Swiss Bank Program Campaign Archives

Weekly IRS Roundup May 18 – May 22, 2020

Presented below is our summary of significant Internal Revenue Service (IRS) guidance and relevant tax matters for the week of May 18 – May 22, 2020. Additionally, for continuing updates on the tax impact of COVID-19, please visit our resource page here.

May 18, 2020: The U.S. Tax Court announced that comments to the proposed amendments to the Rules of its Practice and Procedure should be emailed to Stephanie A. Servoss, Clerk of the Court, at Rules@ustaxcourt.gov. The Tax Court has not received mail since March 19, 2020.

May 18, 2020: The IRS added approximately 3,500 phone operators to answer Economic Impact Payment (EIP) questions.

May 19, 2020: The Large Business & International (LB&I) released information regarding the Swiss Bank Program Campaign. The program allows Swiss financial institutions to provide information on the U.S. persons with beneficial ownership of foreign financial accounts. The campaign will address noncompliance of such taxpayers.

May 20, 2020: The IRS announced that Andy Keyso has been selected to serve as the Chief of the IRS Independent Office of Appeals, the IRS announced. For more information on Mr. Keyso and IRS Appeals, see our write-up here.

May 21, 2020: The IRS announced that the 2020 IRS Nationwide Tax Forums will be held virtually in 2020 with a series of live-streamed webinars beginning this July. The 2020 Nationwide Tax Forums will begin on July 21 and continue through August 20.

May 22, 2020: The IRS released its weekly list of written determinations (e.g., Private Letter Rulings, Technical Advice Memorandums and Chief Counsel Advice).

Special thanks to Emily Mussio in our Chicago office for this week’s roundup.

IRS Continues to Barrage Taxpayers with New Campaigns

On November 3, 2017, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Large Business and International (LB&I) division identified 11 new examination compliance “campaigns.” We have extensively discussed LB&I’s “campaign” examination process, including posts on Understanding LB&I “Campaigns” and Run for Cover – IRS Unveils Initial “Campaigns” for LB&I Audits.

The IRS identified the 11 new campaigns “through LB&I data analysis and suggestions from IRS compliance employees.” The new campaigns are:

Form 1120-F Chapter 3 and Chapter 4 Withholding Campaign
Swiss Bank Program Campaign
Foreign Earned Income Exclusion Campaign
Verification of Form 1042-S Credit Claimed on Form 1040NR
Agricultural Chemicals Security Credit Campaign
Deferral of Cancellation of Indebtedness Income Campaign
Energy Efficient Commercial Building Property Campaign
Corporate Direct (Section 901) Foreign Tax Credit
Section 956 Avoidance
Economic Development Incentives Campaign
Individual Foreign Tax Credit (Form 1116)

Practice Point: The IRS’s salvo represents the “second wave” of LB&I’s issue-focused compliance work. Indeed, the IRS noted that “[m]ore campaigns will continue to be identified, approved and launched in the coming months.” It is clear that the IRS is focusing its resources on these campaigns, and has developed significant internal expertise on these issues. If you have one of the identified issues, consider being proactive and preparing an audit ready-file as the issue will likely be examined.

Weekly IRS Roundup May 18 – May 22, 2020

IRS Continues to Barrage Taxpayers with New Campaigns

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