Tax Accountant CPA, Albany NY -Jacl Levy CPA solves Tax Problems

Jack Levy CPA & Accountant, Albany NY
Certified Tax Resolution Specialist
Call Us for Free Consultation For All Your Tax Problems,
Including Back Taxes, Payroll Taxes And Unfiled Returns.

Ok, so you are behind in filing returns. As a result you may not know how much you owe or if you have a refund due to you. Maybe the IRS or your state has sent you reminders that you taxes were not filed. Maybe they have lost patience and have sent you a Notice of Intent to Levy. Pay careful attention to that last one because they are now after your paycheck or your bank
account, or both.

Here is what you need to do, with or without threat of levy.
First and foremost you need to file your unfiled tax returns - even if you cannot pay all you owe. That is the most important first step - file those missing returns. If is often the fact that people have not filed because their records are missing and they can't prepare a proper return. The solution is to get the records and you get them by asking the IRS for their file data on you. If you are missing returns for just the last two or three years, this is pretty easy. Pick up the phone and call the IRS at (800) 829-1040. To request records on file with the IRS.

If you are missing returns for any year more than 6 years back the situation is quite a bit more complicated. Records further back than the most recent 6 years will take longer to obtain. Much longer, several months longer, if you ever get them. Those old records are in storage and some IRS staffer has to go back and get them individually. This is done by a special photocopy unit in Utah, which has very few staffers and huge numbers of requests. You need to request the records on Form 4506. Often they report to me they cannot find the records or they send only partial records. Allow 4-5 months to fill your request and don't be disappointed if you are not satisfied with the result.

So if you are missing records for any year more than 6 years ago you are not going to get your returns filed for a long time. But let's say you have all your records now. It might be a good idea to consult with a tax professional at this time. You are going to need the
forms for those old years, the tax tables and instructions. You are also going to have to file a return for all the states you lived in during those years-more forms, more instructions. There is a way to get a legal return filed for a year older than 6 but it is highly technical process and beyond the scope of this article and beyond the knowledge of most tax practitioners.

Bear in mind the information you will get from the I.R.S. does not include any state data. That you must obtain separately, and the truth is that most states rely on the W2 that you file with your return to know how much was withheld from your pay. No W2, no withholding allowed. So you may have to contact every employer you have had in the past and ask them to get you the missing W2's.

In summary, if you need to file back returns, the fastest and surest way is to contact a tax professional such as Tax Negotiators. We specialize in aiding folks like you, caught up in the system and struggling to find the way out.

February 3, 2004
Washington - The Internal Revenue Service today issued a consumer alert-advising taxpayers to beware of promoters' claims that tax debts can be settled for "pennies on the dollar" through the Offer in Compromise Program.

Some promoters are inappropriately advising indebted taxpayers to file an Offer in Compromise (OIC) Application with the IRS. This bad advice costs taxpayers money and time. An Offer in Compromise is an agreement between a taxpayer and the IRS that resolves the taxpayer's tax debt. The IRS has the authority to settle, or "compromise", federal tax liabilities by accepting less than full payment under certain circumstances.

This program serves an important purpose for a select group of taxpayers. But we are increasingly concerned about unscrupulous promoters charging excessive fees to taxpayers who have no chance of meeting the program's requirements', said IRS Commissioner Mark W. Everson. "We urge taxpayers not to be duped by high-priced promises".

The OIC may be considered only after other payment options have been exhausted. If taxpayers are unable to pay their taxes in full, there are other payment options, such as monthly installment agreements, that must be explored before an OIC can be submitted.

The IRS.gov web site contains complete information on the collection process and payment options. Publication 594, the IRS Collection Process, also provides helpful information on the options available to taxpayers. Taxpayers should also review Form 656, Offer in Compromise, or Form 9465, Installment Agreement Request, to determine if they qualify for either payment program. Form 656 provides detailed instructions for submitting an offer and includes all of the necessary financial forms.

Some taxpayers may be exempt from the $150 OIC fee depending on income or whether the OIC is based solely on doubt as to tax liablility, Taxpayers who claim the poverty guideline exception must certify their eligibility using Forms 656 A, Income Certification for Offer in Compromise Application fee. The poverty guideline exception applies only to individuals.

All publications and forms are available at IRS.gov or taxpayers may order copies by calling 1- 800-829-3676. All publications and forms are available free.

Taxpayers may feel they need the assistance of a qualified tax professional to prepare and submit an OIC. Taxpayers may contact local or state tax professional associations for enrolled agents, CPAs or attorneys to locate someone in their geographic area that has the education and experience to assist them.

If you don't pay your back taxes, the IRS can and will file a Federal Tax Lien. A Federal Tax Lien marks the IRS' priority on your real and personal property against all other creditors and gives them the right to seize and sell such property subject to prior encumbrances. Prior to such seizure, the IRS must make an assessment and make demand for payment. And if you don't pay within the time specified in the first notice, they have the right to begin enforcement proceedings.

The IRS will release a Federal Tax Lien when it is fully satisfied. They will do this 30 days after full payment or immediately if paid in cash or the equivalent of cash. They will also release a lien upon the posting of a cash bond or upon giving the IRS a mortgage on real property whose fair market value is twice the value of the tax debt. Both the mortgage and the bond must stipulate payment terms over an agreed upon time frame.

It was filed too soon or not in accordance with IRS regulations;
It speeds up the actual collection process; or
It is determined that it is in the best interest of the taxpayer and the IRS.

A taxpayer can also appeal the filing of a Federal Tax Lien. The IRS must notify you that a Federal Tax Lien has been filed within five days after the lien is filed. Some of the issues an appeal can be based upon include but are not limited to the following:

The tax debt owed was paid prior to the Federal Tax Lien being filed;
The tax was assessed and the Federal Tax Lien filed while the taxpayer was in bankruptcy;
A procedural error was made during the assessment;
The statute of limitations on the debt had expired before the Federal Tax Lien was filed; or
The taxpayer was not given an opportunity to dispute the liability. If you have a Federal tax
liability, and you cannot fully pay all you owe at this time, JK Harris and Company may be able to help in keeping that Federal Tax Lien off the public records of your county courthouse,

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For help call (518) 785-8717 to schedule an appointment for your free confidential tax consultation

Just the thought of the IRS seizing all of the money in your bank account(s) or taking your state income tax refund or any payments you may normally receive from the federal government can be unbearable. When an IRS levy, such as a bank levy, is issued, the bank is legally obligated to immediately freeze any and all of your accounts. The bank must then hold those funds for 21 days, giving you time to resolve the debt. If you have not resolved the debt in those 21 days, the bank must send those funds to the IRS.

And to think the IRS can actually seize and sell your personal property can be financially and emotionally devastating. Unfortunately, it does happen, although rarely. The IRS can take and sell any property, such as a boat, car of even a house.

If you are a business owner with employees and fail to file and pay your IRS Payroll Taxes, it will not go unnoticed. The IRS requires that you withhold Federal Income Tax, Social Security and Medicare taxes from your employees' wages. How much should be withheld depends on the employee's Form W-4.

These IRS Payroll Taxes must be paid on a quarterly basis: March, June, September, and December. Under certain circumstances, some small business owners may be eligible to file these taxes on an annual basis. Deposits can be made to the IRS electronically or by taking the deposit and required forms to a Federal Reserve Bank or other authorized financial institution. The IRS determines how often deposits are to be made, and they update these requirements each year, based on the annual payroll.

If you owe back IRS Payroll Taxes, the IRS can and will be very aggressive in its collection attempts. And the penalties the IRS can assess to a liability can drastically increase the amount owed in a very short period of time. The failure to make timely deposits is a large portion of these penalties.

And, not only is your business at risk, but you may be personally liable for any or all IRS Payroll Taxes owed. If the IRS determines the business cannot pay it's past due taxes, they will then focus on any
individuals who the IRS deems as responsible.

If you owe back IRS Payroll Taxes, we may be able to help by designing a plan for paying those taxes and negotiating with the IRS so you don't get assessed with a bank levy or lien.

Do not represent yourself. As you won’t go to court without an attorney.
The I.R.S. is your adversary in these matters.