The new Form 4852 is different from the one in the appendix of CtC. Is this significant?
A. It’s impossible not to smile at the fact that as we move into only the fourth “tax season” since the publication of ‘Cracking the Code- The Fascinating Truth About Taxation In America’ the IRS has felt obliged to scramble out its second revision of the Form 4852 in as many years! Despite the fact that a mere 13 months ago the form was given its first makeover in many years, last month yet another new version made its appearance. In both cases, the changes involved reflect the obvious purpose of discouraging educated Americans from using the form for its declared purpose of correcting erroneous W-2 or 1099-R “information returns” in the course of securing a filer’s claims to the return of his or her own property or pre-empting erroneous tax agency presumptions or assertions of liability. Last year’s “revision” (dated 12/05) involved moving a “Purpose of form” instructional paragraph from its previous place on the the back side of the form (where it had been for years) onto the front.
