Minimizing tax burdens through legal means is something millions of Americans do every single year, but doing that is very different from unlawfully evading taxes altogether. There are various ways in which you can violate state or federal laws and end up being criminally charged for tax evasion. However, the reason why you have found yourself facing this type of legal trouble may be different from the grounds on which someone else is facing the exact same charge.
Understanding what went wrong with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) or the Comptroller of Maryland is the first step toward making things right with them and ideally mitigating the penalties imposed upon you. With that in mind, here is an overview of some of the most common causes of tax evasion charges in Baltimore, which our tax defense attorney from Whiteford Tax Defense may be able to help you amicably resolve.
You are allowed to claim various expenses as deductions from your taxable yearly income. This includes charitable donations, business and home office expenses, and tax credits, such as for supporting a dependent minor child. However, claiming deductions that you did not actually qualify for or claiming more money for a deduction that you have valid grounds to claim can quickly lead to you facing criminal and financial sanctions for tax evasion in Baltimore.
Another common cause of tax evasion charges in Baltimore and throughout the United States is the failure to accurately report your total yearly income on your tax return. Sometimes, this takes the form of simply forgetting to include income from a particular source, such as freelance work you did on the side while also drawing a salary as a regular employee. In other scenarios, it could entail neglecting to add cash payments to your yearly income, not reporting profit from the sale of your personal property, or even failing to report your lottery winnings.
Tax evasion charges in Baltimore can also arise from a business owner’s failure to report every single transaction they made or received to the IRS or the Office of the Comptroller. Concealing income by holding it in an account under another person’s name or using cryptocurrencies, such as Bitcoin, without reporting the income initially converted into that currency, both fall into this category of tax evasion methods.
Finally, misclassification of workers by employers is a deceptively common justification that tax authorities and courts in Baltimore use to file tax evasion charges. More specifically, misclassifying employees as independent contractors and failing to pay employment taxes, such as for Medicare and Social Security, can lead to tax evasion charges, along with substantial financial liability for income lost by those workers.
Whether your case involves one of these common causes of tax evasion charges in Baltimore or stems from another cause altogether, the fact that you are facing criminal prosecution means that you are dealing with a serious problem. That is why it is important to have help from a knowledgeable attorney to understand the charge against you and proactively build and present the strongest possible defense strategy.
Whiteford Tax Defense could provide the custom-tailored support you need to effectively pursue a favorable resolution to your case. Call our firm today for a confidential consultation.