UBS Probe Spurs Rich Americans Into Confessions - Companies * US * News * Story

BUSINESS NEWS FROM NYTIMES.COM

Runway Angels
The superbowl of fashion shows, models walk down the runway at the 2009 Victoria's Secret Show.
Smartphone Guide
Here's a need-to-know guide to nine devices, based on features, price, network and platform.
Wines for the Holidays
Not quite sure what wine to pair with Turkey or Creme Brulee? Our experts do.

FEATURED QUIZZES

How Well Do You Know Your Bird?
Let's talk turkey. Test your turkey knowledge and perhaps pick up a bit of trivia to trot out at your holiday meal.
A Healthier & Wealthier You
Take the following quiz and find out how much you know about the impact of obesity on the health of the U.S. economy.
The Billionaire BFF's
Philanthropists. Bridge partners. Hockey players. Which responses are based on facts from Buffett's and Gates' real lives?

SPECIAL REPORTS

Winterizing Your Portfolio
If 2009 was the winter of our discontent, will 2010 be a winter wonderland for investors? A lot depends on the recovery—or lack thereof.
Investor's Guide to Real Estate
Some even say the long-awaited recovery is here. Regardless, buyers and sellers alike can profit from our guide.
Alternative Investing
Stocks and bonds? Sure. But it's a big world out there for investors.

CNBC ON DIGG

UBS Probe Spurs Rich Americans Into Confessions

Published: Thursday, 30 Jul 2009 | 12:15 PM ET

Text Size

Wealthy taxpayers are singing a chorus of mea culpas to the Internal Revenue Service amid a desire to come clean about past tax evasion as the government cracks down on undeclared income from overseas accounts, The Wall Street Journal reported.

An I.R.S. spokesman told The Journal that request volume last week alone was four times as high as in all of last year. This increased urge to confess on the part of the wealthy forced the I.R.S. to issue a streamlined, three-page form for those seeking entry into its temporary voluntary-disclosure program.

MORE FROM NYTIMES.COM

Two main factors appear to be driving the spree, the newspaper said. One is the agency’s disclosure program, which began in March and is set to end Sept. 23, and which offers Americans the possibility of facing civil rather than criminal charges for volunteering details of tax evasion.

The other is fear being driven by the investigation by I.R.S. and the Justice Department of taxpayers who failed to report income earned from undeclared accounts with the Swiss bank UBS [UBS Loading... () ].