Beyonce Knowles has insisted that she is a good citizen. The music superstar is going to war with the Internal Revenue Service over claim that she owes the U.S. government $2.7 million in taxes.
According to United States Tax Court documents, the R&B diva filed a petition on April 17, seeking a redetermination of her tax liability assessed by the IRS in a January 18, 2023, Notice of Deficiency. She argues that the governing body made several errors in their determinations of her 2018 and 2019 tax returns.
The Notice of Deficiency alleges that $805,850.00 in additional tax, together with $161,170 in penalty, is owed for 2018, and $1,442,747.00 in additional tax, together with $288,549.40 in penalty is owed for 2019. There is also interest due on those amounts.
Beyonce disputes the deficiency via her attorney, claiming, for instance, that an itemized deduction of $868,766, which was a charity contribution in 2018, should be allowed. The petition additionally alleges that the IRS disallowed portions of Beyonce’s business income deductions, utilities, insurance, management fees, legal services and professional services for 2018 and 2019, respectively.
“On information and belief, Respondent erred in determining that Qualified Business Income Deductions of $3,581 reported in 2018 and $14 reported in 2019 should be disallowed,” the petition states.
The 41-year-old singer/entrepreneur also takes issues with the penalties. By statute, those penalties are 20% of the amount of the underpayment of tax. However, she argues in her petition that if any tax is due, the penalties should not apply because she “has acted reasonably and in good faith.”
Speaking of the matter, Beyonce’s attorney Michael C. Cohen tells Page Six on Thursday, April 27, “We are working with the IRS and anticipate that the matter will be resolved shortly.”
Beyonce is one of the best-selling female artists of all time, having sold over 200 million records worldwide. Her net worth is estimated at $500 million, while her husband Jay-Z has a reported net worth of $2.8 billion.
