If you still cannot get your tax return filed by the October 17 due date, then there is one final extension, but you should seek the help of a tax professional to get IRS approval on this second extension since it is discretionary by the IRS. Even if this final extension to December 15th should fail, do not forget there is a little known exception if you are a member of the U.S. military serving in Iraq, Afghanistan and other combat zone localities; you will generally have until at least 180 days after you leave the combat zone to file you return and pay any taxes due.

Section II

Remember, U.S. citizens, Green Card Holders and Resident Aliens are statutorily required to report income from all sources, both foreign and domestic, including income from foreign trusts, foreign banks and/or securities accounts. You will need to complete Part III of Schedule B of your individual income tax return documentation which includes reporting the country or countries in which the accounts are located.

If you have foreign bank accounts whose aggregate value exceeded $10,000 at any time during the year 2010 then you must file Treasury Department Form TD F 90-22.1. This form is due June 30, 2011 and is filed separately from your individual income tax return and at a different address with the U. S. Treasury Department. Since this Form TD F 90 is not a tax return form, the June 30 deadline stands apart from your income tax deadline or extension. This means that the TD F 90 form has only one deadline without any possibility of extension, June 30, 2011. TD F 90 is very innocent looking, form but equally very easy to fill out incorrectly. You should definitely consult with a tax professional on this form.

Section III.

If any of this above information on foreign bank reporting is new to you, then you really need to retain legal counsel because you may have innocently or intentionally failed in the past to disclose foreign bank accounts or report foreign income on the TD F 90 or your individual income tax return(s). The penalties are huge and the exposure to massive tax penalties as well as criminal prosecution is at an extremely high risk. There is a final amnesty program that may be available to you on the Federal level as well as some State levels, with California being one of these States, with the Federal due date of August 31, 2011 and no extensions will be granted. Generally, this amnesty will be restricted to select individuals and the rules are very serious and amazingly complicated.

The Internal Revenue Service announced a special voluntary disclosure initiative designed to bring offshore money back into the U.S. tax system and help people with undisclosed income from hidden offshore accounts to become current with their tax obligations. The new voluntary disclosure initiative will be available through August 31, 2011.

"As we continue to amass more information and pursue more people internationally, the risk to individuals hiding assets offshore is increasing," said IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman. "This new effort gives those hiding money in foreign accounts a tough, fair way to resolve their tax problems once and for all. And it gives people a chance to come in before we find them."

The IRS decision to open a second special disclosure initiative follows continuing interests from taxpayers with foreign bank and/or financial accounts. The first special voluntary disclosure program closed with 15,000 voluntary disclosures on October1 5, 2009. Since that time, more than 3,000 taxpayers have come forward to the IRS with foreign bank accounts from around the world. The new initiative called the 2011 Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Initiative (OVDI) and includes several changes from the 2009 Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program (OVDP). The overall penalty structure for 2011 is higher, so people who did not come in through the 2009 voluntary disclosure program will suffer higher penalties. The new Amnesty program has a new penalty framework that requires individuals to pay a penalty of 25 percent of the amount in the foreign bank accounts in the year with the highest aggregate account balance covering the 2003 to 2010 time period. Some taxpayers will be eligible for 5 or 12.5 percent penalties. Successful participants also must pay back-taxes and interest for up to eight years as well as paying accuracy-related and/or delinquency penalties with are considerable and financially crippling. Taxpayers participating in the new initiative must file all original and amended tax returns and include payment for taxes, interest and accuracy-related penalties by the rapidly approaching August 31 deadline. So, there is a ton of work to be done by the individual in gathering information for the competent tax attorney to properly determine the best options and/or alternatives for you and to then try to formulate a hopefully successful amnesty application.

When I say, competent tax attorney, I am using this phrase in a very specific way. Although it is true that a licensed tax professional is allowed to assist you with the amnesty application, it is very likely that your amnesty will be reviewed by the IRS for penalty, interest and tax assessment. If you do not agree with this assessment or are denied from successfully completing the amnesty program, then you will need to protect yourself and file relief with a higher level of authority within the U.S. Treasury or Federal Tax Court. You need to understand that being licensed by the U.S. Treasury to represent clients before the IRS does not mean that you are also licensed to practice law before the Federal Tax Court. Very few C.P.A.s hold such a license while more lawyers hold this license. However, even with this license to practice before Federal Tax Court will not equate to actually having practiced before the Court. Therefore, you should ask this question before you retain tax counsel to be assured that if it all goes wrong, you will have counsel who can guide you and your case into Tax Court. Even then, you need a licensed attorney who has represented individuals successfully before the Criminal Investigation Division of the U.S. Treasury should your case be assigned for criminal prosecution.

CONCLUSION:

If you find yourself as one of these many thousands of individuals seeking to now investigate whether this "final" IRS amnesty can apply successfully to you, please contact the author immediately, time is quickly running out.