Articles Posted in tax audit defense

Qualified Small Business Stock (QSBS) is one of the most powerful tax benefits available to founders, early employees, and investors. Under Section 1202 of the Internal Revenue Code, a taxpayer who holds qualifying stock in a small C corporation can exclude a large portion, and in many cases all, of the capital gain when the…

California’s proposed billionaire tax has put the California residency audit back in the national spotlight, and made it the single most important issue for wealthy individuals who have recently left the state or are thinking about it. As Proposition 40, the 2026 Billionaire Tax Act, heads toward a statewide vote, the California Franchise Tax Board…

Receiving a frivolous return notice when you filed an ordinary, good-faith tax return is jarring. The IRS uses the word “frivolous” to describe positions it considers baseless — the stuff of tax-protester theories — yet a growing number of taxpayers are getting these letters (IRS Letter 3176C) for returns that were nothing of the sort.…

If you have received IRS Letter 3176C, the notice is telling you the IRS believes your tax return contains a “frivolous” position, and that a $5,000 penalty may follow if you do not respond correctly within 30 days. For many taxpayers, that language is alarming and confusing, especially when the return in question looked entirely…

If you understand what an IRS Revenue Agent does on paper, you understand half of an examination. The other half — the half that determines outcomes — is how they think. The mental model an agent brings to a case shapes which issues get developed, which positions get pushed, which compromises get accepted, and ultimately…

An IRS CP2000 notice response is one of the most time-sensitive tasks a taxpayer will ever face. The CP2000 — often called an “underreporter notice” — arrives when the IRS believes the income, payments, credits, or deductions you reported on your tax return do not match what third parties reported about you. You have a…

Most taxpayers who receive an IRS audit notice make the same first call: their CPA. A few call a tax attorney. Almost none think to ask a more useful question — does the firm I’m hiring have anyone on the team who has actually sat on the other side of the audit table? A former…

By Alex Kugelman, Founder and Managing Attorney, Kugelman Law Not all cryptocurrency audits are the same. Understanding the types of cryptocurrency tax audits the IRS conducts — and what typically triggers each — gives crypto investors, traders, miners, and businesses a meaningful head start in evaluating their exposure and their options. A correspondence audit and…

By Alex Kugelman, Founder and Managing Attorney, Kugelman Law Understanding the stages of an IRS crypto audit is the single most useful thing a taxpayer under examination can do. Each stage has its own rules, its own deadlines, and its own strategic opportunities. Missing a deadline or misjudging a stage can cost you settlement leverage,…

Marin County is home to some of California’s highest earners, most successful entrepreneurs, and most sophisticated investors. It’s also a frequent target for IRS and California Franchise Tax Board (FTB) audit activity. If you’ve received an audit notice at your home in Mill Valley, Tiburon, San Rafael, Sausalito, or anywhere else across Marin, you need…