Tax Audit in Pasadena, California

Find the right Tax Audit attorney in Pasadena, CA

Tax Audit Lawyers in Pasadena

A "tax audit" in California is the process by which the appropriate tax authorities (either the IRS, at the federal level, or its state equivalent) investigate a tax filing in more detail than they do for ordinary filings, normally because there appears to be a discrepancy, or some other suspicious item, in somebody's tax returns. However, the IRS (and state tax authorities) sometimes do rounds of unexpected audits, where they audit taxpayers at random, without necessarily suspecting them of any wrongdoing.

The process of a Pasadena, California tax audit is normally pretty straightforward. If and when you are faced with a tax audit, you'll receive a letter from the IRS, or its state equivalent, telling you that you're being audited. Nonetheless, you should not assume that this letter is authentic, because con artists will sometimes send fake audit letters to squeeze money out of innocent taxpayers. You should obtain independent confirmation of the letter's authenticity by searching the Internet for the name of the government agency in question, and contact them for more information.

Once you have made sure that your audit is indeed real, you can do a few things to get prepared for it. Most especially, you should collect all of the documents that the auditor has asked for, as well as any further documents and evidence that you think might help clear up any confusion about your tax return. You should bring these to the meeting with the auditor, and truthfully (to the best of your knowledge) answer all of the questions that the auditor asks.

Reasons For a Tax Audit in Pasadena, California

There are various reasons why the federal government, or the government of California may want to audit a taxpayer.

A taxpayer can be chosen for an audit at random, even if the tax authorities don't suspect any wrongdoing. The idea behind these random audits is to keep taxpayers on their toes. So, if you are audited for this reason, and know that you've done everything thoroughly in filing your taxes, you will likely be fine.

On the other hand, there are also certain reasons why the tax authorities in Pasadena, California might want to conduct a tax audit. The most frequent reason for a tax audit is suspicion that a taxpayer has not reported all of the income they earned in a particular year. This suspicion often arises when a taxpayer buys a massive number of expensive luxury items, but only claims a small amount of income on their tax return. Obviously, the tax man will be extremely interested in learning where someone who is claiming a minimum-wage level income on their taxes got the money to buy a sports car.

Claiming an unusually-high number of deductions is another frequent reason for tax audits in Pasadena, California. A tax deduction is some expenditure that you can subtract from your taxable income, thereby reducing your tax liability. If you claim such a wide number of deductions that your tax liability has been reduced to almost nothing, the IRS will probably want to make sure that all of these deductions are legitimate.

How Can A Pasadena, California Tax Lawyer Help?

If you are audited in Pasadena, California, and believe that you have done everything right in gathering and filing your tax return, you likely don't have much to worry about. If there is anything wrong with your tax return, it was likely the result of an honest mistake, which will result in light penalties - normallyy just an order to pay any back taxes you owe, plus interest.

But, in more convoluted cases, chances are you would be well-served by a tax lawyer in Pasadena, California, to ensure that your tax audit goes smoothly.

Talk to a Tax Law Attorney now!

Life in Pasadena

Pasadena, California is a city in Los Angeles County. It has a population of about 137,000 people.

Pasadena was first settled by Europeans in the early 1800s, and it was part of a Mexican land grant from that time period. When California became an U.S. state in 1849, Pasadena saw a large wave of settlement from other parts of the United States.

Modernly, Pasadena, California is known for its connection to cutting-edge scientific research. It is home to the California Institute of Technology - one of the leading universities in the country. It is also home to the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, which oversees the operations of many of NASA's deep space exploration probes. It is also the largest employer in Pasadena, California. In addition to employing scientists and engineers, JPL also employs large numbers of administrative personnel, including lawyers.

As you might imagine, because of its high level of education, there are many learned professionals, such as lawyers, in Pasadena, California.

If you are a resident of the Pasadena, California area and need a lawyer, chances are excellent that you'll be able to locate a Pasadena, California attorney who can handle whatever legal issue you might be facing.

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