by steve | Jun 2, 2010 | IRS Tax Advice, Tax News
The IRS can and will seize, levy or garnish your Social Security Retirement benefit.
If your monthly benefit is more than $750, the Internal Revenue Service may garnish 15% of your monthly benefit for taxes that are at least six months in arrears. (This doesn’t apply to certain Social Security Disability benefits and perhaps other types of Social security benefits, but it does apply to Social Security Retirement.
You should contact IRS as soon as you receive a letter or notice to stop this event from taking place. If you have an IRS Problem or cannot afford to pay call us today. Do so before IRS sends out notices or federal tax liens or tax levies.to your bank accounts. IRS may send out multiple levy notices if they wish.
The IRS is must and is required to notify you before it begins to garnish your Social Security. They do so by a telephone call, by letter or by certified mail.
In many cases, you can settle, make IRS an Offer in Compromise, make a part pay agreement, or in many cases be put in a hardship or noncollectable file. Call us today to see what program is right for you.
Fresh Start Tax is one of the premier tax resolutions firms in the country. We deal with all types of civil cases including individuals, businesses, corporate and defunct corporations. We have staff that specializes in every facet of the Internal Revenue Service. We know all the IRS strategies.
Some of our many specialties include the following:
- Immediate Tax Representation
- Offers in Compromise/Settlements
- Back Tax Relief
- Bank Garnishments or Tax Levies
- Wages Garnishments or Levies
- IRS Notices of Intent to Levy or Final Notices
- IRS Tax Audits
- Hardships Cases, Payment Plans
- Innocent Spouse
- Abatement of Penalties and Interest
- State Sales Tax Cases
- Trust Fund Penalty Cases/ 6672
Our Company Resume:
- Our staff has over 110 years of professional tax representation experience
- On staff, Board Certified Tax Attorney’s, Certified Public Accountants, Enrolled Agents, Former IRS Manager, Instructor and Trainers
- Highest Rating by the Better Business Bureau ” A “
- Extremely ethical and moral principles used
- Fast, affordable, and economical
- Licensed to practice in ALL 50 States
- Premium on client communication
- National Recognized Veteran Former IRS Agent
- National Recognized Published Tax Expert
by steve | Jun 2, 2010 | IRS Tax Advice, Tax News
Asset Protection Strategies from Creditors and the IRS
Our tax professionals will make sure that your asset protection plan is correctly designed and documented correctly and legally.
Asset protection is not about trying to hide from legitimate creditors. It is about managing justifiable debts and protecting your assets by taking the appropriate steps now by planning for the future so you have money and funds to pay necessary bills and obligations. Whether it is the formation of a trust,a corporation, limited liability company ( LLC), a limited partnership, or some other type of structure is going to be right for you, Fresh Start Tax will give you options an asset protection strategy that is appropriate for your assets, and for your unique personal and business situation. It also will allow you to set up a payment plan or settle with the Internal Revenue Service or other creditors. It will also help against IRS tax levies and IRS tax liens.
Fresh Start Tax believes that even though our clients may owe up to millions of dollars in past due taxes, our clients still have rights. thus the taxpayer Bill of Rights. It is within these laws that we fight for our clients because our experience has demonstrated that there is always a fair and equitable solution for collecting past due taxes. There are legal remedies for almost all situations. each case is different so every case is looked at from its own point of view. There are no two cases the same. we have dealt with thousands and thousands of cases in the past 60 years.
We also know how frustrating, depressing, sleepless nights it can be for an individual or for a business to address a liability with the long term goal of paying it off, when you or your business continues to have its bank accounts levied or seized . Our goal is to keep you operating and paying off your necessary bills and still deal with the IRS. We will deal with IRS so you never have to speak with them.
If you or your business has experienced a federal tax levy or a federal tax lien it is imperative to take the necessary steps to protect your assets in advance of this taking place, by contacting a tax professional from Fresh Start Tax who is equipped at protecting you in your time of distress.We can help you today.
You are right to be concerned about keeping what you have earned, and the law provides ways for you to protect your assets from IRS and current and future creditors. Our company will help you keep federal, state, and local tax authorities from seizing your business or your personal assets.We can work out settlement agreements if need be. Let us solve your IRS problem today
Our process is to give you a financial statement so we can start the process today. We send all information out to you electronically and you can get started today. We wait to have you as a new client.
by steve | Jun 2, 2010 | IRS Tax Advice
IRS Liens Can and Will Demolish Your Good Credit and Borrowing Capacity!
By Internal Revenue Service filing federal tax liens ( FTL ), the IRS can make your life absolutely miserable.
Federal Tax Liens are filed in the public records in the courthouse nearest your residence. The federal tax lien will indicate you owe the IRS various federal business or individual taxes . They are filed with the County Clerk in the county from which you or your business operates or your principle residence
Because they are public records they will show up on all your credit report. This often makes it difficult or impossible for a taxpayer or the business to obtain any financing, even for an automobile, home, or other lending opportunities.
In addition, Federal Tax Liens can tie up your personal property and real estate. It is like IRS has a mortgage on the property. Once a Federal Tax Lien is filed against your property, you cannot sell or transfer the property without having the lien removed so that you can transfer a clear title. The federal tax lien will have to be released for any sale to take place.
Taxpayers find themselves in a no win situation where they have property against which they would like to borrow but, because of the Federal Tax Lien, they cannot use it as collateral to back up a loan.
Generally the only ways federal tax liens can be released are by full pay, accepted and paid Offer in compromise or the statue of limitation has expired on the tax years. Contact us so we can help you through this problem. As a side note, your beacon score on your credit report will drop about 100 points. The federal tax lien has a devastating effect.
by steve | Jun 1, 2010 | IRS Tax Advice
Why do people get behind in paying their taxes? There are many reasons it happens ? laziness, procrastination, illness, divorce, loss of job and/or income ,just do not know what to do. These are probably some of the most common reasons we seen by Fresh Start Tax. The IRS knows this and offers some settlement options for taxpayers who have experienced financial hardship and gives the taxpayers various ways to remedy their problems. The following are the most common way cases are settled by IRS:
1.Pay the tax in full ? This is the fastest and the very best way to resolve any back tax IRS issue, is to send payment in full to the IRS. If you are able to do this, it should be done as soon as possible to avoid accruing further interest and penalties on you account. Make sure IRS has not filed a Federal Tax Lien, if they have be sure to get the tax lien released.
2. Installment agreement or payment agreement ? If you are unable to full pay your tax debt, you can work out an Installment Agreement ( payment agreement) to repay your tax debt to the IRS. This allows the taxpayer to pay back the debt in monthly payments. IRS will require financial documentation in the process of negotiating your payment plan since an installment agreement is based on comparing income to expenses. Interest and penalties will continue to accrue while payments are being made to the IRS.For a complete list of documentation required see our site for more details.
3. Streamlined Installment Agreement ? You can find info on this on IRS.GOV. A streamlined installment agreement was designed for the taxpayer who owes less than $25,000 in individual income taxes to the IRS. While the streamlined Installment Agreement is also a monthly payment made to the IRS, the streamlined installment agreement is based on how much your tax liability is. You will qualify for a Stream Line Agreement if your tax liability is less than $25,000 and the liability does not expire in less than five years. As with a traditional Installment Agreement based on financial ability to pay, interest and penalties will continue to accrue while payments are being made to the IRS.If you can pay your liability down to $25,000, these agreements are guaranteed.
4. Offer in Compromise ( OIC) ? An Offer in Compromise, or OIC, is a program that benefits both the taxpayer and the IRS. The taxpayer submits an offer in compromise form 656 to the IRS detailing what they can pay, based on what they can afford to pay. The Offer program requires the taxpayer to provide full disclosure of financial to prove they would not be able to repay the IRS. The IRS benefits by gaining at least a portion of the taxes owed, as well as getting a compliant taxpayer back into the system. A taxpayer submitting an Offer in Compromise must be current with his/her current tax obligations by filing and making the appropriate payments to the IRS in addition to meeting any payment terms of the Offer in Compromise. If the Offer goes through the taxpayer will have to stay current for the following 5 years or the agreement is null and void.
5. Currently Not Collectible or Hardship If you are truly in true hardship financial difficulty, you may qualify for the IRS Currently Not Collectible status.or uncollectible. If you qualify, the IRS will not pursue collections from you during the period you remain in this status. IRS will have you fill out a financial statement with complete documentation
6. Innocent Spouse In some cases, a spouse may be considered an innocent spouse when the other spouse files a joint tax return and there is a tax liability without the one spouse’s knowledge. The burden of proof lies on the party submitting the Innocent Spouse Request but if proven innocent, it eliminates the debt, interest and penalties from the Innocent Spouse’s taxpayer account. The spouse who filed the return will become solely liable for the taxes, interest and penalties. The Innocent Spouse must document that he/she did not have any knowledge of the tax liability, nor did the individual benefit from the items generating the tax liability.
7. File a Bankruptcy Proceeding ? A possible solution, and as last resort for most people, would be to attempt to get your back taxes discharged in bankruptcy, chapter 7 or chapter 13. Payroll taxes cannot be discharged in bankruptcy. You should speak to a bankruptcy.
8. Just wait out the statute of limitations. Statues are Ten are years If your back tax debt is from many years ago, you may be close to the point where the IRS can no longer collect. It is very important to note that certain things may extend your statute of limitations,such as litigation or bankruptcy or being out of the country.
Let Fresh Start Tax help you through this process today.
by steve | Jun 1, 2010 | IRS Tax Advice
To expedite the resolution on accounts in the Large Dollar Unit, please have the following information available when contacting ACS Unit
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Explain in detail why the taxpayer is not able to full pay or borrow to full pay
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Completed Form 433- A, B or F
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Copies of delinquent tax returns
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Three months of current pay stubs for both taxpayers
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Three months of current bank statements (all accounts)
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Value of all property and/or available equity
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Investment income
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Value of 401K/Retirement
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Year make of vehicles, value, equity, balance owed, and monthly payments
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Employer’s information including work number
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Number of individual’s living in the house hold
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Secured loan(s) – amount of loan and remaining balance(s)
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Life insurance policies, (whole or term), any borrowing ability? And/or value of policy
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Profit and Loss statements for self-employed taxpayers
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Commission statement
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Substantiation of Court ordered payments
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Substantiation of payments being made
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Spouse’s income and source with name/address/phone number
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Out-of-pocket medical expenses
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Pension income and/or Social Security income
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Rental income
Fresh Start Tax can help you resolve your case today.
by steve | Jun 1, 2010 | IRS Tax Advice
Three Types of OICs
The IRS may accept an offer in compromise based on three grounds:
1. Doubt as to Collectibility – Doubt exists that the taxpayer could ever pay the full amount of tax liability owed within the remainder of the statutory period for collection.
Example: A taxpayer owes $20,000 for unpaid tax liabilities and agrees that the tax she owes is correct. The taxpayers monthly income does not meet her necessary living expenses. She does not own any real property and does not have the ability to fully pay the liability now or through monthly installment payments.
2. Doubt as to Liability – A legitimate doubt exists that the assessed tax liability is correct. Possible reasons to submit a doubt as to liability offer include: (1) the examiner made a mistake interpreting the law, (2) the examiner failed to consider the taxpayers evidence or (3) the taxpayer has new evidence.
Example: The taxpayer was vice president of a corporation from 2004-2005. In 2006, the corporation accrued unpaid payroll taxes and the taxpayer was assessed a trust fund recovery penalty as a responsible party of the corporation. The taxpayer was no longer a corporate officer and had resigned from the corporation on 12/31/2005. Since the taxpayer had resigned prior to the payroll taxes accruing and was not contacted prior to the assessment, there is legitimate doubt that the assessed tax liability is correct.
3. Effective Tax Administration – There is no doubt that the tax is correct and there is potential to collect the full amount of the tax owed, but an exceptional circumstance exists that would allow the IRS to consider an OIC. To be eligible for compromise on this basis, a taxpayer must demonstrate that the collection of the tax would create an economic hardship or would be unfair and inequitable.
Example: Mr. & Mrs. Taxpayer have assets sufficient to satisfy the tax liability and provide full time care and assistance to a dependent child, who has a serious long-term illness. It is expected that Mr. and Mrs. Taxpayer will need to use the equity in assets to provide for adequate basic living expenses and medical care for the child. There is no doubt that the tax is correct.
OIC Payment Options
In general, a taxpayer must submit a $150 application fee and initial payment along with the Form 656, Offer in Compromise. Taxpayers may choose to pay their offer in compromise in one of three payment options:
1. Lump Sum Cash Offer – Payable in non-refundable installments, the offer amount must be paid in five or fewer installments upon written notice of acceptance. A non-refundable payment of 20 percent of the offer amount along with the $150 application fee is due upon filing the Form 656.
If the offer will be paid in 5 or fewer installments in 5 months or less, the offer amount must include the realizable value of assets plus the amount that could be collected over 48 months of payments or the time remaining on the statute, whichever is less.
If the offer will be paid in 5 or fewer installments in more than 5 months and within 24 months, the offer amount must include the realizable value of assets plus the amount that could be collected over 60 months of payments, or the time remaining on the statute, whichever is less.
If the offer will be paid in 5 or fewer installments in more than 24 months, the offer amount must include the realizable value of assets plus the amount that could be collected over the time remaining on the statute.
2. Short Term Periodic Payment Offer – Payable in non-refundable installments; the offer amount must be paid within 24 months of the date the IRS received the offer. The first payment and the $150 application fee are due upon filing the Form 656. Regular payments must be made during the offer investigation.
The offer amount must include the realizable value of assets plus the total amount the IRS could collect over 60 months of payments or the remainder of the statutory period for collection, whichever is less.
3. Deferred Periodic Payment Offer – Payable in non-refundable installments; the offer amount must be paid over the remaining statutory period for collecting the tax. The first payment and the $150 application fee are due upon filing the Form 656. Regular payments must be made during the investigation.
The offer amount must include the realizable value of assets plus the total amount the IRS could collect through monthly payments during the remaining life of the statutory period for collection.
The IRS is not bound by either the offer amount or the terms proposed by the taxpayer. The OIC investigator may negotiate a different offer amount and terms, when appropriate. The investigator may determine that the proposed offer amount is too low or the payment terms are too protracted to recommend acceptance. In this situation, the OIC investigator may advise the taxpayer as to what larger amount or different terms would likely be recommended for acceptance.
Payments and Application Fees
When filing an offer in compromise, two separate remittance documents should be sent, one for the application fee and the other for the required offer payment. All payments should be made by check or money order made payable to the United States Treasury. Practitioners who file multiple OICs at the same time should not combine application fees for multiple clients.
The Form 656-PPV, Offer in Compromise Payment Voucher, included in the Form 656, should be completed and attached to any periodic payment(s) that becomes due. Failure to submit any required periodic payments, after the initial payment has been submitted, will result in the offer being declared withdrawn. For offers originally sent to Holtsville, NY, send payments to: P.O. Box 9011, Holtsville, NY 11742. For offers originally sent to Memphis, TN, send payments to: AMC Stop 880, P.O. Box 30834, Memphis, TN 38130-0634.
The OIC application fee reduces the assessed tax or other amounts due. The application fee will be returned if the OIC is deemed not to be processable. Unless the offer in compromise has been submitted under doubt as to liability or a completed Form 656-A is included with the Form 656, the $150 application fee must be included with the offer or the IRS will return the offer.
Let Fresh Start Tax help you through this process today
