Part I of Form 2848 O ne thing that I have learned in life and in my journey as an Enrolled Agent is that you don't know what you don't know. Learning the ropes of representing taxpayers can take time. Even when it comes to filling out Form 2848, Power of Attorney and Declaration , which is the very first step in representing a taxpayer. After the engagement letter gets signed, and you're paid, of course. Sometimes we mess up that very first step. Yes, even me. When I was sta

Form 2848, Power of Attorney and Declaration of Representative Form 2848, Power of Attorney and Declaration of Representative, is what...

Are you stuck with not fully understanding the authority you have to help taxpayers? Maybe you aren't sure how being an Enrolled Agent should translate to your service offerings. I am going to explain what tax representation is and some services that you can offer taxpayers who need your expertise.

Timalyn Bowens is teaching a class of students about income tax basics When working in the tax representation space, do you ever find yourself looking at the IRS acronyms but having no idea what they mean? I used to be the same way. How can you be an Enrolled Agent, one of America's tax experts, and not know these acronyms? But then, I started working in the industry and adopted the acronyms myself. At times, I even forget what it was like when I was starting out. That's why

Uncle Sam offering US taxpayers first time penalty abatement in 2025. The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) does offer relief from tax...

I work with many credentialed and non-credentialed tax professionals who want to help taxpayers with t heir tax debt. No matter the credentials there is one stumbling block we all run into, how we will get paid. If you're not familiar with tax representation it is when a tax professional stands in place of a taxpayer to deal with the IRS. In my firm that looks like the following: Audit representation Levy removal Lien removal Penalty Abatement Tax debt negotiation When I repr

I have great news for you if you or your client owe the IRS. The IRS does not have forever to collect on that debt from your client! This means with your help they don't have to take that debt to the grave if they can't pay it. But here is the catch, you need to know how the tax law works to ensure that does not happen. On the flip side, if the IRS owes your client, the client does not have forever to claim that refund. There are rules for how long the IRS has to assess tax o

Tax Representation leads are just different. They don't proudly brag about their problems, making them difficult to find if you don't know where to look. Yes, we can use tax liens to find out who in our area owes over a certain amount. But then what? Are you going to use scare tactics to scare them into working with you? If that's your cup of tea and the way you like to move, best wishes to you! That's not the way I like to approach it. I don't want anyone to feel pressured

When you become a tax professional you have more decisions to make than what you may realize. If you're reading this you are most likely an Enrolled Agent and looking for guidance on your career path. Some of the decisions you need to make are who will you serve, why, and how. Last week we began determining some of those things. If you missed that article or podcast you can still check them out. Getting them said aloud as well as written down with confidence is what we are w

A question I often get is, "what exactly is tax representation?" Initially I would think to myself," what? How do you not know?" But...

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is currently sending 5-8 million CP14 notices to taxpayers. Earlier in the year they announced that...

Originally, taxpayers could only make payments to the IRS by check and money order. Today the IRS offers a variety of ways to pay,...

When taxpayers don't meet their tax obligations the IRS charges penalties. The reasons range from not filing on time to not providing...

It used to take taxpayers a long time to access their tax records from the IRS. Now the IRS has several online tools to make IRS...

A tax transcript is the raw version of your financial story that the IRS has on record. Your tax return is your interpretation of what...

Just because your spouse is in trouble with the IRS does not mean that you have to go down with them. Two common forms of relief the IRS...

Have you ever heard of a couple getting in legal trouble due to back taxes? Maybe you remember the summer of 2013. When the Real...

If you owe the IRS you may have noticed that the balance due is higher than what you saw on the return. You aren't alone. The culprit in...

On August 24th, 2022 the IRS announced they will be forgiving $1.2 billion in penalties. The details of this relief are in Notice...

Timalyn at the 2022 Diverse Entrepreneurship Summit giving a presentation. This past June, I spoke at the Diverse Entrepreneurship Summit...