There are plenty of people who have gotten behind in paying taxes to the IRS. Don't let yourself feel alone if this has happened to you. In today's economic climate, there are many who are right there with you between this "rock and a hard place," especially in my area of Dayton, Ohio, which has had in 2005 one of the highest rates of foreclosure in the country. There are a lot of reasons people find themselves in tax trouble: health care costs, lost jobs, mismanagement of money, victims of crimes and fraud, the list goes on.
There are options available to pay the IRS. But in the end, no matter what, it is going to cost you. Not more than your fair share, but the IRS is firm in one respect at least: that if someone properly owes tax under the law, then they should be ready to pay them or as much as can be paid under reasonable circumstances. In fact, this is not much more than we as individuals might expect from someone who owes us money. And in fact, most people are willing to pay what they believe to be their fair debts.
A taxpayer who owes more than can be paid at one time has 2 main options. The first is the Installment Agreement. This results from the disclosure to the IRS of all the taxpayer's financial information, workplace, monthly income, monthly expenses, and assets owned, like cars, houses, investments, boats, real estate, etc. If current income and assets available for sale can't pay the taxes due, a forumla calculates what can be afforded by the taxpayer to make a montly payment.
The second option is an Offer In Compromise (OIC). This is an offer by the taxpayer to pay a percentage of the total taxes due in exchange for the IRS commitment to not press for collection of the total amount due. This is a harder agreement to obtain since the IRS is agreeing to never seek collection on a portion of valid taxes due.
One last point: those ads you see on the TV and elsewhere in which a service provider says they can get the IRS to accept "pennies on the dollar" for your taxes due are little more than the unreal "free lunch." They can't get the IRS to write off anything unless you already have nothing. So, if you are reading this and have some tax problems, or know someone who does, chances are you are not going to get any "pennies on the dollar" deal. I can get you started on a real tax plan that will keep the IRS from breathing down your neck and give you a chance to get your life back in order.
Don't feel alone when faced with the crisis of IRS or State Tax Debt. The tax experts at Washington Tax Services are available to be your resource to help you save the most money and permanently resolve your IRS or State tax issues in the shortest amount of time possible
Posted by: Washington Tax Service provides offer in compromise consulting | November 16, 2007 at 01:35 AM