Lee B

It's been several years or more since I tried calling the IRS. I have had good success dealing with them by mail. It's slow, but so far so good.

Copied from irs.gov: To e-file your 2014 tax return or other electronic forms, you must verify your identity with your Self-Select PIN or your Adjusted Gross Income from your 2013 tax return. If you don't have either, you can get an Electronic Filing PIN. Determine Your EligibilityYou filed a 2013 Form 1040, Form 1040A, Form 1040-EZ or Form 1040-SS (PR)Your return was processed by Nov. 23, 2014 Gather Your InformationCopy of last year’s tax returnSocial Security number or Individual Tax Identification numberFirst and last name, date of birth and filing statusComplete mailing address as it appeared on your 2013 tax return Get Your Electronic Filing PINAccess the Electronic Filing PIN online E-file Using Your PINWhen you're ready to file your return, enter your Electronic Filing PIN in the "Electronic Filing PIN" fieldKeep a copy of your signed tax return for your records*The Electronic Filing PIN service is unavailable on Sundays between 1 a.m. and 7 a.m. EST for system maintenance. Page Last Reviewed or Updated: 20-Jan-2015 This was discussed in another thread last week and I fail to see that this provides any protection. There is another PIN called an IP PIN, which is used for identity theft protection purposes, but it is only available in three states that are designated "high risk states" by the IRS. If you are in one of those 3 states then the IP PIN can be obtained. If this 3 state trial is successful, then perhaps it will be offered in more states.

Not a single one of the 20 - 2014 W - 2 efiles that ATX created for me passed the Accuwage checks Finally, I filed them thru BSO/SSA anyway and they all were processed without problem.

Copied from Accounting Today: Sam’s Club, the membership warehouse club owned by Wal-Mart, is teaming up with a New York City-based accounting firm known as 1-800Accountant to offer accounting and tax services that can be accessed via mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets.

​Lynn, Thanks for the info. I think I am going to request this in writing before I renew. We all know that the ATX Sales Department and the rest of the company don't seem to be working with the same information often enough for all of us to be wary. "Trust but Verify !"

Most of my comments are already covered. I agree that the text of the actual contents of a post are still a bit too light. Today I am using my 13" Toshiba Chromebook, which has a pretty good display. The only other thing is the sign in lag is longer.

Is that $1.50 per client or $1.50 for each W - 2 & 1099 ?​

If you are running Windows 8, you may be having one of their infamous glitches.

Never hurts to ask. The worst they can do is say no.

There is conflicting unclear information on the ATX site about this. I have been trying to find out and ?

Since the most likely reason for this increase is either an increase in sales or a decrease in expenses, wouldn't an amended tax return be in order ? It shouldn't that hard to track down the change.

​I have had the same scanner for a number of years. Very reliable and trouble free.

I would encourage your client to do anything else i.e. interest free or low interest credit card advance, borrow from whomever , etc .

​I don't have time to look it up, but if I remember correctly, it's changed to once per 12 months. For example, you cannot do it once in December and do it again in January. Also, the limit is once in the 12 month period no matter how many IRAs you have.

Does anyone know whether the ATX efiling fee of $1.50 is per 1099/W -2 or per client ?

Two years ago, I participated in an online webinar on Drake CWU & Payroll. Are these programs pretty much the same ? Any changes of note ?

I schedule payroll tax payments for close to half of my payroll clients via EFTPS and Oregon EFT. I have reimbursed several clients over the years for penalties due to my mistakes. Over time I developed a routine of doublechecking, so that it's been quite a while since I have made a mistake.

I've taken a good look at Medlin several times. It will do the following: 1. Payroll Processing and ATF payroll recordkeeping 2. Print 94x and 1099 forms 3. Create W -3 & W - 2 efiles for transmission just like ATX 4. It will do quarterly reports for a limited number of states and a generic report for other states

Lion, Thanks for the additional info. My take is that these appear to be two different types of PINs.

I have learned to be careful and a careful reading of the information on this IRS page doesn't lead me to the same understanding. That is why I would like to see more detailed information.

I clicked on this link and took a look at the page, which really didn't say much except as follows" "To e-file your 2014 tax return or other electronic forms, you must verify your identity with your Self-Select PIN or your Adjusted Gross Income from your 2013 tax return. If you don't have either, you can get an Electronic Filing PIN" It's unclear to me whether this pin provides any protection. I did a quick search which didn't really turn up any additional information. If anyone has or can find some in depth info on this pin, I would appreciate it. Thanks,

Since I do mostly business returns plus personal returns for the business owners, I don't do these returns. Last year I turned away my last one, a hair stylist with numbers written down on paper. I had done her return the previous two years and I noticed that her net income perfectly hit the max EIC sweet spot. I told her that the new documentation requirements created more risk than I was willing to assume. Later, I heard from an acquaintance, that she is now happily preparing her own return on Turbo Tax.

5 comments Portland judge sends 4 IRS cheats to prison for ID theft, tax return scam By Bryan Denson | The Oregonian/OregonLive 0 Reddit Four IRS cheats perpetrated what a Portland judge on Tuesday called "a vast fraudulent conspiracy" in which they stole identities and filed 208 phony tax returns in an attempt to make more than $1 million. They made off with $427,896 of that money from the U.S. Treasury Department, turning it into vintage and luxury autos, expensive shoes, diamond rings, and a whole lot of cocktails and meals. "I was very materialistic," 32-year-old Gresham resident Jheraun Dunlap admitted to Senior U.S. District Judge Robert E. Jones before his sentencing. "Materialism can bring the worst out of you." You can't make this stuff up Dunlap and his 27-year-old wife, Brandi McCall, of Gresham – and their co-defendants Ernest Bagsby, 37, and Jermaine Moore, 34 – were forced to turn over assets they accumulated in their crimes. Those assets included a late-model Mercedes-Benz 500 and a 1971 Pontiac Firebird – purchased with clumps of $20 bills. Jones sentenced all four to prison for their roles in the plot, which was undone by agents with the IRS Criminal Investigations Division. Dunlap, who had a bank robbery conviction on his record, got 5 years, 5 months. Bagsby, a convicted heroin dealer, got 4 years, 3 months. Moore got 3 years, 9 months. And McCall got 1 year, 1 day, which with good behavior would put her on the street in about 10 months. Jones allowed McCall to serve her sentence before her husband goes away so that their children will have a parent at home to take care of them. Prosecutors explained the scheme in court records and courtroom hearings: The foursome, aided by two other defendants awaiting sentencing, played roles in stealing the identification of other people. Then they filed fraudulent tax returns with the IRS. "The defendants directed the IRS to deposit the tax refunds onto store-value debit cards and then the proceeds were shared among the participants in the scheme," Acting U.S. Attorney Billy J. Williams announced in joint press release with Acting Assistant Attorney General Caroline D. Ciraolo. IRS agents captured video images of Dunlap, Bagsby, Moore and McCall as they withdrew cash from the debit cards. But the agents captured even more telling evidence from the conspirators' Facebook accounts. One of those images, downloaded from Bagsby's Facebook page, showed what appears to be a tray choked with clumps of folded-over $20 bills and a bottle of Patron tequila. The photo came with a caption: "So I was unable to rubber band up (due) to the fact that it just keeps pouring in ..."

Be very careful. If he was contacted by phone, it might be a scam !

According articles in the news, this is the state of Ohio's response to paying out over $ 250 million in bogus refunds last year.