Every year in the past decade, we have seen dramatic increases in the number of bank levies that the IRS issues (in some cases the number doubles from year to year). In 2009, the IRS issued nearly 4 million bank levies. In 2009, the IRS announced huge increases in their collection efforts, and raked in nearly $50 billion in back taxes due. 2010 promises to be another painful year of an upsurge in bank levies.
For many taxpayers, tax terror can strike like lightning. Your life changes in a flash like when you try to buy milk and make the horrifying discovery that your bank account has been suddenly emptied. All your checks bounce. Have you been robbed? A victim of identity theft? It's worse, your bank account has been gutted by an IRS bank levy. Not only are you suddenly broke, but you've just entered the IRS's version of "Beat The Clock."
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Act quickly today (but don't panic).
An IRS levy on your bank account is something you need to fix fast. It has a 21-day ticking clock. The first step to is to get a tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist as quickly as possible.
Under no circumstance should you contact the IRS (or your state's tax board) yourself, without expert tax help from a tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist, to try to release the bank levy. Alone and panicked, you may start babbling, trying any collection of random syllables or incantations to unfreeze the levy on your bank account. Chances are, without a tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist, not only will you not be successful, but you just get may incriminate yourself and get into even bigger trouble (including possible federal criminal charges for back tax evasion).
What is an IRS bank levy?
If you owe back taxes and have been ignoring IRS communication, the IRS can go into your bank account to satisfy your tax debt. An IRS levy on your bank account is the most effective weapon in the IRS's arsenal. With an IRS levy on your bank account, Uncle Sam has you right where he wants you. You may think you have no leverage, but there are steps a tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist can take.
With an IRS levy on your bank account, there is more at stake then just your bank accounts. The IRS is the most brutal collection agency on the planet. The IRS can seize the money in your corporate, or personal checking and savings accounts (whatever accounts are tied to your Social Security number, or employer identification number in the case of a corporation). But that's just the beginning of the IRS bank levy horror show.
For employees who file a W2, the IRS typically will levy a wage garnishment, but if they can't find an employer (if you are self-employed, for example), the IRS will often place an IRS levy on all your bank accounts, your accounts receivable (contacting your clients) and every other source of income they can find. To make things worse, in addition to an IRS bank levy, the IRS can seize any account with your name anywhere near it, including those belonging to your children, spouse, parents and any clubs where you are an officer. An IRS levy on these bank accounts is only the start of your problems. The IRS can seize and sell your property (car, house) as well as any accounts you have, such as retirement accounts, rental income, the cash loan value of your life insurance, etc. This is how they get your "attention".
An IRS Bank levy has one teeny, tiny silver lining
The good news is that when the IRS levies a bank account, it is generally a "one-shot" levy, which means that the levy on your bank account is only for the particular day it is received by the bank. The bank removes whatever amount the IRS says you owe (most often emptying the account). The bank has 21 days to send it to the IRS unless you make a deal in the meantime. On the 21st day, the entire amount will go to IRS. If you ever want to see your money again, you've got to have your tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist cut a deal quickly so that your bank receives a notice of IRS bank levy release from the IRS before the 21st day.
Although most IRS bank account levies are one-shot deals only for that day, that doesn't mean you're in the clear after that day. In most cases you can deposit money (to cover written checks) after the day of the IRS levy, but that just means your money is safe until the IRS strikes back with another bank account levy. Every tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist will tell you that the IRS will keep issuing IRS bank levies until they get every penny they think is owed. Your best bet is to enlist a tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist to cut a deal including an offer in compromise or IRS payment plan to permanently resolve your tax debt.
How do I release an IRS levy on my bank accounts?
In most cases, a tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist can appeal your IRS bank levy by requesting a Collection Due Process hearing with the Office of Appeals. To remove your IRS bank levy, your tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist may launch one of these popular IRS bank levy defenses:
The taxpayer will suffer financial hardship (not be able to meet basic needs) if the account is levied The taxpayer has paid all taxes owed before the IRS sent the levy notice The IRS assessed the tax and sent the levy notice when the taxpayer was in bankruptcy, and subject to the automatic stay during bankruptcy The IRS made a procedural error in an assessment The time to collect the tax (called the statute of limitations) expired before the IRS sent the levy notice The taxpayer did not have an opportunity to dispute the assessed liability The taxpayer wants to discuss collection options The taxpayer wants to make a spousal defense
The need for speed.
You must work fast to beat the 21-day deadline. Get the name, email and fax number of the person at your bank who is responsible for your IRS bank levy release and the same information from the IRS revenue officer who is handling your IRS levy. Even with the help of a tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist, you'll still need to move very fast to get the Notice of Levy Release to the bank officer in time. Faxes are the fastest way to slay the IRS bank levy dragon. If you wait for the IRS to send you the Notice of Levy Release via U.S. Mail, you could easily miss the 21-day IRS bank levy deadline. If you miss it by just one business day, you've missed the IRS levy deadline forever.
What is the advantage of working with a tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist to release my IRS bank levy?
We get between you and the IRS. After learning which tax years are part of the IRS bank levy, have your tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist look at those returns. Every tax year is different, so a one-size-fits-all response to an IRS levy on your accounts (personal, corporate, etc.) might be a costly one. Find out what the IRS says you owe them and have your tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist check it against your returns. The IRS may have made some mistakes (happens all the time) that only a tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist can spot and fix.
If things don't go your way with the IRS Office of Appeal and your IRS bank levy isn't released, that's when you'll REALLY need a tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist. After the Office of Appeals issues a determination on your IRS bank levy, you have 30 days to have your tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist bring a suit to contest the ruling.
An IRS bank levy is terrifying, but with IRS help from a good tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist you have the hope of getting your financial life back in order, in some cases paying far less than the IRS says you owe. If you get any IRS bank levy notices in the mail, contact a tax attorney or Certified Tax Resolution Specialist immediately so you don't have to worry about whether you can buy milk without getting struck by IRS bank levy lightning.
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