Does anyone know a good tax man in Seattle for a Merchant seaman?
All the good ones have gone to prison for mis-use of the “mariner Deduction”.
there has got to be some that are better than others. should I just go to h&r block?
Lol yea!!! Everyone wants to beat the system…look up the case law.
I have a great lady I use in Tacoma that works at an H&R Block. She used to work for the IRS and is very good. She’s used to dealing with truckers & some mariners so she has an good idea of what we do. She told me about deductions I didn’t even know I could get, but that are legitimate. Used her for the last few years and using her again this year. PM me if you’re interested.
[QUOTE=merchantdawg;130825]Does anyone know a good tax man in Seattle for a Merchant seaman?[/QUOTE]
Martin Kapp.
Acccept no substitute.
Yeah!!! Get Kappsized!
[QUOTE=z-drive;130858]Yeah!!! Get Kappsized![/QUOTE]
Was always mystified why so many co workers used this guy and thought what he was doing wax legit.
met a guy few years back who stopped his retirement from MMP for one more Matson 120 day job because the IRS was after him for about $17,000 worth of back taxes, penalties, and interest on his BS Martin Kapp returns.
I wonder how many other thousands of mariners they went after???
The last time I visited Kapp ( after the fallout) I asked the guy doing my taxes if they could do anything for me that any other tax professional couldn’t do. He shook his head and said no.
Lose money!
I don’t know, but I sure as hell warn the guys I work with. They don’t care and talk their CPA into doing it anyways. Idiots don’t listen when I tell them they’re ultimately responsible for their tax return regardless of who prepares it.
The case law is pretty clear!
If you’re not brain dead you can read up on it and claim the legitimate stuff through turbotax for $36. Works for me…
Yeah, that poor mate that I met was retiring in Thailand. Can’t even imagine how far $17k goes there !
I’m going to look into a guy named Steve Drugge. Has done my Capt’s returns since his days in the pollock fleet. That’s pronounced, “droo-gie”, mkay. I believe he’s over by Fisherman’s Terminal.
I’ve been using the outfit out in Maryland. Not as aggressive as Kapp but so for so good with them
[QUOTE=z-drive;130928]I don’t know, but I sure as hell warn the guys I work with. They don’t care and talk their CPA into doing it anyways. Idiots don’t listen when I tell them they’re ultimately responsible for their tax return regardless of who prepares it.
The case law is pretty clear!
If you’re not brain dead you can read up on it and claim the legitimate stuff through turbotax for $36. Works for me…[/QUOTE]
Isn’t that so hilarious though?! It’s like the title CPA has become synonymous with tax code omniscience.
I think so many Americans don’t understand that if the director of the IRS his/herself prepared your tax return, the filer and filer alone is responsible for the accuracy of the tax return.
From the beginning to the end… Maybe Kapp knew exactly what he was doing!?
[QUOTE=Johnny Canal;130954]Isn’t that so hilarious though?! It’s like the title CPA has become synonymous with tax code omniscience.
I think so many Americans don’t understand that if the director of the IRS his/herself prepared your tax return, the filer and filer alone is responsible for the accuracy of the tax return.
From the beginning to the end… Maybe Kapp knew exactly what he was doing!?[/QUOTE]
Yes. If you’re day-working with unpredictable hours or something and meals are not provided, or only a meal stipend, then I can see the applicability of the per diem deduction less any company allowance. But if you “eat for free” onboard and claim the whole thing its nonsense. Incidentals which is like $5 doesn’t really seem to be a big deal and seems halfway legitimate, enough that I would/have no issue deducting that.
You can pay a hobo at the flea market to do your taxes…you really think they’re gonna step and take the heat from the IRS? lolz! same idea…people are stupid, and tax code way too complicated. I’d rather pay a flat rate close to what it is after a refund than deal with all the nickel and diming.
http://maguiretaxes.com/ has a pretty good rep…works out of MA but does stuff online, may be worth checking out. Personal friends/co workers use him.
I’ve always claimed the daily incidental forEach city . Each city has a different allowed amount which can vary quite a bit, I had my CPA show me these “books” which list all cities. As long as you don’t claim more than that cities daily allowance it’s worked for me. Even was audited one year, and came they fine. Good luck to you.