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Irs audit...help!

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10K views 50 replies 19 participants last post by  larabelle 
#1 ·
This is a serious SOS to all my frugal village family. :grball:

On Friday 05/07/10 I checked my mail and found a letter from the IRS stating I am being audited for 2008. :hmmm: The letter identified that they are focusing on my contributions. They are requesting all reciepts as well as canceled checks. I give to my church (checks) as well as to the Goodwill (items). The audit is to be at the IRS office and I have to call them to set it up. I did my own taxes for 2008 and yes I do have reciepts. However I do not have any canceled checks my bank does not send out canceled checks. I will be visiting my bank tomorrow to discuss print outs of those checks.

Has anyone else been audited? What should I expect? Should I contact a tax attorney? Should I consider having a tax attorney come with me to the audit?
 
#2 ·
I've never had experience with an IRS Audit, but I know Lady Kemma has. She should be able to provide you a wealth of information.

Your bank should be able to provide you copies of the cancelled checks. Unfortunately, this may be something your bank charges for. I would ask them up front before they do any research, that way it doesn't come as unpleasant surprise.

Good luck!
 
#3 ·
Thanks for the response Mrs. McDowell!!!
Yep I thought that the bank will charge me for copes of the canelled checks.
 
#4 ·
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#5 ·
WOW oh WOW the website is GREAT.:cheergrl: THANK-YOU SO VERY VERY MUCH Star SApphire for responding and giving me this information.
 
#7 ·
I know, right?? :D You're welcome!! Glad I could find the link again for you, I had lost my bookmark for it and had to go through my old posts here to find it again for you.
 
#6 · (Edited)
ok, breathe. i went thru this last august. they are telling you exactly what they are looking at.

mine was medical, yours is charitable contributions. they didn't look at anything else. edited to add: she did look at every single paystub.

you will need those cancelled checks (or the scan that the bank does)

i didn't need a tax attorney. just showed up with my receipts and came home with 2000 more. turns out i overpaid and she fixed it.

she started out real cold then as she realized my ex and i weren't deadbeats she loosened up and started making jokes. by the end of the audit, she laughed and gave us all back our receipts, and said you are getting 2000 back. call me if you don't get it in a month.

you will be ok. the goodwill receipts are hard to prove and may be a sticking point for you.

oh, and go ahead and plan on taking the day off. you will be weak in the knees after. it took several hours, including going thru a metal detector.

you're in san antonio? want me to go with you?
 
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#10 ·
you will be ok. the goodwill receipts are hard to prove and may be a sticking point for you.
you're in san antonio? want me to go with you?
THANK-YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR RESPONSE!!!It is so good to hear that someone recieved money back from the IRS.
Maybe ...just maybe I will get a check for $10K which would knock out the rest of my debt.(Wishful thinking...I know) :vibes:
Oh I hope the goodwill receipts will not be a problem because I took a $780 deduction for stuff I donated (computer, sewing machine etc). I do have the original receipts and what I paid for them.
Thank-you so much for volunteering to go with me. But I think I will be OK. I am in Dallas.
 
#8 ·
I got one of those wonderful letters from the IRS in the mail Friday, but for a mail inquiry. They have a 1099 I didn't file and pay taxes on, a big one - $5000. WHAT?

That was a special insurance benefit from the LSU system. They cut the check and paid me the first part of January, 2008. It came with a letter saying I would get a 1099 at the end of the year. Ok. Then a 1099 for it showed up in mid-February, saying it was 2007 income. Huh? I called, they insisted that was right, so I filed an ameded return and paid the taxes on it.

With this letter, I went back through my files, and God bless! They sent a SECOND 1099 on the same payment for 2008, as their original letter said they would. Ok. My fault too. I downloaded my 1099s on bank interest and filed early for 2008, as I always do. When the mailed forms drift in, I just file them away, since it's all done. This one, that I was not expecting at all, just got filed. They come from LSU in practically anonymous envelopes, and since I wasn't looking for it, ok. it slipped by.

Tomorrow I will be on the phone with Baton Rouge, trying to get this straightened out. And also on the phone with the IRS, because there is a "retirement" adjustment, that I don't understand at all.

Sigh. Sorry forthe long story, but this thread, uh, touched a nerve today.
 
#9 ·
Jeepers I get nervous just thinking about an IRS audit. 'Specially one where you actually have to deal with them face to face.

Had a letter audit years ago during my first marriage. Had to do with a special circumstance with 1st husband's business - long story short, we paid an attorney to point out to the IRS in their own tax code where they were wrong. It was money well spent for us.

I will be hoping for the best for you - let us know how it goes.
 
#12 ·
GOOD LUCK! Stay calm and take a deep breath!
Good Advice because one minute I am calm about it and the next minute I feel like I am going to hyperventilate about the whole deal. I will give you all a blow by blow detail about how it goes and what happens.
 
#14 ·
3 years i think
 
#15 ·
I thought you had to keep papers for 7. Why else would you have to keep the papers that long? Not sure though.

Ladykemma; nice of you to offer to go with Larabelle

Larabelle; sounds like you did a good job saving receipts; I also thought that the bank could not charge for copies of checks if they are for IRS. Good Luck and let us know how it turns out
 
#22 ·
I also thought that the bank could not charge for copies of checks if they are for IRS. Good Luck and let us know how it turns out
I am definitely going to look into this because my bank is charging me $5.00 per check. And since some of the contributions were thru automatic deduction from my checking account I need my monthly statements and they are charging me $6.00 per statement. AUUUGHHHHHHHHH!!!
I really thought all I would need was the reciepts. OH WHAT STUPID TAX!!!!!!!!!
 
#18 ·
My dad was audited twice. .. as long as you do everything on the up and up they are ok to work with. My dad took all his receipts, records, etc. in to the office and said "ok, show me why I owe you $xxx, cause I do my own taxes and I don't want to make a mistake again next year." After repeating that several times , and them changing the numbers each time, they finally said he would get money back. Dad very patiently asked them to show him how they arrived at that number, because "he didn't want to make the same mistake next year." I think they were glad to be rid of him.

My aunt worked for the Federal IRS, department of collections. 7 years is as far back as they generally go for audits.
 
#20 ·
My dad was audited twice. .. as long as you do everything on the up and up they are ok to work with. My dad took all his receipts, records, etc. in to the office and said "ok, show me why I owe you $xxx, cause I do my own taxes and I don't want to make a mistake again next year." After repeating that several times , and them changing the numbers each time, they finally said he would get money back. Dad very patiently asked them to show him how they arrived at that number, because "he didn't want to make the same mistake next year." I think they were glad to be rid of him.
Oh I love that...give them some of their own medicine. I say good for your dad!!! :fence:
 
#19 ·
Just wanted to chime in to cheer you on. I know I'd be nervous just like you. :hugz: :cheergrl:
 
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#21 ·
The letter which I recieved on Friday stated I had ten days to call and schedule an appointment. Well yesterday I called to set up the appointment and here is how the conversation went:

Me: "I am calling about the letter I received, in the letter it said that I need to set up an appointment. Is there anyway I can just mail in the reciepts since the letter states you are only reviewing my charitable deduction reciepts."

IRS clerk: "Let me pull your file." (The clerk pulled my file and verified that it was me then she stated) "I can not authorize that but let me let you speak to my supervisor."

Me: I repeated the same thing to the supervisor as I had mentioned to the IRS clerk.

IRS supervisor: "No we need you to come in becuase we have some questions which we need to ask you in addition to reviewing your reciepts...in order to build our case."

I have not called back to make an appointment yet. I will call within the ten day window...but my question is what case???????
The letter just states that they want to look at my reciepts for my charitable deductions for 2008.
 
#27 ·
Update:
1.) I do bank online and yes I did have access to all of the statments which I promptly printed out..so $0 charge for that.
2.) I still had to request copies of over #30 checks and the bank gave me a discount PRAISE THE LORD!!! They only charged me fifty cents per check to a total of $15.00 for these checks.
3.) The audit is due to take place on June 29th.
 
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#29 ·
Update: I decided to seek counsel :eek: concerning this situation and I received some interesting information after my tax return was reviewed. A red flag was triggered at the IRS due to the fact that I claimed in excess of 10% of my gross income toward charitable giving on my tax return. In reality I claimed 15%. Due to the 15% the IRS believes that :
A. There is no way I gave and can validate that amount and
B. I must have had some unclaimed income to be able to give that much.

I thought it was interesting that they asked about if I sold anything on ebay or did any online selling, if I bartered any services and if I earned any money moonlighting which was not reported on my tax return.

I am supposed to meet with them on Tuesday the 29th....only four days to go!!!!!!!!!!!!:soapbox:
 
#30 ·
By the way the answer to all of these questions was "no" "

"if I sold anything on ebay or did any online selling, if I bartered any services and if I earned any money moonlighting which was not reported on my tax return. "
 
#33 ·
I am sorry I have been so slow in updating you all on what occured during the audit on the 29th....but the correction officer only just now allowed me computer access as I am a occupant of cell number 254B in the county jail. The audit did not go well to say the least...upon completion of the audit I was escorted from the IRS building directly to jail. My charge is tax evasion.....:(
I will be here until my hearing
 
#34 ·
Of course I was just joking in my first post...:bigglass:
The audit went Great!!! :chug: The IRS ruled in my favor and elected that my tax return stood as I submitted it with no change. They even agreed with my GoodWill deductions. So I am done with that nonsense. God is so Good to me!!!!!!!!!!!
 
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