Tax Debt Relief: IRS Notices

Last updated on April 18, 2023

If you were required to file taxes this year and you could not pay by the filing deadline of April 15^th, then you should explore ways to resolve back taxes immediately. Sooner or later, the IRS will discover that you owe taxes and will initiate collection actions.

To collect back taxes, the IRS first sends out notices to inform the taxpayer about the amount of tax debt, what led to the debt and how to pay it. Remember that the IRS will always recommend paying the full tax debt amount in one payment, but you have options to pay the debt in monthly installments, achieve reduction in tax debt, get reduction/forgiveness of penalties, etc. Therefore, use professional tax help to choose the method of resolving tax debt that is the most beneficial to you.

After the initial notice, if no resolution efforts are made, the IRS sends out the final notice of the intent to levy. After this final notice, the IRS will begin collection efforts such as a garnishment or a levy and may file a federal tax lien. After the placement of a lien, the IRS will not send notices to inform the taxpayer about the lien and the progress towards levy.

It is best to begin resolution efforts as soon as you receive an IRS notice, if not sooner. Postponing resolution of tax debt not only leads to aggressive collection actions, but also ultimately increases the amount of back taxes owed with penalties and interest.