| IR-2007-52 |
March 8, 2007 |
| Free File Available for Requesting Telephone Tax Refund |
| The Internal Revenue Service reminds telephone customers who do not normally file tax returns that they can use Free File to request the telephone excise tax refund. This group includes low-income people, many of them senior citizens. IRS's Free File is the easiest and quickest way to request the refund, which, if directly deposited, could arrive in the taxpayer's bank account in two weeks or less. |
| FS-2007-12 |
January 2007 |
| Tax Return Preparer Fraud |
| Return preparer fraud generally involves the preparation and filing of false income tax returns by preparers who claim inflated personal or business expenses, false deductions, unallowable credits or excessive exemptions on returns prepared for their clients. This includes inflated requests for the special one-time refund of the long-distance telephone tax. Preparers may also manipulate income figures to obtain tax credits, such as the Earned Income Tax Credit, fraudulently. |
| IR-2007-40 |
February 23, 2007 |
| 10 Million Taxpayers Miss Out on Telephone Tax Refunds; IRS Urges People to Check before Filing |
| The Internal Revenue Service today urged taxpayers to check to see if they qualify for the telephone excise tax refund after more than 10 million early filers did not request the one-time refund. |
| IR-2007-37 |
February 20, 2007 |
| Fraudulent Telephone Tax Refunds, Abusive Roth IRAs Top Off 2007 “Dirty Dozen” Tax Scams |
| The Internal Revenue Service today identified 12 of the most blatant scams affecting American taxpayers and warned people not to fall for schemes peddled by scamsters. |
| IR-2007-36 |
February 16, 2007 |
| IRS Moves to Stop Abusive Telephone Tax Refund Requests; Search Warrants Target Tax Preparers in Seven Cities Nationwide |
| Search warrants were carried out in seven cities this week by special agents from the Internal Revenue Service. According to affidavits filed in federal court, the IRS is seeking evidence from tax-preparation businesses suspected of preparing returns on behalf of clients requesting egregious amounts involving this year’s special telephone excise tax refund. |
| IR-2007-26 |
February 6, 2007 |
| IRS Begins Processing Returns Claiming Extender Deductions; Urges Taxpayers to File Electronically, Check on Phone Tax Refund |
| The Internal Revenue Service has started processing tax returns that claim key tax provisions renewed by legislation enacted in December and urged taxpayers not to overlook the one-time telephone tax refund. |
| IR-2007-21 |
January 31, 2007 |
| Mistakes Abound on Telephone-Tax Refund Requests; IRS Offers Tips for Getting a Speedy Refund |
| The Internal Revenue Service today offered taxpayers tips for requesting the telephone excise tax refund, after early tax returns show some people are making basic mistakes, others are requesting excessive refunds and many are missing out on the refunds, altogether. |
| IR-2007-16 |
January 25, 2007 |
| Some Telephone Tax Refund Requests May Be Too High; IRS Will Deny Improper Requests |
| The Internal Revenue Service said today that early filings show some individual taxpayers have requested large and apparently improper amounts for the special telephone tax refund. The IRS is investigating potential abuses in this area and will take prompt action against taxpayers who claim improper refund amounts and the return preparers who help them. |
| TETR-03 |
January 2007 |
| Telephone Tax Refunds: Questions and Answers for Businesses and Tax-Exempt Organizations |
| The IRS has developed a formula that most businesses and tax-exempt organizations can use to figure their refund. To use the formula, eligible taxpayers need only review their phone bills for 2 months, instead of all 41 months included in the refund period. In addition, eligible taxpayers need to know their total telephone expenses for the 41-month period and the number of employees reported on their federal withholding tax return (Form 941) for the second quarter of 2006. |
| TETR-02 |
January 2007 |
| Telephone Tax Refund Questions and Answers for Individuals |
| The telephone tax refund is a one-time payment available on your 2006 federal income tax return, designed to refund previously collected federal excise taxes on long-distance or bundled services. It is available to anyone who paid such taxes on landline, wireless, or Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) service. |
| TETR-01 |
January 2007 |
| Telephone Excise Tax Refund |
| The Telephone Excise Tax Refund (TETR) is a one-time payment available on your 2006 federal income tax return. It is designed to refund previously collected long distance telephone taxes. Individuals, businesses and tax-exempt organizations are eligible to request it. |
| IR-2006-179 |
November 16, 2006 |
| Businesses and Tax-Exempts Can Use Formula for Telephone Tax Refund |
| The Internal Revenue Service today announced a formula that will allow businesses and tax-exempt organizations to estimate their federal telephone excise tax refunds. |
| IR-2006-137 |
August 31, 2006 |
| IRS Announces Standard Amounts for Telephone Tax Refunds |
| The Internal Revenue Service today announced the standard amounts that most long-distance customers can use to figure their telephone tax refund. These amounts, which range from $30 to $60, will enable millions of individual taxpayers to request the telephone tax refund without having to dig through old phone bills. |
| Notice 2006-50 |
June 19, 2006 |
| Communications Excise Tax; Toll Telephone Service |
| This notice announces that the Service will follow the holding of Am. Bankers Ins. Group v. United States, 408 F.3d 1328 (11th Cir. 2005). The notice provides related guidance to taxpayers and collectors. Notice 2005-79 revoked. |
| IR-2006-82 |
May 25, 2006 |
| Government to Stop Collecting Long-Distance Telephone Tax |
| The Internal Revenue Service today announced that it will stop collecting the federal excise tax on long-distance telephone service. The tax on telephone services was first imposed in 1898. The current rate is 3% of the charges billed for these services. The IRS announcement follows decisions in five federal appeals courts holding that the tax does not apply to long-distance service as it is billed today. |
| Treasury Dept. News Release #JS-4287 |
May 25, 2006 |
| Treasury Announces End to Long-Distance Telephone Excise Tax |
| The U.S. Treasury Department today announced it is conceding the legal dispute over the federal excise tax on long-distance telephone service. The Department of Justice will no longer pursue litigation and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) will issue refunds of tax on long-distance service for the past three years. Taxpayers will be able to apply for refunds on their 2006 tax forms, to be filed in 2007. |
