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Taxes are NOT voluntary, the law stipulates that each entity, whether a business or an individual is needed by law to submit tax returns.
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"Prior to you go out and purchase an existing small business, you need to make certain that the books and accounting are in order. You need to see a balance sheet and P&L statement, and you require to confirm that details. What did Henry Kissinger and Ronald Reagan state in foreign diplomacy and settlement? ""Trust, but validate!"" And, it is my contention that you take this fantastic advice when purchasing a used business. Recently, I was doing a little very small company consulting. And I explained that prior to buckling down about buying business the buyer requires to get a balance sheet, P & L (profit and loss) declaration, and 3-years income tax return. Well, it turns out business was a corporation symbolized by an ""Inc."" after the name of the company at the top of the P & L, so, the company depending upon the type of corporation would need to submit business tax returns. However, when asked to produce these, they stated they ran into difficult times and did not submit in 2007 and John Du Wors Attorney 2008, and did not have the 2009 taxes done yet, which truly are not totally due until September of 2010 with designated Internal Revenue Service extensions. Interesting I believed, however then I take place to discuss this concern relating to buying a business from a Corporation, which failed to submit its taxes for 2008 and 2009 this night to a Tax Accounting Professional at the Club Home here. He said this could be a huge problem; namely, not filing at all is a lot even worse than filing and not being able to pay, as the IRS would establish a payment structure to come existing. The 2009 taxes theoretically are not due up until September if he 'd filed an extension. But 2007 and 2008 are a real issue. Now then, prior to I go any even more, I need to make a statement to the reader here; CYA - I am not a Tax Lawyer, this is illegal advice, and I suggest you verify this conversation (rumor) with a certified and expert Tax attorney Professional. I am not certified to offer you legal guidance, would never practice law without a license, and you can not take anything I state as legal advice. Okay so, CYA aside, this is my viewpoint and why I believe this: You see, I likewise spoke to somebody at Starbucks a couple of weeks ago, and he informed me a story where a company that failed to submit taxes, and subsequently went bankrupt had actually paid him as an electrical/mechanical specialist for building renovation. The other supplier's plumbing, TI guy, drywaller, and so on and the IRS never got paid, as the company lacked money. The Bankruptcy court followed the electrical specialist to pay back the money for the services he 'd rendered completely, and the BK Court stated that cash would be divided among the remainder of the financial obligations, and in 18-months, the electrical specialist would get a check, maybe 10 cents on the dollar or his share. He needed to repay the cash he had actually been paid. Oops. Hence, the $80,000 was paid back to the court, had he not paid, that BK Court might force him to pay it. Type of like the folks who were paid back from the Bernie Madoff cash prior to everyone finding out it was a Ponzi Plan, even though they got their refund, it in fact was owed to all the other individuals too. Everyone loses.
Also, according to the Tax Lawyer I talked to, the properties of the Corporation (in this case Service For Sale Inc.) could be subject to a lien by the IRS, actually all properties of that corporation. If the president of that business offered those possessions to the purchaser, it could be deceitful conveyance, and therefore, even though they remained in the buyer's possession and a new corporation, the purchaser might have to pay - or surrender that equipment to satisfy the lien, and guess what, they 'd have the business's address and could put a lock on the door - tough luck. Furthermore, in this case, we had business for Sale Inc. without any way to prove the balance sheet or P and L, besides 8-sheets of paper from a Quicken Program. And no Business Broker in their right mind would continue the listing with that huge red flag out front. Okay so, in this case as a very small business specialist might say - ""I have no chance to figure out if this is so, all I can do is speculate?"" However, there is sufficient factor to provide no more for this service than the value of the pre-owned devices, and still, how can the buyer understand if business owner or his corporation owns it all free-and-clear, or if they borrowed versus a credit line at the bank on the possessions of the company, not to mention the back taxes owed, which the Corporation's President claims are owed. He may not have ""actually"" made any cash in those years, however presuming he did, he owes, and without those being paid, all the assets of that corporation are in limbo from what my friends and acquaintances tell me. Hence, this business case study is a wake-up call to anybody purchasing a company. And if you find yourself in a comparable circumstance, and if you want to pursue such a business purchase further, I would suggest you speak to a professional tax attorney before you proceed. You see purchasing a service includes risk, and when such variables and unpredictabilities are added to the formula it makes sense to seek counsel on this set of circumstances. Tax Attorneys normally have time on their hands to sit down to talk about things like this after April 15, and certainly, you 'd truly only need an hour or more to ask this question, and get the ""correct"" response."