News & Events

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently announced that it is entering the “next stage” of Employee Retention Credit (ERC) enforcement after uncovering huge numbers of improper claims. In a June 20, 2024, News Release, the IRS disclosed that it now believes the “vast majority” of ERC claims show signs of being improper, and it is responding accordingly. As Washington D.C. IRS tax lawyer Kevin E. Thorn, Managing Partner of Thorn Law Group, explains, this includes not only denying improper claims but also pursuing civil and criminal penalties as warranted.

Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Deputy Commissioner Douglas O’Donnell recently acknowledged that the agency had approximately 1.4 million Employee Retention Credit (ERC) claims pending as of May 2024. This is true even though the IRS issued a moratorium on new claims late last year. There are two primary reasons for this backlog, both of which present concerns for businesses that may have filed invalid claims. Washington D.C. tax attorney Kevin E. Thorn, Managing Partner of Thorn Law Group, explains.

While several allegations can lead to criminal charges against individual and corporate taxpayers, some of the most common allegations involve making false statements to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Although inadvertently filing a false tax return is not a federal crime, willfully filing a false return is. As Washington D.C. criminal tax lawyer Kevin E. Thorn, Managing Partner of Thorn Law Group, explains, willfully making false statements to the IRS can have serious consequences—and this is true regardless of whether these statements are made before or during a criminal tax audit.

While it has been four years since Congress established the paycheck protection program (PPP) and employee retention credit (ERC) under the CARES Act, pandemic-related fraud remains a prime target for both the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ). The IRS’ Criminal Investigation Division (IRS CI) and the DOJ are actively pursuing criminal investigations in 2024, leaving many business owners in need of a highly experienced Washington D.C. tax lawyer.

If your business is facing an IRS tax audit in 2024, it will be important for you to know what you can expect during the process. This includes knowing what issues are likely to come up—and knowing what risks these issues present not only for your business, but also potentially for you as a business owner. Here, Washington D.C. business tax attorney Kevin E. Thorn, Managing Partner of Thorn Law Group, provides an overview of common income and employment tax issues that tend to come up during business tax audits.