Tax Evasion Lawyers in Sanford

Within Maine "tax evasion" is the crime of failing to pay the taxes that they owe.

Most commonly, people who try to evade their taxes in Sanford, Maine will take steps to hide their assets and income, or transferring their property to other legal entities in a fraudulent manner.

You may also be acquainted with the term "tax avoidance." It is essential that you don't confuse this with "tax evasion." Tax avoidance is perfectly legal, and is probably something that every taxpayer does whenever they file, whether they know it or not. It involves employing legal methods to make one's tax liability as small as possible, taking advantages of deductions and other tax breaks.

Penalties for Tax Evasion in Sanford, Maine

Under the laws of Maine, as well as federal law, tax evasion is a very significant criminal offense.

Punishments for evading one's taxes in Sanford range from paying back taxes plus interest (a relatively mild punishment) all the way up to years in prison, and penalties in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Most often, tax evasion - if it's a first offense and the tax liability is small - will not be cause for huge fines or imprisonment. This is particularly true if the prosecution can't definitively prove that that the defendant's failure to pay taxes was willful, as opposed to an honest mistake.

But if the government is able to definitively show that a defendant in Sanford, Maine intentionally engaged in fraud to get out of paying taxes, a tax court is very unlikely to show any leniency, and may well sentence the defendant to prison time.

A Sanford, Maine Tax Evasion Lawyer Can Help

An attorney in Sanford, Maine specializing in tax law can help you adhere with all the tax laws that apply to you, which makes it very unlikely that you'll ever be accused of tax evasion in the first place.

However, if you're really accused of tax evasion, you will need a Sanford, Maine tax attorney more than ever. If you are, in fact, innocent, a tax attorney can give you the best possible chance of being found not guilty.