Ground Hog Day...Don't Hide: Begin to Address Your Open Tax Issues Today

Ground Hog Day...Don't Hide: Begin to Address Your Open Tax Issues Today

Know Your Options Before You Sign A Power of Attorney/IRS Form 2848

Taxpayers who have run afoul of the IRS and is dealing with seemingly overwhelming tax issues, there are words of wisdom to successfully resolve your tax problems, how to pay your taxes on a timely basis by properly utilizing withholding, estimated payments, and extensions. Though there are many things we can do to help you avoid tax problems and unnecessary penalties, we can also help you discover the general guidelines and rules of how to qualify for and process an Offer in Compromise. This is a process where both the Internal Revenue Service and the State of Georgia will reduce your bill to what you can afford to pay based upon detailed tax regulations, procedures, and careful compliance.

I am a self employed independent sales agent (as an S Corporation and have been filing IRS Form 1120S). When I did eventually file in 2010 I owed about $35K. However after the IRS added penalties and interest it was about $50K. I have been on a variety of payment plans and have tried to stay current since but I currently owe a lot of money. I am about get on a new payment plan but I really need help. I paid an attorney $2K in 2010 to help but basically it was kind of a scam. I just got off the phone with another large national tax-help firm but they want $3000 and I assume it will be a waste of money.

I think I need:
-A CPA who can be honest about what they can achieve for me?
- A CPA who can organize this mess...what do I owe, what have I paid
- A CPA who can get me on a payment plan that can get rid of the debt efficiently?
- A CPA someone who can get the penalties or interest removed, reduced or at least stopped so I can pay this off.

Below is my response:

Fixing IRS Tax Problems Before they Cause Undue/Further Financial Havoc

Understanding your options is your best option when evaluating how best to address open and unpaid IRS tax issues with the IRS. These articles and recaps will do much to help ensure that you make a wise a prudent choice. Having served as a Gwinnett CPA over a decade I have learned that the best option will always be to retain a CPA who is well versed in such matters and to ensure that you check all of their references. Working closely with a CPA who has your best interests in heart is essential to handling IRS Tax Problems. Having handled many in Atlanta over the last several decades, I have learned that each and every case is different and should be treated so accordingly.

Paying the taxes and interest in full along with the interest while requesting abatement of the penalties. This has the advantage of stopping penalties and interest on any paid monies and the potential upside of perhaps a quicker resolution of the open monies. However this requires you to be able to source and full pay the taxes and interest, which may be require more capital than appears immediately available. However borrowing this money from a bank, friends or family might gain you a much lower carrying cost on the open monies and therefore be substantially financially advantageous.

Submitting an Offer in Compromise is a great option for those who qualify. In general terms to qualify you have to be up to date on all of your current tax filings and obligations and the amount you owe Will need to be more than the total of your net worth and excess cash flow over the next five years. If the IRS accepts your offer in compromise, you will be required to stay current on all personal and corporate tax obligations for the next five years. A typical Offer in Compromise will take between eight to fourteen months to process and you must meet the above criteria or the IRS will not consider your offer. For those who qualify the IRS will reduce the amount owed to what you can afford to pay, using the above, and then typically the IRS will look to have all of the monies paid ASAP after acceptance of the offer. Though the IRS can grant payment terms for up to two years on the monies, I recommend that all taxpayers pay in full, so as to limit any potential of non-payment and voiding of the Offer.

The third option that is most used to effectively address open IRS tax monies/back taxes is to set up an Installment Plan using IRS Form 9465. The Installment Plan, though often seen as a "quick fix" as taxpayers are able to get on a plan and begin making monthly payments, is frequently the most expensive option as penalties and interest continue to be assessed due and payable on any open monies.

John Dillard, CPA of His CPA, PC (An Atlanta Christian CPA firm) 1940 Woods River Lane, Duluth, GA 30097 Phone 770-814-9304 http://www.hiscpa.com/ To retain John Dillard CPA (An Atlanta Christian Speaker/Author) for your business group or church congregation, you can contact him today.

http://www.hiscpa.com/irs-selection.html How Audits Are Selected   http://www.hiscpa.com/working-with-the-irs.html  IRS Representation
http://www.hiscpa.com/paying-taxes.html  Paying Your Taxes and Extensions
http://www.hiscpa.com/avoiding-audits.html  Duluth/Cumming/Forsyth CPA on How to Avoid IRS Audits   http://www.hiscpa.com/offer-in-compromise.html   Atlanta/Cobb CPA Advises on Offer of Compromise, Back Taxes and IRS Problem Resolution