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I'm a Tax Pro: 3 Overlooked Filing Mistakes That May Raise Audit Risk

Laura Beck

Sun, September 6, 2026 at 8:00 PM GMT+3 4 min read

Most audit anxiety centers on the big stuff like unreported income, aggressive deductions, business write-offs that seem too generous and so on. However, according to Logan Allec, CPA and owner of tax relief services company Choice Tax Relief, some of the most common red flags are smaller and easier to miss than people expect.

Allec highlighted three surprisingly small tax filing mistakes that can draw unwanted attention from the IRS. While none involve hiding income or claiming outrageous deductions, they can make a return look inaccurate, incomplete or poorly documented.

Keeping a keen eye on these common pitfalls could help you avoid unnecessary scrutiny or even a potential audit.

Reporting the Wrong Number (Even If Your Math Is Right)

The first issue Allec flagged wasn't about getting your final number wrong, but rather how you arrive at it. "If you receive a 1099 or other tax document, you should report the gross amount on your return," he said.

The problem he sees repeatedly is taxpayers netting their expenses or basis against gross proceeds and reporting only the final figure without showing the calculation behind it. "This sounds obvious, but we get several clients every year who decided to take a shortcut on their tax return and net their expenses or basis against their gross income or proceeds without showing the details of their calculation on their return," Allec said.

He gave a specific example involving a stock trader who correctly calculated a $50,000 capital loss for the year. The math was right. However, the reporting wasn't. "They just reported the $50,000 capital loss as one number rather than showing the details of $30,000 in sales proceeds vs. $80,000 in basis," he said.

The same problem shows up with gambling income. Allec said a common mistake is assuming that a losing year at the casino means nothing needs to be reported at all. "We get gamblers who figure, 'Oh, I lost money gambling this year, so I don't have to report any of the W-2Gs I received on my return,'" he said.

That assumption is wrong. "In reality, the gambling income has to be reported in one's adjusted gross income as other income, while the allowable gambling losses have to be reported separately as an itemized deduction," Allec clarified.

The consequence of skipping this step isn't subtle. According to Allec, failing to report all gross income on a return will almost certainly trigger an IRS underreporter notice known as a CP2000. He warned that dealing with one of these can be genuinely frustrating, largely because of how slowly the IRS's underreporter function moves once a notice goes out.

Suspiciously Rounding Expense Numbers

The second flag Allec raised is one most people would never think twice about: rounding business expenses to clean, even numbers. A $4,000 line item where the real total was $3,847 is one example. A $1,200 deduction that was actually $1,163 is another.

"While you may figure that it will probably all even out, the IRS doesn't view it that way," Allec said. The concern isn't that rounding is illegal on its own. It's what a pattern of rounded numbers signals to an examiner reviewing the return.

"In fact, they may view a bunch of round numbers on the expense section of your Schedule C as an indication that you just made the figures up," he said. Real business expenses, tracked from actual receipts and invoices, almost never land on perfectly clean totals. A Schedule C full of round numbers across every category reads less like careful bookkeeping and more like estimation, which is exactly the impression a small business owner wants to avoid.

Sloppy Documentation of Noncash Charitable Donations

The third issue is one that catches generous taxpayers off guard, specifically those donating items rather than cash. If you're claiming more than $500 in noncash charitable contributions on Schedule A, the IRS requires Form 8283 to accompany the return.

The form asks for real detail and not simply a vague summary. "On this form, you are supposed to provide the IRS details about your noncash donations during the year, including the name of the organization you donated the items to, a description of the property along with its condition, the date of the contribution, [and] how you obtained the item," Allec said.

The mistake he sees most often is that taxpayers combine multiple separate donations into one lump-sum figure instead of itemizing each one individually. It might feel like a minor shortcut. According to Allec, however, it's not treated that way by the IRS. "It's important that you fill out this information carefully, [as] just lumping several different contributions into one lump sum can be a seemingly small item on your return that could get your return flagged for an audit," he said.

This article was provided by MoneyLion.com for informational purposes only and should not be construed as financial, legal or tax advice.

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