New Jersey Payroll Tax Issues

When you run a business that pays employees, whether it is a small business or a large corporation, you must deal with payroll taxes. You’ll probably be filing a quarterly federal tax return, otherwise known as a 941 Return, and an annual Federal Unemployment (FUTA) Tax Return (940 Return).

The IRS requires you to collect and pay taxes that are withheld from your employees’ wages. These taxes, along with your personal Social Security tax, are collected and to be held in trust until you pay the IRS.  They are referred to as “withholding taxes” or “trust fund taxes.”

If your business has failed to pay your payroll taxes. to the IRS, you may find yourself facing corporate or personal liability, and not knowing where to turn. When you do, payroll tax attorney Todd Unger has the tax help you need.

When you face a payroll tax issue, it is important to understand that unpaid payroll taxes are considered a very serious issue in the eyes of the IRS. Congress has passed the Trust Fund Recovery Penalty (“TFRP”) (IRC 6672), which gives the IRS the ability to go after responsible third parties if you do not pay. The TFRP may be assessed against any person who:

• is responsible for collecting or paying withheld income and employment taxes, or for paying collected excise taxes, and
• willfully fails to collect or pay them.

A “responsible person” for this purpose can be an officer of a corporation, a partner, a sole proprietor, or an employee of any form of business if he or she has control over the disbursement of funds. A trustee or agent with authority over the funds of the business can also be held responsible for the penalty.

The IRS is very aggressive in pursuing unpaid payroll taxes and will seek to collect 100% of the total unpaid taxes from anyone who had anything to do with running the company, particularly, those who made the financial decisions, handled the books, or signed the checks. In addition to the Trust Fund Recovery Penalty, the government is willing to criminally prosecute those who willfully fail to file payroll tax returns, or to pay payroll taxes.

This does not have to happen with the right tax help from a qualified tax lawyer.

Contact Us For Help With New Jersey Payroll Tax Issues

Dealing with payroll tax issues is a stressful time for any New Jersey business, but with the help of a tax lawyer, you do not have to handle it alone. Tax attorney Todd. S. Unger knows what to do to help your NJ business come to terms with its payroll tax issues. He can help you assert viable defenses to ward off the IRS’s application of the Trust Fund Recovery Penalty. Contact our law firm today for a confidential consultation by calling (877) 544-4743.