What is an IRS Seizure ?
An IRS Seizure allows the Service to legally take your assets. The money from your assets will be used to pay off your past-due federal tax liability. The most frequent type of seizure is a levy. Methods in which an IRS Levy will occur can be garnishing your wages, taking money directly out of your bank account and taking your property. Property can be real estate, vehicles or other items to sell and fulfill your tax liability. Personal Property seizure is the most intense action taken by the IRS. In most cases, the IRS can also take property that is not actually in your possession. This means that if you have cars sitting at your relative’s house or vacation property, the IRS can come and get them.
Final notice of intent to levy and Your Right to a Hearing.
An IRS levy will occur after a Federal Tax Lien has been filed. The Federal Tax lien secures the interest of the IRS on your property and other assets when you have a tax bill. The IRS Levy gives permission to secure any funds through the sale of those assets with a lien. Prior to the levy being enforced, you must be advised with an IRS notice, “Final notice of intent to levy and Your Right to a Hearing.” This notice will be issued by certified mail, directly to your address. The notice will make you aware that you have an unpaid balance and that you must respond immediately. If ignored, the IRS will take drastic measures to ensure the unpaid tax liability gets satisfied. Usually, a deadline of 30 days is granted on the notice. If the deadline time passes and you do not contact the IRS, they will move forward with the Levy.
The IRS is looking to withhold your state income tax refund or use other methods listed above to secure the funds. It is important that you do not allow your collections process to get to this extent. The IRS can pretty much take all the items that you own. This even includes the home you and your family reside in. An IRS Seizure can occur by taking your wages, taking the rent money due to you by your tenants, seizing the available balance in your bank account and/or your retirement funds. The IRS will seize any asset you own and leave you with a few personal items needed. Items will have to be proven that they are used to conduct your trade or business or to maintain a basic lifestyle. There are some items that are excused from being seized. Some of these items are disability payments, public assistance or child support, unemployment benefits, specific pension and annuity benefits, furniture or other household items up to certain thresholds. This is not a full list of the exempt items and it is best to hire a trained professional to help you decipher the difference.
If the IRS moves forward with seizing and selling your assets there will be a Revenue Officer assigned to your case.
The Revenue Officer will make field visits to your home or business location. Once you have been made aware that this was going to occur, they will take ownership of the assets seized. The Revenue Officer could come to your home or business. They will begin towing away vehicles they see in the driveway or parking lot. The Revenue Officer will most likely ask you to grant access to the inside areas of your property. Upon your permit, they will then begin to look inside the property and take any other items they may see with value. The overall point of seizing and selling your assets is to obtain funds to pay your tax liability. If you do not agree to allow the Revenue Officer into your residence, then they will obtain a warrant to get in. This document must be made through the courts. It will give the Revenue Officer the right to enter your residence and search areas of your business or home. For the IRS collection process to get this severe, it means that there were numerous warnings and all of the deadlines given to resolve the account have been missed. There are common reasons a taxpayer will ignore the requests of the IRS. The IRS will take the severe measure of seizing items when they feel a taxpayer is intentionally trying to avoid disclosing assets. A taxpayer who owns a business and has payroll tax liability can be another type of taxpayer who will experience aggressive collection. The IRS does not take it lightly when there is payroll tax liability assessed to a business. The IRS will also take extreme measures when a taxpayer has committed a tax fraud and found guilty of it.
You Have Proper Withholdings Out Of Your Paycheck.
There are numerous options for you if you have been faced with an IRS Seizure. The most important factor in avoiding such extreme collection action is to make sure you have proper withholdings out of your paycheck. If you are self-employed, you are required to make monthly tax deposits to equal the amount of taxes due, based on your income, when it is time to file. If you run a business and you are held responsible to withhold taxes out of your employee’s paychecks, then you must do so. A Trust fund should be set up to hold those funds and you are required to submit monthly payments to the IRS in the amount of those funds.
There Is Always An Option To File An Appeal
If you are unable to solve your tax bill within the timeframe set before you, there is always an option to file an Appeal. Along with the notice of seizure or notice of levy, you have the right to request a hearing. This hearing will be held with the Office of Appeals. This will give you the chance to argue the lien or levy notice that was sent to you. To complete this action, you will need to file IRS Form 12153. This Form is called a “Request for a Collection Due Process or Equivalent Hearing.” To be sure you are taking the proper steps in Appealing the IRS’ decision of a seizure or levy, you should contact a tax expert to assist you with the process. At this hearing, you have the ability to voice that you disagree with the filing of this collection action and can present your case in front of an Appeals officer.
Why you need Omni Tax Help ?
Working with Omni Tax Help can help you detect the reasons you may have to file an Appeal. The reason that the IRS filed the lien or levy wrongly must be valid. You should be able to provide documents related to your argument in order to make your case strong. Once your case is heard in front of the Office of Appeals, they will make a decision. You will be notified in writing of this decision once it is made. A notice will be sent directly to the last known address you have on file with the IRS. It is important to make sure your information is up to date in their system. This will help avoid missing any notices. You will have a second chance to Appeal the decision if you still do not agree. You should be prepared to have a more in-depth hearing the second time around. It would be best to provide additional info that was not included in the first hearing to support your argument. The additional timeframe to submit another Appeal would be within 30 days from the date the IRS issued their decision on your original Appeals hearing.
You Must Resolve Your Account Immediately
If you are faced with an IRS levy, then you must resolve your account immediately to have it released. To resolve your account, all missing tax returns must be submitted, and an Installment Agreement must be input to pay the back taxes. A financial proposal can be submitted to set up a monthly payment plan that is affordable to you. If the IRS feels that you can pay more than the amount requested; they will reject the proposal. Most of the time you will be able to set up an Installment Agreement based on a minimum amount required by the IRS. By doing so, you will not have to submit any financial info. These payments may not be the most affordable. It is best to consult with a tax professional because reaching an agreement with the IRS, especially in a short period of time, can be hard. The IRS will continue to garnish your wages and keep your income tax refunds if no resolution is made. These actions will take place in addition to the IRS seized assets. Resolving your account is primarily based on your financial ability to pay
It is very important to contact the IRS and cooperate with the requests set before you.
As simple as it may sound, paying your tax bill, whether in full or through payments is the best way to avoid an IRS Seizure or Levy. Most of the severe effects of IRS collection actions can be avoided if you communicate with the IRS. Omni Tax Help specializes in helping taxpayers resolve their accounts timely while keeping their income and assets safe.