Will a large bank deposit trigger any IRS alarms?

[MikeR]

This is a totally hypotheitcal question, as me and my buddies probably have $400 between all of us. But we just got into one of those stupid arguments.

I say you'd have to deposit $10,000 cash to your bank account before you'd trigger any irs flags.

My friend says every $1,000 deposit is flagged if it's cash only, not a check or anything.

Anyone heard anything about this? I swear I heard the $10,000 thing somewhere, but my friend says i'm probably thinking about a $10,000 cash gift that is the limit where you don't have to pay taxes on a cash gift, which I'm not thinking about, cuz it really has nothing to do with bank deposits.

[homanga]

Its Cash over 10k that you have to fill out an IRS form at least for businesses.

[poorolrich]

With cash I think it is 10,000 cash or more the banks have to notify some Gov. agency. I don't think there is an amount as far as a check goes. I have deposited checks in the amounts of 26,000---75,000---13,000 and 42,000---plus change in the last 4 years and haven't heard a thing from anybody. And, no, there were no taxes paid on any of the amounts.

[Deluxe8520]

Consider yourself lucky, however you are not in the clear yet. If you ever get audited you are in deep ish. Anything more than 10k usually raises a red flag.

[KurtSF]

I don't think a deposit on its own would "trigger" anything definite.

I believe the banks do have to report any transaction over $10000, any series of transaction over $10000, and any suspicious transactions of any amout.

If you have a job, file your taxes, and deposit a $15,000 check one day no one at the IRS will care. If you don't file taxes, don't work, but deposit $2500 twice a week I would be a little worried.

[RikaKazak]

It is $10,000...not $1,000.

If it was $1,000....I'd have triggered it SO MANY times (tons of my renters pay me in cash, live poker, blackjack, and tons of other reasons...I deposit over $1K in cash 8-12 times a month)

Now over $10,000, and yes, they fill out a form. They ask what your occupation is, yadda yadda yadda. I actually deposited over $10K this week and had to answer the stupid/annoying questions.

[HEK]

I used to work for a drug company before I went pro. After I quit I had made several withdrawals and deposits of >$10k. I recently found out that the DEA came knocking on my former boss' door asking about me and my "suspicious" banking transactions. So yeah, it will raise some red flags.

[poorolrich]

Nope, it is my understanding that checks do not have to be reported. My sister makes $700,000 a year, getting paid weekly. Do you really think the bank has to report this plus the 1000's of other people in the U S that make more than that??????????? It his very hard to launder money using checks instead of cash. That is one reason(if not the only) why cash deposits have to be reported.