The dangers of being "listed" : A warning for 419, 412i, Sec.79 and captive insurance

Accounting Today                                                                                  Lance Wallach




Taxpayers who previously adopted 419, 412i, captive insurance or Section 79 plans are in
big trouble.

In recent years, the IRS has identified many of these arrangements as abusive devices to
funnel tax deductible dollars to shareholders and classified these arrangements as "listed
transactions."

These plans were sold by insurance agents, financial planners, accountants and attorneys
seeking large life insurance commissions. In general, taxpayers who engage in a "listed
transaction" must report such transaction to the IRS on Form 8886 every year that they
"participate" in the transaction, and you do not necessarily have to make a contribution or
claim a tax deduction to participate. Section 6707A of the Code imposes severe penalties
($200,000 for a business and $100,000 for an individual) for failure to file Form 8886 with respect to a listed transaction.


But you are also in trouble if you file incorrectly.

I have received numerous phone calls from business owners who filed and still got fined. Not only do you have to file Form 8886, but also it has to be prepared correctly. I only know of two people in the United States who have filed these forms properly for clients. They tell me that was after hundreds of hours of research and over fifty phones calls to various IRS personnel.


The filing instructions for Form 8886 presume a timely filing. Most people file late and follow the directions for currently preparing the forms. Then the IRS fines the business owner. The tax court does not have jurisdiction to abate or lower such penalties imposed by the IRS.

Many business owners adopted 412i, 419, captive insurance and Section 79 plans based
upon representations provided by insurance professionals that the plans were legitimate
plans and were not informed that they were engaging in a listed transaction.
Upon audit, these taxpayers were shocked when the IRS asserted penalties under Section
6707A of the Code in the hundreds of thousands of dollars. Numerous complaints from
these taxpayers caused Congress to impose a moratorium on assessment of Section 6707A penalties.



The moratorium on IRS fines expired on June 1, 2010. The IRS immediately started sending out notices proposing the imposition of Section 6707A penalties along with requests for lengthy extensions of the Statute of Limitation


Lance Wallach, National Society of Accountants Speaker of the Year and member of the
AICPA faculty of teaching professionals, is a frequent speaker on retirement plans, financial
and estate planning, and abusive tax shelters. He writes about 412(i), 419, and captive
insurance plans. He speaks at more than ten conventions annually, writes for over fifty
publications, is quoted regularly in the press and has been featured on television and radio
financial talk shows including NBC, National Public Radio's All Things Considered, and
others. Lance has written numerous books including Protecting Clients from Fraud,
Incompetence and Scams published by John Wiley and Sons, Bisk Education's CPA's
Guide to Life Insurance and Federal Estate and Gift Taxation, as well as AICPA best-selling
books, including Avoiding Circular 230 Malpractice Traps and Common Abusive Small
Business Hot Spots. He does expert witness testimony and has never lost a case. Contact
him at 516.938.5007wallachinc@gmail.com or visit www.taxaudit419.com or www.taxlibrary.


The information provided herein is not intended as legal, accounting, financial or any
other type of advice for any specific individual or other entity. You should contact an
appropriate professional for any such advice.

8 comments:

Lance Wallach said...

https://conservationeasementsirs.org/contact-us

Lance Wallach said...

https://conservationeasementsirs.org/contact-us

Lance Wallach said...

cryptocurrency audits
Published on December 18, 2019
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Speaker,author at VEBA LLC
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Over the past month, we have seen the IRS, the tax collecting agency of the United States, send out more than 10,000 warning and action letters to suspected cryptocurrency action letter.

Lance Wallach said...

Great

Lance Wallach said...

Captive Insurance And The IRS
The IRS continues to heavily scrutinize captive insurance arrangements. Certain captive insurance types have consistently appeared, including in 2019, on the IRS’s “Dirty Dozen” list of tax scams to avoid. Micro-captives in particular have been identified as potential vehicles for illegal tax shelters and the IRS is keen to crack down.

If the IRS believes that a captive insurance company is claiming deductions for non-insurance activities they will litigate. This includes going after captive insurance companies that are claiming unreasonable premium deductions. If the captive insurance company cannot show that they are distributing risk, selling insurance, shifting risk, or whether transactions involved insurance risk then that captive could be a target for the IRS.

We'll Get You Compliant

Lance Wallach said...

Captive Insurance And The IRS
The IRS continues to heavily scrutinize captive insurance arrangements. Certain captive insurance types have consistently appeared, including in 2019, on the IRS’s “Dirty Dozen” list of tax scams to avoid. Micro-captives in particular have been identified as potential vehicles for illegal tax shelters and the IRS is keen to crack down.

If the IRS believes that a captive insurance company is claiming deductions for non-insurance activities they will litigate. This includes going after captive insurance companies that are claiming unreasonable premium deductions. If the captive insurance company cannot show that they are distributing risk, selling insurance, shifting risk, or whether transactions involved insurance risk then that captive could be a target for the IRS.

We'll Get You Compliant

Lance Wallach said...

All you wanted was a comfortable retirement. What you got was fraud, incompetence, and
scams. Fortunately, Lance Wallach and his team are here to help you protect your assets and
keep the IRS out of your pockets!

Remember, many advisory firms offer financial planning, insurance, and investment services,
but the difference is that Lance Wallach wrote the books on life insurance as well as
financial and estate planning that the other consultants learned from!

If you want to sleep soundly at night, don't go to the students for your financial solutions, go to
the one who teaches them - Lance Wallach!

Lance Wallach said...

he insurance industry have been conjuring ways to make life insurance premiums tax deductible. Over the years we have seen many schemes that have failed IRS scrutiny. Welfare benefit plans set up under I.R.C. section 419, 412(e) plans and Producer Owned Reinsurance Companies (PORCs) are all common examples.

When one scheme fails it isn’t long before a resourceful promoter comes up with a different product. Inevitably promoters find some lawyer or accountant to draft a favorable opinion letter and a new industry is born. In a few years, however, the IRS catches up and decl