When a loved one dies, the person who serves as the personal representative is tasked with wrapping up the decedent’s affairs and paying known creditors. But what if one of the creditors is the IRS? Can the probate process extinguish unpaid IRS taxes? The recent United States v. Chicorel, No. 17-2321 (6th Cir. 2018) provides an…
Category: IRS Collections
About the IRS collections period and statute of limitations.
Last Filed Rule Overruled? IRS Collections Uncertain
Taxpayers will often file tax returns that do not report all of their allowable deductions and credits, with the intent of going back and filing amended returns once they are able to determine the correct deductions and credits. Can the IRS base its collection analysis on the originally-filed but incorrect tax returns? The court recently…
Congress Provides Significant Relief for Back Taxes
There are winners and losers when it comes to the recent tax changes proposed by Congress. As it turns out, those who owe back taxes to the IRS may be in the winner category. The proposed changes will significantly increase the amount of income that is beyond the IRS’s reach. If the legislation is passed…
Making the IRS Pay for Unlawful Collection Activities
Taxpayers often feel helpless when it comes to the IRS. We hear this from clients when there is some real or perceived injustice involving the IRS. While the IRS and IRS employees have a lot of power, they are subject to the law. The law provides taxpayers with several remedies when they are harmed by…
Common IRS Collection Notices and What they Mean
Did you receive an IRS Collection Notice in the mail? If so, you either (1) opened it immediately as you had to know what the problem was or (2) refused to open it as you were hoping that the problem would go away on its own. Once you finally read the IRS Collection Notice, you…
Tips For Finding the Right Tax Firm
There are quite a few tax firms out there. It can be hard to tell one from another. While there are a number of factors to consider when hiring a tax firm, here are several tips on how to whittle down the list. Identify what you need from a tax firm. Do you need tax…
IRS’s Collections Create an Economic Hardship
The IRS has broad collection powers that it can bring to bear to collect unpaid taxes. Even though it has these powers, it often chooses not to use them. This is especially true in cases where the collection actions would result in economic hardship for the taxpayer. What is an Economic Hardship? The term “economic…
Get Rid of Unpaid Taxes Without Losing All of Your Assets
It is nice to have a retirement account with a significant balance. It is also nice to have a significant amount of equity in a home. It can be difficult to get tax relief from the IRS for unpaid taxes if you have one or more of these assets. Reasonable Collection Potential The IRS factors…
The FTC Warns About Tax Relief Companies
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is the nation’s consumer protection agency. It works to prevent fraudulent, deceptive and unfair business practices in the marketplace. It weighed in on the tax relief companies in an article posted on its website. Taxpayers should consider the FTC’s warnings before hiring a tax relief company. Unethical Tax Relief Practices…
The Cost to Hire a Tax Attorney
A friend of mine had a new house built a few years ago. We always seem to be in the midst of some kind of remodeling project, so I had asked him about his selection of appliances, cabinets, carpet, fixtures and windows. I was a bit surprised by his response. He said he was not…