are pure tax specialists, focused solely on tax compliance issues, whereas most CPAs and attorneys are not. So, if you think your taxes are too complicated to file yourself using online software and are looking for help from a professional, consider hiring an enrolled agent.

CPAs: Do not necessarily specialize in taxes. They provide a range of services that span the entire accounting profession.

Attorneys: Do not necessarily specialize in tax compliance either. If you are incorporating or dissolving a business, evaluating a business deal, getting sued, or looking for help with anything else that goes beyond the boundaries of pure tax advice or accounting, talk to an attorney.

Understanding Business IRS Tax Audits

An IRS tax audit is a review or examination of an organization’s or individual’s financial information to ensure compliance with tax laws and to verify the accuracy of the reported tax amount. The primary purpose of these audits is to reduce the tax gap, the difference between what the IRS is owed and what it receives. It is important to note that businesses are legally entitled to tax audit representation during an IRS audit.

Types of Business IRS Tax Audits

There are three primary types of IRS audits: correspondence, office, and field audits.

1. Correspondence IRS Audits: Correspondence IRS audits are the most common type of audit utilized by the IRS. In such an audit, the agency sends a letter requesting additional information or clarification on specific items on the tax return. These audits are usually straightforward and can be resolved by providing the requested documentation.
2. Office IRS audits: Office IRS audits require a meeting between the taxpayer (an officer of the business or a representative) and an IRS agent at the IRS office.
3. A field IRS audit: a field IRS audit is conducted at the business. Having a tax audit representative present during the visit of the IRS agent can be advantageous, as they can help protect your interests and navigate the process more effectively.