IRS Collection Articles « Robert E. McKenzie

Robert E. McKenzie Quoted in Accounting Today on the Bankruptcy of Widely Adverised Tax Resolution Firms

“There are still lots of tax resolution services out there, but the three that filed for bankruptcy—TaxMasters, Roni Deutch and JK Harris—were the ones that engaged in heavy duty advertising on a national scale,” said Bob McKenzie, a tax partner at Arnstein & Lehr. [...]

Forbe Blog: IRS Offers New Penalty Relief to Taxpayers

On March 7, 2012 the Internal Revenue Service announced a major expansion of its “Fresh Start” initiative to help struggling taxpayers by taking steps to provide new penalty relief to the unemployed and making Installment Agreements available to more [...]

1-28-12 Forbes: Revised IRS Installment Agreement Rules

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IRS Revised Rules for Streamlined Installment Agreements

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The IRS recently relaxed its rules for payment of smaller tax liabilities. The revised procedures now allow taxpayers up to 72 months to pay their tax obligations. The new procedures also increase the maximum amount subject to the relaxed streamlined agreements from $25,000 to $50,000.

You may request a monthly installment plan [...]

Tax Obligations Before and During Bankruptcy

For bankruptcy cases filed after October 16, 2005, the Bankruptcy Code requires Chapter 13 debtors to file all required tax returns for tax periods ending within 4 years of the debtor’s bankruptcy filing. All such federal tax returns must be filed with the IRS before the date first set for the first meeting of creditors. The debtor may request the trustee to hold the meeting open for an additional 120 days to enable the debtor to file the returns (or until the day the returns are due under an automatic IRS extension, if later). After notice and hearing, the bankruptcy court may extend the period for another 30 days. Failure to timely file the returns can prevent confirmation of a Chapter 13 plan and result in either dismissal of the Chapter 13 case or conversion of the case to a Chapter 7 case. [...]

IRS Account Transcripts

1. This section provides descriptions of assorted transcripts used internally or externally. It includes some transcript request and certifying transcripts procedures. In general, only transcripts designed for taxpayer use should be sent to taxpayers. It also includes information on the Transcript Delivery System (TDS), which is an automated system that delivers tax account and return information to the user instantly along with an appropriate cover letter (when applicable) or to the taxpayer through the post mail feature. [...]

Nonfilers

A tax practitioner is frequently confronted with the following question when giving a client a return with a balance due on it: “Should I file the return right now, or wait until I have the money to pay it?”

The answer is very simple. File it as soon as possible! If your client has any money at
all available for payment, it should be enclosed with the return. The reason for such
advice is that one of the largest penalty rates which the IRS is allowed to impose is for
late filing of a return. The penalty is five percent per month, up to a maximum, of 25%, of the tax due but unpaid by the due date of the return, which works out to be an annualized rate of 60%. Therefore, if your client fails to file the return on time there is an effective annual rate of interest in excess of 75% when you add interest and. late payment penalty. The late payment penalty after notice, on the other hand, is one percent per month, or an effective rate of 12% per year in addition to statutory interest. One1 drawback of filing a timely return without remittance is that the IRS will arrive at the taxpayer’s door to collect the liability much sooner than if he or she files a return late. However, the additional cost for penalties incurred to gain this time is prohibitive. [...]

IRS Collection Activity Statistics

IRS Collection Activity [...]

11-20-11 Forbes: IRS Collection Procedures

The IRS Collection Division attempts to collect delinquent taxes as inexpensively and rapidly as possible. To accomplish this task the IRS makes extensive use of computers. Only when automated methods have failed to collect a tax is the matter assigned to an individual for [...]

Forbes - IRS Easing Up on Liens

Over the past several years as taxpayers have endured the Great Recession the IRS has escalated the number of federal tax liens filed against delinquent taxpayers. The IRS aggressive use of liens has been criticized by the National Taxpayer Advocate in her annual report to congress and the IRS Advisory Council in its annual report to the Commissioner. IRS recently announced a new, more flexible attitude in policies and programs to help taxpayers pay back taxes and avoid tax [...]

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