The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) is the skeleton in the closet people don’t want to talk about and the old adage “if I can’t see it, it doesn’t exist” isn’t really effective here. Dealing with the IRS when it comes to delinquent taxes can be complicated since knowing where to even start can be overwhelming. Delinquent tax is tax debt owed to the IRS that hasn’t been paid off yet or there has been an established liability passed by the deadline and hasn’t been paid. People faced with this kind of situation avoid taking the necessary steps to resolve the issue and don’t come to a compromise with the IRS. Most individuals don’t realize there are programs in place to help them through tough financial situations like the IRS Fresh Start Program to get back on track with their taxes.
What Happens if You Avoid Talking to the IRS?
Underestimating the power of communication is a mistake many make when it comes to dealing with situations like delinquent taxes. Businesses, for example, can face penalties if payroll taxes aren’t paid out by the end of the year or fail to payout other taxes owed to the IRS. Ignoring them can result in severe penalties that can affect your credit score, bank accounts, investments, and anything else wrapped up in your financials.
The IRS will take action on delinquent taxes if the taxpayer has failed to get in touch with them to resolve the issue. This sounds harsh, but after multiple attempts at communication, if the IRS doesn’t hear from the taxpayer, they start taking steps to ensure the account is paid off. Once an account has become delinquent, penalties will start being charged to the account that will have to be paid by the taxpayer. This process will continue if the taxpayer fails to respond to multiple attempts to get in touch with the IRS. In severe cases, a revenue agent will be assigned to the case to help the taxpayer resolve the problem and to pursue options to pay off the debt.
If there is no response from the taxpayer, the IRS begins to take drastic steps to resolve the issue on their end. When the tax warrant goes unpaid, the case will be handled by the Superior Court where liens can start being placed. Liens can be established on any kind of personal property, basically anything that can be used to pay off the outstanding amount of debt. This can include assets like a car, house, property, and extend to bank accounts and wages.
Why It’s In Your Best Interest to Talk With the IRS
The core of the issue is that people who fail to communicate clearly with the IRS will face harsher penalties dealing with them directly. There are multiple ways to deal with a delinquent account and to resolve issues before they become a major liability to you and the IRS financially. Taxpayer accounts can become delinquent if taxes aren’t being paid, so know your tax deadlines. Filing taxes can be an arduous process and it’s one of the reasons many have turned to e-filing. E-filing makes it easier to catch any mistakes made during the process and a tax consultant will ensure everything is filed properly.
If an account does become delinquent or you’re unable to pay taxes for any reason, establish a line of communication with the IRS immediately. There are a plethora of options and programs in place to help taxpayers resolve these issues so they can get caught up. There’s the possibility, for example, the IRS will allow the taxpayer to make payments on the amount owed instead asking for a large lump sum. This doesn’t always happen since every case is different and has to be judged and assessed before the decision can be made.
Normally, at this stage is where people will seek out a tax professional to help them file for an appeal with the IRS. There are cases where the taxpayer is in the right and a mistake was made during filing, taxes aren’t owed, etc. There are several ways to get help from the IRS to answer questions about taxes and how to get in touch with them.