Is this considered tax fraud?

Question

I was a stay at home mother for 14 years. My children’s father (never married but lived together)would deposit money into my checking account every month to take care of the household and kids by writing me a check from one of his multiple llc’s and that’s the money that I used. Now we are separated and I’m getting liens for back taxes and it’s showing i was an employee at his multiple companies. He used me as a write off it looks like. Did he commit tax fraud? Thank you!

xirt · Answer

FYI - I am not a lawyer and this is not legal advice:
The fact that you are getting a lien for back taxes when your involvement is simply receiving money from him for household expenses implies that there is something wrong.
Even if he said you were a 'contractor' and sent you a 1099 there is a normally a presumption with social agreements that they are not legally enforceable (i.e. not a 'contract').  However, if you provided service to him 'at arms length' (as though you were in a commercial relationship) e.g. you had a written contract signed by both parties and invoiced him regularly that could rebut the presumption but seems unlikely.  The specific rules can vary from state to state, so a local lawyer familiar with contract law (most should be) would be able to advise.
The challenge will be finding a way to deal with it effectively so that it does not consume too much of your time and doesn't cost a fortune.  Shop around and find a lawyer who can assist with this type of thing and can help to keep the costs low.  Some may be able to give you some initial advice before they start billing you.  If this is not something they deal with, they might be able to recommend someone who could help.
For it to be tax fraud: did he willfully and intentionally falsify information on a tax return to limit the amount of tax liability?  It is not clear. Possibly.

Is this considered tax fraud?

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