Active-Duty Troops Owe IRS $390 Million
- Post 18 April 2012
- By Andrew Tilghman | Military Times:
About 60,000 active-duty service members and reservists owe the IRS roughly $390 million in back taxes, in part because of confusion caused by frequent overseas deployments and address changes, IRS data show.
"Military tax returns are a little more complicated," said Theresa Buchholz, a tax research analyst with H&R Block Tax Services in Kansas City, Mo.
Among the reasons servicemembers are susceptible to tax troubles:
•Confusion over eligibility rules for a tax break on income earned while serving in combat zones.
•Frequent moves that increase the odds that tax documents are mailed to an old address.
•The risk of deployed troops missing deadlines for response to IRS queries.
Straightening out the problem can be a headache, said Navy Lt. Cmdr. Steven Millard, who blames his tax troubles a few years ago on a back-to-back deployment and family move.
"Took me two years to clear up a post-deployment 'late filing' and get the money back I had to submit to stop the insanity of fines and interest," he said. ...continues...
"Question all which is 'taught,' dig deeper, think clearly, respond profusely. Conformity is the antithesis of free thought and self-determination." -- Standard Pearls