Complex client situations often require tax professionals to look beyond the forms used in routine return preparation. Understanding specialized IRS forms and the procedures surrounding them can provide additional options when addressing penalties, correcting accounting method issues, resolving depreciation errors, or handling significant business transactions.
Join Jason Dinesen, EA, for an in-depth look at Form 843, Form 3115, Form 8594, and related federal tax issues that can arise in tax practice.
Explore Form 843 and the process of requesting certain refunds or the abatement of penalties and interest, including reasonable cause, supporting documentation, and other penalty-relief considerations. The course also examines situations involving excess Social Security withholding and when Form 843 may become necessary.
You'll then take a detailed look at Form 3115, including when an established depreciation method prevents an error from simply being corrected through an amended return. Practical scenarios demonstrate missed depreciation, catch-up adjustments, cost segregation considerations, and adjustments that can either decrease or increase current-year taxable income.
Additional Form 3115 applications include cash versus accrual accounting and inventory methods for qualifying small business taxpayers. Finally, you'll explore Form 8594, purchase-price allocation, and how the allocation of assets in a business acquisition affects both buyers and sellers.
Strengthen your understanding of specialized IRS forms and expand the tools available when working through more complex client tax matters.
Recorded August 26, 2026
This course counts for 2 hours of IRS CE under the category of Federal Tax Law Related Matters.
Learning Objectives
Upon completion of this course, participants will be able to:
- Explain the role of Form 843 in requesting certain refunds and penalty or interest abatements.
- Evaluate factors that may support reasonable cause and identify documentation relevant to a penalty-relief request.
- Recognize circumstances involving excess Social Security withholding where Form 843 may be appropriate.
- Distinguish between depreciation errors that may be corrected by amendment and those involving an established accounting method.
- Explain how Form 3115 may be used to make a catch-up adjustment for certain depreciation errors.
- Recognize that a Form 3115 adjustment may result in either a deduction or an increase to taxable income.
- Identify other established accounting method changes that may involve Form 3115.
- Compare inventory approaches discussed for qualifying small business taxpayers.
- Explain how Form 3115 may apply when changing an inventory method.
- Describe the purpose of Form 8594 and the tax significance of purchase-price allocation in a business acquisition.
About the presenter:
Jason Dinesen (EA, LPA) is a tax nerd, entrepreneur, tax expert, and a well-known presenter of continuing education courses.
Known for his sharp tax interpretations, he is one of the quickest to bring the analysis of the latest tax updates and IRS guidance to the professional community. Jason has coached over 200,000 accounting, tax, and HR professionals on various topics of accounting, individual taxation, corporate taxation, professional ethics, and much more.
He has presented dozens of webinars on Form 1099 (for 10 years on this subject!), marriage in the tax code, tax updates, the new Form W-4, payroll updates, filing status, tax credits, corporation and partnership taxation, and other issues relating to the modern-day setting.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is this course appropriate for Enrolled Agents?
Yes. The course addresses specialized IRS forms, penalty-relief considerations, accounting method changes, depreciation corrections, and business transactions that may arise when serving individual and business clients.
What penalty-relief topics are discussed?
The course examines Form 843, reasonable cause, supporting documentation, penalty-relief considerations, interest abatement, and steps that may be available after a penalty has been assessed.
Does the course discuss situations where Form 843 isn't required?
Yes. The presentation discusses informal refund or abatement requests and circumstances where Form 843 becomes necessary, including procedural considerations when a taxpayer intends to pursue a refund claim in court.
How detailed is the Form 3115 section?
Form 3115 is a major focus of the course. Jason uses multiple depreciation scenarios to demonstrate when a method of accounting has been established, when an amendment may be available, and when Form 3115 may be needed.
Are both favorable and unfavorable Form 3115 adjustments covered?
Yes. The course includes examples where correcting depreciation produces a current-year deduction as well as an example where the correction results in an increase to income.
Does the course cover inventory accounting?
Yes. The course discusses inventory considerations for qualifying small business taxpayers, including non-incidental materials and supplies and book conformity, as well as how Form 3115 may come into play when changing methods.
What will I learn about business acquisitions?
The Form 8594 section explores the allocation of a business purchase price among asset classes and how those allocations affect gains and losses for the seller and depreciation or amortization for the buyer.
When was this course recorded?
This course was recorded on August 26, 2026.
How much IRS CE credit does the course provide?
This course counts for 2 hours of IRS CE under the category of Federal Tax Law Related Matters.
