IRS & Enforcement
Audit triggers, enforcement actions, compliance requirements, reporting thresholds, IRS technology changes, and taxpayer rights.
Latest in IRS & Enforcement
Couples hit the Lifetime Learning Credit phaseout at $160,000
For married couples filing jointly, $160,000 is where the Lifetime Learning Credit begins to be reduced for tax year 2026. The IRS lists a joint-return...
Lifetime Learning Credit phaseouts begin at $80,000 for single filers
The Lifetime Learning Credit does not disappear only after a single filer crosses a high-income line. For tax year 2026, the IRS says the credit...
Foreign earned income exclusions reach $132,900 for the 2026 tax year
The maximum foreign earned income exclusion is $132,900 for tax year 2026, according to the Internal Revenue Service. The figure can allow a qualifying U.S....
The federal estate and gift exclusion rises to $15 million in 2026
The federal basic exclusion amount for estate and gift tax is $15 million in 2026. The number is a cumulative federal transfer-tax threshold, not an...
Gifts to a noncitizen spouse get a $194,000 exclusion in 2026
Gifts to a spouse who is not a U.S. citizen receive a $194,000 exclusion in calendar year 2026 under the federal gift-tax rules. The amount...
Married couples can give $38,000 tax-free to one person this year
Married couples can give a combined $38,000 to one person in 2026 without using either spouse’s lifetime gift-and-estate exclusion, when the gifts qualify for the...
IRS sets a $19,000 tax-free gift threshold for 2026
The federal annual gift-tax exclusion is $19,000 per recipient for 2026, the Internal Revenue Service says. That figure is often described as a tax-free gift...
The adoption tax credit reaches $17,670 for 2026
The federal adoption tax credit reaches $17,670 per eligible child for tax year 2026, but the maximum is a ceiling on qualified expenses rather than...
Non-itemizers can deduct up to $2,000 of joint cash gifts to charities in 2026
Beginning with tax year 2026, married couples filing jointly who take the standard deduction can deduct up to $2,000 of qualifying cash contributions. The new...
Married couples get a $32,200 standard deduction for the 2026 tax year
Married couples filing jointly receive a $32,200 standard deduction for the 2026 tax year, an amount that generally appears on returns filed in 2027. The...
Family HSA contributions can reach $8,750 in 2026
A family health savings account can receive as much as $8,750 for 2026 under the federal contribution limit. The figure belongs to the coverage category,...
IRS Direct Pay moves money from a bank account without charging a fee
Taxpayers can use IRS Direct Pay to send a federal tax payment directly from a checking or savings account without paying a processing fee. The...
September 15 is the next estimated-tax deadline, and late installments can trigger a penalty
September 15 is the third federal estimated-tax deadline for 2026, covering income received from June 1 through August 31 for calendar-year taxpayers. A worker, retiree...
The IRS quietly cut its own phone-answer goal from 85 percent to 70 percent this year
The IRS did not just fall short of its phone-service target during the 2026 filing season; it lowered the target first. The agency cut its...
Nearly half of the 353 IRS walk-in centers are staffed by only one or two people
Nearly half of the IRS’s face-to-face help nationwide is running on a skeleton crew. As of mid-February 2026, 169 of the agency’s 353 Taxpayer Assistance...
If the IRS cannot direct-deposit your refund, you get 30 days to fix it or wait for a check
When the IRS cannot deposit a refund directly into a bank account, it does not simply hold the money and wait. It mails a notice...
The average wait to reach the IRS by phone more than doubled to 8.2 minutes this year
The Internal Revenue Service’s phone lines slowed sharply during the 2026 tax season, and the agency’s own watchdog has put a number on it. The...
Treasury says more than 35 million seniors claimed the new $6,000 deduction, averaging over $7,500 apiece
More than 35 million taxpayers age 65 and older claimed the new enhanced senior deduction on their 2025 returns, the Treasury Department reported, with the...
The IRS is warning filers that a stolen identity can freeze a refund for months, and an IP PIN blocks it
The Internal Revenue Service and its Security Summit partners issued a fresh warning on September 4 telling tax professionals and taxpayers to lock down their...
Overtime pay gets its own W-2 code for 2026, and the IRS has already replaced its first fact sheet on it
Beginning with the 2026 tax year, employers are required to separately report qualified overtime compensation on Form W-2 using a new code, and the Internal...