10 Truths Every Adult Should Know About Taxes

If you are an adult with several years of work experience or in the formal sector paying your taxes or you are just joining this working-class world, these are 10 truths about taxes that you should know:

1. Our Constitution Requires Us to Contribute to Public Spending
2. The Tax Code is Over 74,000 Pages Long
3. We All Pay Taxes and Sometimes We Don’t Even Realize It
4. The IRS Can Audit You up to 3 Years Back
5. They May Audit You up to 6 Years Back
6. After 60 Days, the IRS Imposes a Minimum Penalty of $435 or 100% of the Unpaid Tax
7. Banking secrecy Does Not Exist for The IRS
8. Taxes are In Constant Flux
9. You Can Go to Jail if You Don’t Meet Your Tax Obligations
10. IRS Employees Also Break The Law

The 16th Amendment states, “The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes on incomes, from whatever source derived, without apportionment among the several States, and without regard to any census or enumeration.” This amendment was ratified in 1913, clearing the legal hurdles to an income tax at the time. As expected, income tax was levied that same year. The legislation was taken up in front of the Supreme Court (income tax had been voted as unconstitutional in a 5-4 ruling in 1895 based on Article I, Section 9 of the Constitution). On January 24, 1916, the court ruled that income taxes were now legal—due to the constitutional changes.