A report released Thursday by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration (TIGTA), has found that the IRS is continuing to hassle former hostages. The Service is supposed to provide tax relief to taxpayers who are or were held captive.
The act, which was signed into law after the October 7th, 2023, attack by Hamas where 12 Americans were taken into captivity, defers collection actions and abates any penalties assessed during the time the taxpayer was held captive. The penalties are supposed to continue to be abated for an additional six months after the taxpayer is released.
In January and April 2025, the State Department and the Federal Bureau of Investigation notified the IRS that 11 individuals were wrongfully detained or held hostage abroad. These individuals should have had a hostage indicator placed on their tax account so the IRS would know to provide the appropriate tax relief.
TIGTA initiated the evaluation after hearing reports that individuals who had been held captive were being assessed penalties and interest after returning to the U.S. for not filing tax returns on a timely basis or paying debts owed to the Service.
The report from TIGTA discovered the following…
1 – 75 individuals were either incorrectly labeled as a hostage or did not have the indicator removed from their account after they were released from captivity.
2 – Recently released hostages did not receive tax relief. The IRS did not abate penalties on some taxpayer accounts after being notified that the individuals were released from captivity.
3 – There were instances where the hostage indicator was not preventing account activity on tax accounts, such as postings of original tax returns and additional tax assessments.
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Some of these hostages were finally released last year. And after months of being held in the worst of all possible conditions, what’s waiting for them when they get home?
An IRS Notice.
Really. Are you ready for this?
Welcome back to America. And here’s your bill for tax, penalties and interest for your stay in the four star underground tunnel complex of Gaza where your were tortured and barely kept alive. Have a nice day!
We can only hope that someone at the Service is correcting this injustice.
Let me leave you with this…
As you may have heard, the partial Government Shutdown ended earlier this week when the House voted 217-214 to fund a large portion of the government through the rest of the fiscal year, which ends September 30th. The Senate passed the package last week, and the President signed it into law, restoring funding for the agencies that had lapsed Saturday.
Ending the impasse will kick off 10 days of negotiations over funding for the Department of Homeland Security which houses the budget for ongoing ICE Operations. Democrats have vowed to not fund ICE and the continuing Border Patrol Operations without substantial changes to the process.
But here’s the part that no one is talking about.
Yes, the House vote was 217-214, which is the exact number of Republicans and Democrats in the House. But the vote wasn’t a unanimous GOP vote.
21 Republicans voted nay. And somehow magically, out of the blue, 21 Democrats crossed the aisle and voted for the bill.
Does anyone actually think that this was simple happenstance? That somehow this was a natural occurrence?
If you do, I’ve got a bridge to sell you. This was a page right out of the Council Wars of Chicago, so many years ago.
Congress had a package to fund the government, and neither side wanted to admit that they worked with the other side to get it passed.
In reality, this was a big win. A bright red, white, and blue example of democracy at its finest.
And these warring factions are so caught up in the politics of the day, that they won’t take even a minute for a victory lap. Lest we forget that being a member of Congress has nothing whatsoever to do with ruling or governing a nation.
It’s about getting re-elected. And the ball just keeps on bouncing.
It looks like it’s going to be a reasonably nice weekend. It’s actually above freezing for the first time in a while.
Do something for yourselves for a change. Read a book. Take a long bath. Re-center your souls.
Make sure that the people who love you know that they’re loved as well. Do something nice for your significant other. Let your children and grandchildren know that they are the center of your universe
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Monday morning will come along way too soon.
And as always, if you’re having trouble with your accounting and tax work, I’m waiting for your call.
We’re all going to get through this. Let’s get through it together.
Accounting Solutions Ltd. stands ready to complete our mission and purpose of protecting you, your family, and your business. Whether you need Payroll Services, or Accounting and Tax Work, you have but to ask. I’m here and I remain,
Sincerely yours,
Chris Amundson
President
Accounting Solutions Ltd.
773-267-7500
888-310-0300
www.AccountingSolutionsLtd.com
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Chris Amundson
President
Accounting Solutions Ltd.
773-267-7500
888-310-0300
www.AccountingSolutionsLtd.com
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