I am always so pleased when I am able to secure a positive result for a client!
Almost everyone calls me in a panic after receiving a collections notice from the IRS threatening to levy on their bank account, attach their wages, or put a lien on their house. They all think it will happen immediately: “Please call me back ASAP because the IRS gave me a deadline of tomorrow/next week/10 days!!” Um, no. Chances are, you’ve got many months, if not years, until the IRS pursues aggressive collections action. Read more » A buddy recently received a scam voicemail from a company promises to get rid of all his tax debt. Here are the red flags that IDed this voicemail as a scam and how to avoid them. Read more » I recently wrote about Elon Musk’s DOGE’s attempt to access the IRS’ main database of all taxpayer information. Since then many colleagues and clients have asked what I think about this, especially as a former IRS attorney and now a tax attorney who needs to access the IRS’ IDRS database almost daily. Herewith, more on what I REALLY think…. Read more>> Musk’s DOGE team wants access to the IRS database of all taxpayer records. Why? The purported purpose of DOGE is to root out bureaucratic inefficiency in the federal government. But will DOGE access to extremely sensitive and personal financial information on every taxpayer in the country eliminate government waste? Or, perhaps, is granting DOGE access to taxpayer records a way for the current administration to gain information on political enemies? Read more>> Faucher Law recently hired a terrific, new Administrative Assistant. Zoe came up to me the other day and asked “John! Have you seen the IRS’ Instagram account?! And it’s quite good.” Um, no. I didn’t even know the IRS had an Instagram account. I asked Zoe to tell us what she thought about the IRS’ Instagram account. Here’s her take. Read more » The Wall Street Journal published me in their Letters to the Editor section today (February 14, 2024:A14)! I was responding to a February 5th Op-Ed by Jay Starkman, telling taxpayers to avoid filing their tax returns electronically. I strongly disagree. Read more » In January, the IRS extended the tax return filing deadline to October 16th due to the unusually heavy precipitation last winter. Why did the IRS wait to announce the new November 16 deadline until deadline day? Wouldn’t almost everyone still needing to file on Monday have done so? Moreover, the IRS’ stated reason for this third extension is still the winter weather – which ended a half year ago! C’mon, IRS! This latest deadline IS NOT about generously giving Californians impacted by winter weather more time to file. It’s about CYA for the IRS. Read more » People hire me because tax lawyers are like GPS for the IRS. Think you can navigate the steps in the Taxpayer Roadmap above on your own? Good luck! Looks like the subway map for NYC, right? How easy was it for you to find your way around the NYC subway system the first time you rode it? Even with a map, I’ll bet it was a challenge. The same is true of navigating the vast, intimidating bureaucracy of the IRS depicted above. Read more » An Offer-in-Compromise is a contract between the IRS and a taxpayer to settle a tax debt for less than what is owed. I get lots of calls from folks excited at the prospect of being able to negotiate down what they owe IRS. And then I burst their bubble with the bad news: it is very hard to get an Offer in Compromise (OIC) from the IRS. Read more »How Threatening is the IRS Collections Notice I Just Received?
March 14, 2025How to Spot a Scam “Tax Debt Forgiveness” Call
February 28, 2025DOGE Access to IRS Data Will Harm Confidentiality and Compliance
February 24, 2025DOGE Wants Access to IRS Taxpayer Records
February 17, 2025IRS’ Instagram Account – Biggest Surprises
February 29, 2024John Faucher Published in Wall Street Journal Today!
February 14, 2024Why was the 2022 Tax Deadline for California Extended on Deadline Day?
October 19, 2023Tax Lawyers Are GPS For the IRS
October 13, 2023IRS Offer in Compromise Hard to Get in Santa Barbara County
June 24, 2023