Federal Offense of Filing a False Income Tax Return

There are a wide range of federal criminal charges that a person can face for different forms of tax fraud. One specific offense for which a person can be charged is filing a false return. This is one specific type of tax fraud that can be charged on its own or alongside other related tax fraud offenses. What are the elements of filing a false return, and what else should you know if you are facing charges? Our federal fraud defense attorneys in Tampa can provide you with more information about this offense, and we are here to begin working with you on a defense if you are being investigated or have been charged.

Filing a False Income Tax Return

The federal criminal offense of filing a false income tax return can be charged under Section 7206(1) of the Internal Revenue Code. In order to prove that a person has committed this offense, the government is required to prove the following four elements:

• 1) Defendant made, or caused to be made, and signed an income tax return for the year in question that was false as to a material matter;
• 2) Defendant’s income tax return contained a written declaration that the return was made under the penalties of perjury;
• 3) Defendant did not believe the income tax return to be true and correct as to the material matters charged in the indictment, or the defendant knew a material matter was false (with a “material matter” meaning that it “had a natural tendency to influence, or was capable of influencing, the decisions or activities of the Internal Revenue Service”); and
• 4) Defendant made, or caused to be made, and signed the income tax return willfully.

As with other federal fraud offenses, in order for a person to be convicted of filing a false income tax return, the government must be able to show, as clarified in the four elements above, that the person knew and intended to file a false income tax return. A person cannot be convicted under this section if they made an error in their income tax return. Indeed, according to a federal jury instruction, “it is not enough for the government to prove simply that the tax return is erroneous.”

Contact Our Tampa Criminal Defense Lawyers to Begin Working on Your Defense to Federal Tax Fraud Charges 

If you have been accused of the federal offense of filing a false income tax return, or any other type of type fraud, it is essential to begin working on a defense strategy as soon as possible with a defense lawyer who has experience handling these specific types of federal fraud cases. One of the experienced Tampa federal criminal defense attorneys at the Law Offices of Daniel J. Fernandez, P.A. can discuss the details of your case with you today and can begin working with you to develop a defense strategy to help you avoid a conviction. Contact our firm as soon as possible to find out more about our federal criminal defense services and how we can assist you.

Source:

justice.gov/tax/file/1293361/dl