Reply #27: generally speaking, fines are assessed only for trying to get away with something illegal.

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typically (not always, but typically), if you merely got something innocently wrong, you owe the back taxes, plus interest and penalties simply for paying late. these days that's just a few percent because interst rates are so low. maybe as much as 5% annually i'm guessing for interest and another 5% annually for penalties.


the FINES come in when you do things you're not supposed to do, like claiming a portion of you house as a home office when you also use it for personal use. when you claim a deduction, you're supposed to know and be able to document that you're entitled to it. if you can't do this, then it's not the irs that's to blame.

to me, the only real sob stories come in when you had documentation at the time you filed, but then had an accident, such as a fire, so you aren't able to support the deductions when the audit comes.


this is why i prefer to do my own taxes. it forces me to learn and understand everything i deduct because *I* am responsible for it and *I* pay the penalties and/or go to prison if i get it wrong. i'm not paying someone else to make those kind of decisions for me given that i can't shift the responsibility to them.