The simplest way to reduce your taxable income from an S corporation is to take some of the gross receipts directly into your personal account without running them through the corporate books. Don’t mention this to your tax preparer and make sure they don’t find out. If you get caught by the IRS, though, hire an expert to explain why it is your preparer’s fault. This plan did not work all that well for a couple, both physicians, who were running two medical family medical clinics through an S Corporation called MedExpress. They ended up being liable for the fraud penalty which has the collateral effect of extending the statute of limitations indefinitely. At 75% the fraud penalty is as bad as it can get without losing your liberty.
Assessment Statutes and Document Retention Best Practices
Amber Gray-Fenner, EA NTPI Fellow USTCP
When it comes to document retention, my guiding policy is “If I don’t keep it, it can’t be stolen or subpoenaed.” That sounds cynical, but there’s truth in it. The smaller your data “surface area,” the less you have to manage in the event of a data breach (or, if you hold paper documents, in the event of a fire or break in). And, if a client or former client gets really sideways in divorce or criminal court, being able to say “I have a policy in place and I don’t keep records longer than three years” can provide you with a measure of peace. But what should your policy be? It depends, but relevant assessment statutes are a good place to start. This article reviews the IRS rules for assessing tax and provides some best practices for developing document retention policies for return preparation documents in your practice.
