Buffalo Tax Fraud Lawyers
In New York State, Criminal Tax Fraud is the name for tax evasion. This white collar crime carries some of the worst potential penalties of any of the other potential charges. Pursuant to New York Penal Law 1806, criminal tax fraud is:
“a tax fraud act or acts […] with the intent to evade any tax due under this chapter, or to defraud the state or any subdivision of the state, the person pays the state and/or a political subdivision of the state (whether by means of underpayment or receipt of refund or both), in a period of not more than one year [more or less] than the tax liability that is due.”
This offense can be committed by filing a return that would indicate you owe less than your actual tax liability. You can also get charged if you obtain a return that is far greater than what you are actually due.
Facing the Internal Revenue Service or the New York State Tax Commission can be a daunting process for most individuals. Not only are the laws and issues often convoluted, but the bureaucracy can also be overwhelming. Going up against these without the assistance our experienced Buffalo tax fraud lawyers could be disastrous.
Dealing with a tax controversy will be stressful, especially in light of the fact that the penalties and interest may continue to add up for every day you are unable to get a resolution. In addition, many tax issues arrive completely out of seemingly nowhere and you had no idea you were doing anything wrong to begin with, and you suddenly have a legal problem that necessitates immediate and decisive legal assistance.
Due to the serious nature of this crime, it is important to ensure you get highly skilled legal representation from an experienced and successful Buffalo criminal defense attorney. The skilled professionals at our law firm have decades of experience representing clients in court. The dedication they show to those they represent and their ethical conduct has gotten them a long list of accolades.
The Repercussions of a Criminal Tax Fraud Conviction
In the category of “white collar” crimes, Criminal Tax Fraud carries some of the steepest penalties, depending on the nature of the money that the government was fraudulently deprived. There are five levels of severity of tax evasion. Most of these are considered a felony and carry penalties including jail time, heavy fines, and possible loss of other rights or privileges. That could include some professional licenses or memberships that you rely upon having for your livelihood.
In Buffalo, criminal tax evasion is classified as follows:
- Fifth degree Criminal Tax Fraud is misdemeanor charge committed by defrauding the government of any amount of $2,999 or less over a period not exceeding one year. This crime is punishable by up to one year in prison.
- Fourth degree Criminal Tax Fraud is a class “E” felony charge. One commits this form of fraud by defrauding the government of $3,000-$10,000 over a period not exceeding one year. This carries a penalty of up to four years in prison.
- Third degree Criminal Tax Fraud is a class “D” felony charge. This committed by defrauding the government of $10,000-$50,000 over a period that does not exceed one year. Punishable by as much as seven years in prison.
- Second degree Criminal Tax Fraud is a class “C” felony charge committed by defrauding the government of $50,000-$1,000,000 over a period no longer than one year. The penalty for this crime is up to 15 years in prison.
- First degree Criminal Tax Fraud is a class “B” felony charge. This is committed by defrauding the government of an amount greater than $1,000,000 over a period of less than one year. This is punishable by up to four years in prison.
Don’t run the risk of the extreme penalties of tax evasion without having legal representation from our reputable law firm. Call us today.
Every year, the government reports hundreds of billions of dollars of losses to tax fraud. To deal with the problem, both the IRS and the State of New York have adopted whistleblower programs that provide significant rewards to those who blow the whistle on persons and businesses that owe significant tax liabilities. For blowing the whistle on violations of the tax law, New York imposes three times damages and offers whistleblowers up to 30 percent of the damages recovered from the defendant.
Types of Tax Fraud that Are Often Used to Support a Whistleblower Claim
Indeed, no list can be exhaustive. Nonetheless, there are some common types of tax fraud that could support a whistleblower claim under either or both the IRS and New York tax whistleblower plans include:
- Stashing money in secret, offshore accounts
- Investing in or promoting fake tax shelters
- Misclassifying employees and paying employees cash under the table
- Failure to report or concealing income and/or exaggerating expenses or deductions
- Filing false claims for tax credits
- Participating in sales tax evasion
Authorization of Whisteblower Cases in New York State
More than ten years ago in August 2010, New York became the first state in the union to affirmatively authorize whistleblowers to bring cases under its false claims act on the basis of serious violations of the tax law.
The State of New York is enforcing its tax cases with great vigor. In 2014, New York arrived at a $6.2 million settlement of a whistleblower case that alleged that a particular company failed to pay state taxes. The whistleblower in that case had a claim on approximately $1 million from that settlement.
The IRS has a whistleblower program that differs from New York’s program. It too, offers significant rewards to whistleblowers when they provide information leading to the recovery of owed taxes from tax delinquents. Unlike the state provisions, the IRS whistleblower program is available to anyone who reports any owed-tax liability, not just liabilities that based on knowingly false claims.
Reach out to us today for your free consultation on your Buffalo tax fraud case.