Blog: Cash or Crime?

There are lots of reasons a customer would like to pay cash for a repair.

Maybe it’s a minor collision repair that they don’t want to turn into their insurance company.

Or perhaps it’s an individual who always wanted a custom hot rod or an old favorite restored and has been saving for years.

Maybe it’s someone who hit the lottery and just wants to show off.

But it could be that the Benjamin’s you’re holding came to you as a result of illicit activity.

A recent article from the IRS warns that shop owners who receive more than $10,000 in cash from one buyer as a result of a single transaction must file Form 8300.

The information provided by this form provides important data to the IRS and Financial Crimes Enforcement Network to help in their efforts to fight money laundering.

Failure to do so can expose you and your business to civil and criminal penalties.

There are no exemptions from the Form 8300 filing requirements, so if someone tells you otherwise, don’t believe them.

The heads-up here is to remember that the Form 8300 filing rule applies to sole proprietors who receive more than $10,00 in cash in a single transaction or in two or more related transactions.

So time payments in cash that total more than that for a single workorder or project would probably qualify. Just food for thought.

Read the original IRS article in AutoInc.org.