Archive for the ‘IRS’ Category
Tax Debts and the Taxpayer Advocate Service
Even though they may not always demonstrate them openly, IRS representatives often allow their own emotions and personal problems to creep into their work. Furthermore, IRS employees have varying levels of competency and skill. If you have been working with the IRS to settle your tax liabilities and feel that you have been treated unfairly or incompetently, you may want to request the assistance of the Taxpayer Advocate Service.
The Taxpayer Advocate Service (TAS) describes itself as “an independent organization within the IRS.” The service is free, but not everyone who owes back taxes will qualify for TAS assistance. A taxpayer normally must be experiencing some kind of economic burden or delay imposed by the IRS. If you believe that you fit this criteria, or if you believe that an IRS procedure is just not functioning properly, you may want to consult with the TAS by calling 1-877-777-4778. You will need to give them your basic contact information and describe to them the actions you have taken to try to resolve your tax debt. If they decide that they can help, you will be given a case number, and you will be contacted by your assigned Case Advocate usually within a week or so. The individual Case Advocate will work as a mediator between you and the IRS.
Although your individual tax debt is certainly your top priority, there are thousands of other hard-working Americans that run into the same red tape and bureaucracy that you have. Another function of the TAS is to respond to systemic advocacy issues. These are the kind of issues that affect a large number of taxpayers and relate to the policies and procedures of the IRS. The remedy for these kinds of issues is generally legislative in nature. There is really no better source of ideas and recommendations for change than those who have been on the receiving end of a levy, audit, or other IRS procedure. Do not hesitate to submit your own advocacy project by visiting the “Systemic Advocacy Management System (SAMS) page on IRS.gov.
The Federal Government has worked over the years to emphasize the independence of the TAS. They want taxpayers to have a second set of eyes available to them for assistance in resolving their tax debt. However, this organization is still just what it claims to be: an independent organization within the IRS. It is difficult to imagine that a TAS employee would be able to offer the same degree of independence and advocacy as a truly independent tax professional.
Your seven topmost rights as a taxpayer
If the need arises, you have certain rights as a taxpayer, which you can put to use. These rights should be well understood. IRS employees are supposed to explain and protect your rights throughout their dealings with you.
1. Your right of privacy and confidentiality – The IRS will not disclose any information concerning you to anyone except as required by law. So naturally you have a right to know why IRS is asking you certain information, how it is going to use such information and finally the consequences if you do not provide IRS with the requested information.
2. Your right to receive fair service – The employees of IRS are supposed to treat you in a professional and courteous way. If you’re not satisfied with their behavior, then you should contact the supervisor of that employee. In case the response from the supervisor is also not satisfactory, you can write to the director of IRS in your area or to the head of the centre where you file your tax return.
3. The right of representation – You can represent yourself or authorize somebody else to represent you before the IRS. Remember, you cannot authorize any person of your choice but the person needs to be authorized to practice before the IRS. So he can be an attorney or a certified public accountant or an enrolled agent. If you are interviewed by an IRS official, you can request for a consultation with your representative. In that case the official must stop and re-schedule the interview as per the convenience of both.
You can also have somebody with you during an interview with the IRS. You can make sound recording of the meetings with the IRS or officials. For this you need to inform in writing to them at least 10 days before the meeting. Remember, video recording is not allowed.
4. Your right to pay correct amount of tax – You are required to pay only the exact amount of tax as required from you under the law. You need not pay anything more. If for some reason you are unable to pay the dues, you can request for monthly installment payments.
5. The right to get help for unsolved tax problems – If you are not successful to resolve a problem with IRS, you can take the help of the taxpayer advocate service. The local taxpayer advocate in your area can offer you a special help in case you have a significant hardship due to a tax problem. You can always call toll free 1-877–777–4778 or you could write to the taxpayer advocate located in the IRS office.
6. Your right to appeal – If you feel that the amount of your tax liability is not appropriate, you have a right to ask the Appeals Officer to review your case. You have also a right to approach a court to review your case.
7. Your right to receive a relief from certain penalties or interest – If you are able to show that you have acted reasonably and in good faith or you have relied upon an advice of an IRS employee which was incorrect, IRS will waive the penalties. The interest will also be waived.
The mission of IRS is always to provide top quality service with fairness and integrity. To now your rights is an important step to solve all your tax problems in a fair way.
IRS Tax Settlement
Are you in the middle of a fight with the IRS or need an IRS tax settlement. One of the warranted rights for all taxpayers is the right to appeal. If you disagree with the IRS about the quantity of your tax responsibility or about suggested collection actions, you’ve got the right to ask the IRS Appeals Office to study your case. During their contact with taxpayers, IRS workers are needed to clarify and protect these taxpayer rights, including a right to appeal. The IRS appeals system is for folk who don’t agree with the result of an investigation of their tax returns or other changes to their tax guilt. As well as exams, you can appeal lots of other things, including : one. Collection actions like liens, levies, episodes, installment agreement terminations and denied offers-in-compromise, two. Penalties and interest, and three. Work tax adjustments and the trust fund recovery penalty. Internal IRS Appeal meetings are informal conferences. The local Appeals Office, which is independent of the IRS office, can infrequently resolve an appeal by phone or through correspondence. The IRS also offers an option called Fast Track Mediation, in which an appeals or settlement officer attempts to help and the IRS reach a mutually adequate solution. Most cases not docketed in court qualify for Fast Track Mediation.
You will request Fast Track Mediation to get you on track for irs tax settlement at the conclusion of an audit or collection backbone, but before your request for a standard appeals hearing.
Fast Track Mediation is designed to popularize the early resolution of an argument.
It does not eliminate or replace existing dispute resolution options, including your chance to request a meeting with a chief or a hearing before Appeals. You’ll pull back from the mediation process at any point. When attending an informal meeting or following mediation, you’ll represent yourself or you can be represented by a lawyer, licensed public accountant or individual enrolled to practice before the IRS.
If you and the IRS appeals officer can’t reach agreement, or if you like not to appeal in the IRS, usually you’ll take your argument to Fed. court. Customarily , it is worth having a go at mediation prior to committing to a dear and time-intensive court process.
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3 Benefits of Using a Tax Professional to Resolve an IRS Wage Garnishment
If you are being faced with an IRS wage levy it is important that you act fast to limit the effects of the levy. The IRS typically shows little remorse for what taxpayers need to live their daily lives and to pay their other required expenses. There are many different options of handling a wage levy and the option you choose should be based upon your tax and financial situation. Since it is in your best interest to act fast, you better hire a tax professional instead of taking your time to learn what would be best. Below are three benefits you receive from using a tax professional to resolve your IRS wage garnishment.
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r1) A tax professional knows the IRS lingo and can quickly navigate the IRS hierarchy to get solutions as quickly as possible. Knowing the IRS lingo goes a lot way with the IRS. An IRS employee would much rather work with a tax professional than an individual taxpayer because it makes their job easier. With that being said, an IRS employee is also more likely to give a more favorable decision to someone using a tax professional than going at it alone.
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r2) Using a tax professional gives an optimistic sign to the IRS that you are actually trying to resolve your problem. If the IRS has started to garnish your wages this means the IRS has lost hope in you ever coming to a resolution on your own and they feel a forced collection mechanism is the only way they will ever be able to collect from you. Just the fact along that you hired a tax professional sends the signal to the IRS that you are very serious about resolving your tax problem and you want to work with them to come to an agreement. The IRS would much rather negotiate some other form of settlement than to garnish your wages. Enforcing a garnishment costs the IRS money and they would rather settle in another manner, even if it means allowing the taxpayer to settle for less than the total amount owed.
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r3) Experience with situations just like yours. IRS wage garnishment is a common issue tax professionals deal with. They know what options are available and the likelihood of you qualifying for different IRS filings to resolve your tax problem. Also, if you were to handle the situation on your own you would be told by the IRS to resolve the tax problem in a manner that works in the favor of the IRS alone. The IRS does not keep your financial well being in mind when suggesting settlements. A tax professional will analyze your tax and financial situation to find the best settlement method that works for you, while knowing the IRS will accept that method if proposed.
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rYou can be assured when hiring a tax professional that their benefits greatly outweigh their costs. A wage levy is a serious matter and it should not be taken lightly. Act quickly and get a tax professional on your side as soon as possible to find the best tax resolution for your situation.
Owing the IRS Over $25,000
If you owe the IRS over $25,000 there is a installment payment plan you can use. The repayment plan will include the outstanding taxes, any penalties and interest payments. With owing this amount of tax there will be a fair bit of paperwork you will need to do, the main one being the Collection Information Statement.
As with any IRS process you must begin with a form to apply for a installment payment plan. The IRS will consider your application primary based on the information you provide in the Collection Information Statement. Quite often the IRS will ask for additional information based on what you have or have not provided in these required forms.
The Collection Information Statement does ask for a lot and detailed information on your financial situation. This information includes your income, expenses, assets and investments. By providing this information to the IRS you are providing them with a good insight into where you may have assets, cash or investments that they can target if you default on your repayment plan or do not pay taxes into the future, you have basically saved them a lot of work in investigating you.
The Collection Information Statement is the basis of how the IRS will determine what will be your installments per month. The IRS will basically work out your mandatory expenses per month against your income and they will target what is left over. In determining what is a mandatory expense the IRS will be a whole lot more hardnosed about that than you would be, so be prepared for this, as it will probably shock you.
The IRS will basically have a formula that says food is a certain amount each month. If you are exceeding this they don’t care, you need to come to the same spending amount that they do, in order for you to meet your repayments. Credit card repayments are also deemed to be non mandatory.
Now you do not need to negotiate directly with the IRS, there are many certified professionals that can do this on your behalf. It is important to draw on their skill, knowledge and experience as the decision the IRS makes will affect you for many years. You want to ensure that the IRS budget they set you is achievable and livable. The people that can help you are attorneys, CPS’s, enrolled agents.
