What Maryland Taxpayers Need to Know About the Recent Rise in IRS Criminal Tax Cases

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is devoting substantial resources to criminal tax enforcement. This has led to a rise in IRS criminal tax cases targeting both individual and corporate taxpayers. If you are under investigation or facing charges—or if you have concerns about facing an investigation or criminal tax charges—keep reading to learn more from Maryland criminal tax lawyer Kevin E. Thorn, Managing Partner of U.S. International Tax Advisors:

IRS Criminal Tax Cases Can Involve a Wide Range of Allegations

The IRS is pursuing a wide range of allegations in criminal tax cases. These cases are handled by IRS Criminal Investigation (IRS CI), and IRS CI has the authority to investigate both tax-related and non-tax-related crimes. Some examples of common allegations include:

• Fraud involving IRS income taxes
• Fraud involving IRS business taxes (including IRS construction business taxes)
• Fraud involving IRS payroll taxes
• Making false statements to the federal government
• Offshore bank account fraud
• Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Employee Retention Credit (ERC) fraud
• Money laundering, wire fraud and other federal crimes

All of these are serious federal crimes that carry substantial penalties. When IRS CI uncovers evidence of these (and other crimes), it works with the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to pursue charges in federal district court. Convictions can lead to IRS tax liability, criminal fines, and federal prison time—and this makes it critical for any individual or business that is facing scrutiny from IRS CI to engage an experienced IRS and DOJ criminal tax attorney promptly.

When to Engage Defense Counsel

With this in mind, when should you engage defense counsel if you have concerns about facing federal tax-related criminal prosecution? Due to the substantial risks involved, we recommend engaging defense counsel as soon as:

• You Have Concerns About Facing an IRS Criminal Tax Case – If you have concerns about facing scrutiny and IRS CI has not yet launched an investigation, you may be able to achieve a favorable resolution without charges being filed. In many (but not all) cases, this involves leveraging IRS CI’s voluntary disclosure process.
• You Find Out IRS CI is Investigating You or Your Business – If you have just learned that IRS CI is investigating you or your business, you should engage a Maryland criminal tax attorney to intervene in the investigation on your behalf. Even at this stage, it may still be possible to achieve a favorable resolution without facing criminal prosecution.
• You Receive a Grand Jury Subpoena or Are Indicted on Federal Criminal Tax Charges – If you have received a federal grand jury subpoena or been indicted on federal criminal tax charges, you will need to defend yourself (or your business) effectively in order to avoid a conviction in federal court. At this stage, being able to rely on experienced tax counsel is paramount.

Schedule a Call with Maryland Criminal Tax Attorney Kevin E. Thorn

If you need to speak with experienced tax counsel about a pending or potential IRS criminal tax case, we encourage you to contact us today. Call 240-235-5096 or contact us confidentially online to schedule a call with Maryland criminal tax attorney Kevin E. Thorn, Managing Partner of U.S. International Tax Advisors.