If you file your tax return without paying the amount due, you will receive a bill from the IRS. This is the beginning of the collection process.

The first bill you receive from the IRS will explain the reason for the bill and demand full payment. The bill will reference the tax form; the year involved and the amount of tax due, including penalties and interest. Each subsequent notice will become more and more threatening.

If you believe that the assessment is wrong, you can write to the IRS office that sent the bill, or you may call the IRS at 1-800-829-1040. They will discuss the bill with you and make any appropriate changes. If you have previously paid the taxes they are billing you for, you may write to them and send copies of your canceled check or other information. DO NOT SEND ORIGINAL DOCUMENTS.

If the tax bill is correct, you have the following options:

• If the bill is correct, but you can not pay it in full, call us to discuss setting up an Installment Agreement. Any unpaid balance will be subject to interest and penalties until fully paid.
• If you are unable to make any payments, we may by able to have the IRS defer any collection efforts for a certain period of time, thereby classifying you as currently not collectible. Interest and penalties will continue to accrue.
• If you qualify, we may even be able to settle your unpaid taxes for less than the amount owed, which is referred to as an Offers in Compromise. You may be able to settle for pennies on the dollar.
• If the taxes are the result of your former spouse's actions, and you feel that you should not be required to pay the taxes due, we may be able to help you as an Innocent / Injured Spouse.

In some cases you will be able to resolve your tax problems by calling the IRS. However, in many cases, you will need professional tax representation to protect your rights and to seek a resolution that is in your best interest.

In all your dealings with the IRS, you have the right to be treated fairly, professionally, promptly and courteously by IRS employees. That of course does not mean that they will resolve your problem in your best interest. Their job is to collect taxes. Don't misunderstand, that doesn't make them bad. In most cases, IRS employees are professional and courteous. However, IRS employees are required to protect the interest of the United States Treasury. It's what they were hired to do.

The IRS starts ENFORCED COLLECTION when they have been unable to contact you or you have failed to respond to their notices and phone calls. They don't like being ignored.  If you do not take some action to pay your tax bill or contact the IRS, they will take enforced collection actions. These actions are designed to collect unpaid taxes from wayward taxpayers and, in many cases, to GET YOUR ATTENTION. They will pursue your paycheck, your bank accounts, your retirement accounts, your 401(k), your IRA accounts, your car and any other assets you own. In some cases, they may go after your home. The IRS does this by filing a Notice of Federal Tax Lien, Wage Levy, Bank Levy, Asset Seizure, and they may even issue a Summons requiring you or others to visit them.