Today TaxMama hears from Laura in the TaxQuips Forum, with these two common issues.  “(1) My daughter turned 24 in December of 2009.  During the entire 12 months of 2009 she attended school full-time; did not work; earned 0 income; and will not be filing a tax return. She lived at home and we provided 100% of her support.  Are we allowed to consider her a dependent on our 2009 tax return?  It appears from what I read that we could if she was our niece (under the “relative” qualifications), but not as our daughter (under the “child” qualifications).  (2) We paid 100% of her tuition costs in 2009. Can we take the education and/or credit for this like we did on our 2008 return?” 

Dear Family,

We were at the IRS Tax Forums last week. You can read all about our experiences in this week’s IRS News. There will be more information next week, as I have time to keep writing. It will just pour out as I sit at the keyboard.

The fun part was meeting so many of you! Some people, it was the very first time, mathing faces to names. Others, we get together year-after-year at these Tax Forums, so we’re old friends. And of course, there were Lucie and Mark, whom I’ve known since my teens. I really enjoyed meeting the spouses and family of students I’ve only known over the computer. These are the people who support my students while they are immersed into the EA Exam class for an entire summer. Life changes can be scary. But the qualitative improvements are worth it in the end. The House of Blues treated us royally, providing a steady stream of tasty food and lively music.

Problem Resolution and Focus Groups

Problem Resolution had a facility at the Tax Forum. One of my friends brought a case file with her (and power of attorney forms, etc.). When picking up her registration packet on Monday, she was given a form to fill out with the specifics of her case (and a copy of the power of attorney – Form 2848). By the time she arrived at her appointment on Tuesday or Wednesday, the staff had pulled up relevant information about her case and researched the stumbling blocks. She sat down with them and resolved all the problems in no time at all. This is a case that has been a source of frustration for many, many months. Her clients have a refund coming soon.

Last week, all my tax staff and I took our annual trip to the IRS Tax Forum.

When these forums first started out many years ago, the fee was $25 for three days of education provided by IRS staff and a variety of tax professionals from sponsor associations. It was an amazing value – especially since you could fulfill your entire annual continuing education requirement in one shot – for $25. Wow! OK, so the material was a little basic, with IRS devoting time to propagandize about their service…but still, the contacts you made were excellent. And you did get some insight into the way IRS operates.

When:             August 13, 2010

                        10:00 am – Noon PT

Where:            Online in TaxMama’s Conference Room

Cost:               $50.00                       

Discounts:             $20 discount to members of writers groups –   Check with your association for discount code 

CPE Credits:            2 hours for Enrolled Agents

How to Register  -   Include the name of your writers association

                        Be sure to include your name, phone number, email address

                        You will receive an email invitation to the Webinar.

 Who should attend:

                        Professional Writers making a living as writers

                                                Who are not taking full advantage of tax benefits

                        Hobby Writers dabbling –

Who are causing major potential tax problems

What you will learn: 

Who is a Writer?

Special Considerations for Writers

Avoiding IRS Red Flags for Writers                     

Business Considerations for Writers

General Tax Deduction for Writers

High Cost Deductions – Computers, Travel, Research

Useful Tax Tools for Writers

Useful articles, books and references

Get YOUR specific Questions answered

Note: This course is available live – or later as a self-study, on-demand course.  Naturally, to get CPE credits you will need to answer a quiz.

What: FREE IRS Webinar
When: September 9, 2010

Learn about the tax provisions of the Affordable Care Act (ACA recent health care legislation) at a FREE IRS Webinar on September 9, 2010 at 2 p.m. Eastern. 

The IRS’s Small Business/Self-Employed Division is presenting this FREE webinar especially for small business owners and the self-employed. Learn about Affordable Care Act’s current tax provisions and where to find future updates.

 Click on this link to register (http://www.visualwebcaster.com/IRS/70323/reg.asp?id=70323) for this informative presentation.

 To get the latest IRS news and products and services, subscribe to e-News for Small Businesses on IRS.gov at http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/article/0,,id=154825,00.html , click “Subscribe Now” at the bottom of the page and enter your e-mail address.

REPLAY today’s session – you can listen and SEE the session and forms

Affordable Care Act Provides Expanded Tax Benefit to Health Professionals Working in Underserved Areas 

WASHINGTON — As part of a larger Administration announcement on efforts to strengthen the health care workforce, the Internal Revenue Service today announced that under the Affordable Care Act health care professionals who received student loan relief under state programs that reward those who work in underserved communities may qualify for refunds on their 2009 federal income tax returns as well as an annual tax cut going forward.

“Doctors and nurses who choose to practice in underserved areas make a great contribution to their local communities,” Commissioner Doug Shulman said. “By expanding the tax exclusion for student loan forgiveness, the Affordable Care Act provides an even greater incentive to practice medicine in areas that need it most.”

On June 9th IRS held a teleseminar for the tax community, to clarify some of the issues surrounding the new registration requirements for tax professionals. The event has been archived and will be available on the IRS website in about 2 weeks.  Most likely, it will be on IRS’ video website.

REPLAY today’s session – you can listen and SEE the session

Today’s topics included:

• Introductions of the participants
• Testing of microphones ;~)
• Questions about the EA Exam Review Class starting tonight
• Discussion of IRS bizarre notice -
  •  long-term care insurance distributions that IRS is questioning
  • Odd rejections of homebuyer credits
  • IRS not willing to proide guidance on issues
  • Making taxpayers guess
• IRS is not the source of the laws – Congress is.
• Discussion about alternative tax systems and potential efficacy
  • Brief overview of Fair Tax
  • Brief overview of Flat Tax
  • Brief overview of VAT
  • What would be audited under such systems
• Playing with the polling system
• Tax Software
• And more