Tax Evasion Lawyers in Grand Island

Tax Evasion in New York is a criminal act in which someone willfully fails to pay their taxes.

Most often, people who try to evade their taxes in Grand Island, New York will take steps to conceal their assets and income, or transferring their property to other legal entities in a fraudulent manner.

You may also be familiar with the term "tax avoidance." It is necessary 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 Grand Island, New York

Both federal law and the law of New York treat tax evasion as a serious criminal offense.

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

However, the punishments for tax evasion, especially first offenses involving relatively small amounts of money, is not usually so severe, especially when it looks like the failure to pay taxes was the result of an honest mistake, rather than deliberate fraud.

But if the government is able to definitively prove that a defendant in Grand Island, New York intentionally engaged in fraud to get out of paying taxes, a tax court is highly unlikely to show any leniency, and may well sentence the defendant to prison time.

A Grand Island, New York Tax Evasion Lawyer Can Help

A tax attorney in Grand Island, New York can ensure that you meet your tax liabilities, which will make an audit, or charge of tax evasion, less likely. Sometimes, it's difficult to determine exactly what one's tax liability is, and a tax attorney can help.

If you find yourself actually accused of tax evasion, and are innocent, you should hire a Grand Island, New York attorney with experience practicing tax law, as soon as possible. Your tax attorney can help you defend yourself against the charges, ensuring that you have a good chance at being acquitted.