What If I Didn’t Pay My Taxes by April 18, 2016

Tax day is officially behind us. What should you do if you didn’t pay your taxes?

Many of us dread April 15^th every year - well this year it was April 18^th. If you didn’t pay your taxes, then you dreaded April 19th even more – that was the first day you owed arguably one of the most powerful collection companies in the world – the IRS. Until April 19^th, it was a worry in the back of your mind. Now it’s reality. For whatever reason, you didn’t pay your taxes in full or not at all. You woke up the morning of the 19^th with a gut-wrenching feeling not knowing what to do. You’re not alone with this feeling; millions of Americans are unable to pay their tax debt in full by the due date.

Tax Levy, Bank Levy, Wage Levy… What’s a Levy and How Can You Protect Yourself

A tax levy is an administrative action by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) to seize property to satisfy a tax liability. In layman’s terms, it is the process the government can use to take your property (bank accounts, income, real property, investments, etc.). It is one of the most powerful enforcement actions the IRS has in its arsenal. If you ignore the several attempts by the IRS to have you voluntarily bring your account into compliance, the IRS can, and usually will, use a tax levy to attempt to collect the debt.

How We Can Help You, Help Yourself

This is one of our longer articles. It is important to give you this overview of tax resolution so that will you understanding of the process. Once you have this understanding you will then easily be able to see how our program will assist you in settling your delinquent tax debt for the least amount possible while saving thousands of dollars in fees.

The Worst Advice We've Ever Heard About Tax Resolution

Go to war with the IRS

There is a belief that to resolve your taxes you must prepare for war with the IRS. While it is true the IRS will fight hard to collect their money, this does justify your preparing for war with them. If you had the money to go to war with the IRS, then you probably wouldn’t be in this position.  Preparing for war on one side only causes hostility on the other side.

The Fresh Start Initiative

Fresh Start Program

The Fresh Start Program was originally enacted in 2011 by the IRS to assist Americans who have delinquent taxes and who need to apply for tax resolution. The goal of this program is to do exactly what it says, give you a chance for a Fresh Start. This of course does not mean the IRS doesn’t want you to pay the delinquent tax. It means they have made it easier for you to qualify for their various programs by making the process of becoming current a little less painful.

How to Settle with the IRS

Settling with the IRS, while still difficult, has been made a little easier with the “Fresh Start Initiative”. The Fresh Start Initiative was originally rolled out in 2011. Some of its major benefits are: it allows more individuals to qualify for a repayment program using the Streamline Installment Agreement; it allows payment plans for up to 6 years; it allows raising the delinquent amount from $5,000 to $10,000 before a tax lien is issued (in most cases), and it qualifies more individuals for the Offer In Compromise program.

How Long Does the IRS or State Have To Collect Delinquent Tax Debt

Statute Of Limitations

For tax resolution purposes, Statute of Limitations is a term meaning the time the IRS and/or states are legally allowed to collect on delinquent tax debt. For the most part, individual states follow the same logic as the IRS, but one primary difference between them is the number of years allowed to collect the debt. We will reference the IRS in this article.  If you need information about a specific state, please contact us using the contact information at the end of this article.