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 4 Things Learned Attending the IRS Tax Forum

As a CPA for small businesses, I am always looking for the best conferences to attend to earn relevant continuing education credits (CPE)  and be able to give the best service to my clients. I recently had the opportunity to attend the IRS Forum in Dallas, Texas with a attendance probably close to 2,000 people. The IRS offers this Forum in multiple cities during the year. I made a few observations while attending.

1.The IRS really had some great classes for practitioners.

Topics included:

• Schedule C Issues
• ITIN Program changes
•  Understanding Collections
• Tax Challenges for LLC’s
• Charitable Contributions
• K-1 issues for the 1040
• Appeals
• Identity Theft
• Advanced Rental Property Issues
• Trade and Business Expenses – Hobby Losses
• IRS Audits- Triggers and Tips
• Form 4797 – Sale of Business Property
• Retirement Plan Distributions…and many many more.

2. IRS agents are not the only people teaching.

• The IRS also brings in industry experts – Several classes were taught by CPA’s, Enrolled Agents, and Attorneys who have many years of hands on experience of representing clients before the IRS and they teach with practical experience. Also, for every class I attended, instructors were available for personalized question and answers sessions.

3. It’s a great opportunity to meet and network with other tax professionals.

• I met providers from across the country, from 1 year of experience to over 30 years of experience. Some part-time and some full time. Some who work independently and some for franchises or firms, discussing and sharing how to give more value and be a better service provider for clients.

4. Opportunity to visit with Industry service and product providers.

• The IRS Forum includes a Exhibit Hall with product and service providers. Often times you only get a chance to meet company representatives over the phone or via email. Meeting people in person can allow for better conversation as well as getting a opportunity to really examine products and ask questions in person. Many of the providers had better deals at the conference than offered on their sites. The savings for some were absolutely great.
• Also, it is a good place to demo and test drive the latest software.

Also, the IRS provides a opportunity for case resolution services on-site.

• If you have a client who needs to discuss a matter with the IRS, a practitioner can discuss the case with the IRS in person while attending the conference. This can be a huge time saver.

I would like to see more advanced classes offered in two hour sessions for more in-depth coverage of certain topics.

Overall, the IRS Forum puts on a very good conference for practitioners. It was very well organized, efficient, and informative.  As well as, I earned over 15 hours of CPE’s in 3 days for a very affordable price.

If you were reading this article for tax savings and strategy ideas….well, that’s another article and a paid service…Lol!

As a CPA I specialize in working with small business owners in the area of accounting, bookkeeping, and taxes, also individual taxation.

#smallbiz #taxes