Getting Prepared to Fight a Tax Levy
Finance No Comments »Nearly every form or government entity can impose a tax levy but the most feared of these is the IRS tax levy. A levy by the IRS carries the most penalties and also the widest range of collection possibilities under current law. In most areas a tax levy may only be focused on the particular property or item being taxed but with a levy from the IRS you can be facing forfeiture of all your property, business and personal assets as well as facing federal prison time. This is scary stuff to the average taxpayer and being prepared for what is coming will help to alleviate many of these fears.
An IRS tax levy comes about when you have been notified of unpaid tax liability and have refused or failed to comply with the payment or attempted to make payments. Once a lien is in place a tax levy takes over and under it the levy your property can be seized in an effort to settle the tax debt. IRS Garnishment of your wages is the most common form of tax levy used today. Employers are notified that you have a past due tax bill and must submit to the requirements of the levy or be held liable for the amount the IRS garnishment would have collected from your wages. Often times this will be confiscatory in nature if not complete withholding of your entire paycheck.
The wage garnishment is often followed by freezing of your bank accounts, retirement accounts, trusts as they are released, social security payments and any other liquid assets that you may have. Once the easy steps have been taken, other steps to seize and pay off your debts will begin to occur against real property, art, jewelry, boats and cars. Once the procedure has started it is difficult to stop the IRS from taking what they want until the debt is satisfied.
A few people when they find themselves in this position can wait it out and then go about their lives. Others may find themselves unable to satisfy the tax levy simply because they do not have the means to pay it. However, the worst thing you can do is to do nothing. By showing that you want to pay the debt you may be able to negotiate a settlement or reduce your debt to livable payments. Being unable to pay a tax bill in full does not mean you cannot make payments or attempt to negotiate a settlement.
Tax professionals who handle ample IRS levy may seem costly but in the long run they may save you many thousands of dollars and your property. A IRS garnishment tax levy can be frightening, but you have the right to representation as well as the right to negotiate a settlement under current tax law. Understand what is happening before you find yourself in trouble is good advice in this situation.