Serious tax problem.. Need advice.

[on_thg]

Bankruptcy is most unlikely to get you out of your situation. As a poster above said, it's complicated, but the general rule is income taxes where returns were not filed are not dischargeable. If you want your eyes to glaze over, read 11 U.S.C. Section 523(a).

Next point: Just because the IRS says you owe $60,000 doesn't mean that you actually do. When confronted with an unfiled return, the IRS will make some assumptions in order to file one for you. They *always* make ridiculous assumptions about your income and filing status that are not in your favor which inflate the amount due. Much of the time their "calculations" are based on a whole lot of nothing.

Your best bet, if you have any money available at all, is to get yourself to a tax pro. No joke. I wouldn't be at all surprised to see your pro suggest getting everything filed and then try for an "Offer in Compromise" to settle all the debt for less than you owe.

Don't procrastinate on this one -- if you just let it go, it won't be long before the debt is 6 figures and the IRS rarely forgets.

[Uglyowl]

Hire a tax professional, figure out what you really owe, come up with a payment plan w/ the IRS.

[Moonsugar]

Get a lawyer.

[JohnnyHumongous]

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3) Flee to Canada. Is it at all possible to get out of this by moving to Canada? How do tax laws work for internet poker? Do you pay taxes where you live, or where you are a citizen?


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How is this going to help you? You just can't run away and not pay your taxes. This is pretty serious. Your best bet is to get yourself an attorney and work out some deal with the IRS.

FWIW, I'm canadian and I just finished filing my 04 taxes. I paid taxes on my poker winnings, stocks profit as well as my regular job. When I finally finished I felt like a daggar had just stabbed my heart. I've paid more in taxes some people make in a year. [img]/images/graemlins/mad.gif[/img]

The tax laws regarding internet gambling is still sketchy here in canada. I decided to pay it all because I'm trying to avoid a potential problem like the one you described. Also because I've made so much I want to be able to sleep at night. My potential earnings in poker is a lot higher than what it is now and I don't want to get myself in any situation which will take me away from this , ie going to jail. This would hurt me and my family much more than the amount of taxes that I'm paying.
Moral of the story, pay your taxes!! You can't hide from the government. Unless of course you play B&M poker in canada and hide your money under a mattress.

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I feel confident that you are one of the only people paying taxes on internet gambling earnings in Canada...

[Pinga]

I made a post about this a while ago.

Borrow the money from someone and send it to them. ASAP. Argue about it later.

If that sounds impossible, just wait until you see where this goes. Make it possible. They will add to that bill exponentially until every last dollar is in their pocket. They will not be accepting a small monthly payment. They will demand more per month than you can afford.

I couldn't tell from your post if you have regular employment. You have to be extremely poor to strike a deal. If you are gainfully employed and have the potential to pay the bill, you will be paying the bill.

Oh, yeah, almost forgot. Go see a lawyer or a tax professional [img]/images/graemlins/smile.gif[/img]

Best,
Pinga

[4thstreetpete]

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I feel confident that you are one of the only people paying taxes on internet gambling earnings in Canada...

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you'll be wrong on this.

[maxpower72]

The law in Canada is not sketchy. You must pay tax on your income. If poker is your source of income ie. your primary source of income you must pay the appropriate income tax. However in Canada unlike the U.S. gambling winnings are not taxable, so if you just play on the side your poker winnings are not taxable even if they dwarf your primary source of income.

[Sixth_Rule]

So i am canadian and my life for last year goes as follows.

1) Worked a job from Feb to July 40 hours a week got fired
2) in august started to make some money online while returning to my old job part time. worked on average 20 hours a week
3) won around 4000 US playing ring games + a 13000 dollar trip to australia. this was completely lucky and i have never moneyed and rarely play tournaments.

This year my hours in poker played will dwarf my work hours BUT i also got excepted into teachers college and am attending that in september. so poker is a hobby and not a life choice for me.

How do i assess if i should pay taxes on poker or not??

[Nalapoint1]

Income taxes are non-dischargeable in bankruptcy. You can file an Offer In Compromise form 656.You will need a tax specialist for this. You can get them online. This is their speciality. Try Tax Relief.They will charge somewhere between $4000-$8000 . Once it is filed with IRS all collection efforts will cease until offer is accepted or rejected( up to 18months).You may encounter other problems since online gambling is illegal in USA.

[mosta]

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...that I owe them $60,000 from the year of 2001 ...

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what was your income, roughly? (over $100k?, over $50?) did it go up much in subsequent years? $60k is HIGH, but like someone said they just made it up. but still is it anywhere close?