Tax examiners review tax returns for accuracy and ensure payment. They ensure each part of the filing was accurately calculated, and if not, they will inform the taxpayer of what must be done next. Tax examiners usually handle smaller returns in contrast with tax auditors, revenue agents, and tax officers which all usually handle more complex returns and cases accused of fraud or evasion.
Tax fraud broadly encompasses all attempts by a taxpayer or entity to falsify information on a tax return or other document in order to reduce their tax liability. This can take the form of wrongly calculating the value of assets, using deductions and credits, or blatantly not reporting income.
Tax liability is any amount that a taxpayer owes to the government in taxes.
[Last reviewed in November of 2021 by the Wex Definitions Team]
A tax lien is a lien acquired by court order that gives the government a security interest in property because of a failure to pay assessed taxes. If the property is mortgaged a tax lien will take precedence over the mortgage.
Tax lien notice, often used in the context of federal tax, refers to a document released by Internal Revenue Service (IRS) in public records to notify a taxpayer that they risk losing their assets and alert creditors that the IRS has a claim against the taxpayer’s assets.
Tax optimization consists of lowering the amount of tax liability by complying with the tax obligations in force in a given state/country by using the regulations to the taxpayer’s advantage.
Tax registration certificate is a required document for businesses and certain entities to have in order to conduct their activities in a jurisdiction. The tax registration certificate is often a part of or issued alongside a business license. The certificate serves the purpose of confirming the business has been registered for tax purposes and can file its own tax return.
Tax returns are mandatory yearly filings with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) or other tax agencies for state and local entities which detail the tax obligations of the taxpayer or organization.
Tax sale is the forced auctioning of property or liens on property owned by a taxpayer with back taxes. A tax sale generally is a last resort method for the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), state, or local tax agency to reclaim unpaid taxes, and they occur long after a taxpayer falls behind on tax payments.
