Key Things to Look for in a Tax Relief Firm
No one wants to be on the bad side of the IRS, yet that is where millions of taxpayers find themselves each and every year. As enforcement efforts ramp up at the IRS, the number of letters and communications landing in mailboxes is continuing to increase and one of them could land in your mailbox.
If you do receive a notice from the IRS, it is important to act fast, especially if you cannot afford to pay what the IRS says you owe. You may be tempted to do nothing or ignore the situation, but every day you wait will just make an already bad situation that much worse.
The good news is you may not have to pay what the IRS says you owe! There are a number of programs designed to give taxpayers relief, in many cases allowing them to settle their tax debts for much less. But before you can enjoy that financial relief, you need to find the right partner, and here are some key things to look for.
The Right Tax Relief and IRS Negotiation Experience
When you hire a tax relief firm, you will be hiring a team of experts, and it is important that the person who works on your case will be up to the task. It is important to look for specific areas of expertise, including former IRS agents, attorneys and others who can help you negotiate with the IRS on your behalf.
The best tax relief agencies are not necessarily huge firms; some of the best are small operators with extensive experience. But no matter what the size of the firm, the tax resolution expertise of the person working on your case is what matters the most.
Compassion and Understanding
Dealing with the IRS is not just a financial problem; it is an emotional one as well. Getting a letter from the IRS is bound to be an upsetting and unsettling experience, and working with a compassionate and caring tax relief firm can help a lot.
You should not, of course, sacrifice expertise and capability for compassion, but there is no reason you cannot have the best of both worlds. Look for someone who cares about you and your situation as you interview tax relief firms and choose the one you feel best about working with.
Recent IRS Negotiation Success Stories
The IRS is a huge agency, and the tax code is endlessly complex. That enormous complexity and ever growing structure means that past experience may no longer be relevant, so look for recent experience with the IRS in the form of testimonials and case studies.
Chances are if they have good “wins” under their belt, they know what they’re doing and they can get you a favorable outcome. Working with these experts can give you peace of mind and make it easier for you to resolve your tax problem.
Getting a letter from the IRS can be a scary experience, but it does not have to be the end of the world. You do not have to suffer financial devastation or go bankrupt to settle the debt you owe. Now that you know how to find a great tax relief partner, you no longer have to live in fear of your next trip to the mailbox.
Reach out to our tax resolution firm and we’ll schedule a free, no-obligation confidential consultation to explain your options in full to permanently resolve your tax problem.
Do You Owe Back Taxes? Take These Steps to Protect Yourself and Your Finances
Few things are as frightening as opening the mailbox and finding a letter from the IRS, especially when you know you owe them money. The much feared tax agency does not contact taxpayers just to say hello and receiving communication from them is not likely to be good news.
When your heart stops pounding and you get the courage to open the letter, you get another shock - in the form of a large amount due, one you cannot possibly afford. So what do you do, and how do you react?
The steps you take next could make all the difference, and here are some immediate actions you need to complete right away.
Step #1 - Stop Panicking, Take Action
If you owe back taxes, our firm can help negotiate with the IRS and potentially settle your tax debt. Call us today. Our tax resolution specialists can navigate the IRS maze so that you have nothing to worry about.
If you think you don’t know, then you need to make a case for why you think the assessed taxes are wrong and back it up with proper documentation and proof. Sometimes, the letter you received from the IRS can be a result of a discrepancy, meaning there is a mismatch between what was reported on your return and the figures the tax agency received through other means. There could be many reasons for this discrepancy, and there could be an innocent and inexpensive explanation and resolution.
Getting a letter from the IRS is not fun, but it is not the end of the world either. Even if you owe the taxes the IRS says you do, you may be able to negotiate a lower settlement, sometimes a much lower one.
Step #2 - Find the Tax Return in Question
The communication you received from the IRS will reference a specific tax year, so it is important to find and review that return as quickly as possible. Hopefully you have retained records that include your recent tax returns, either in paper or electronic form. If not you can request a copy from the IRS or contact your tax preparer.
Once you have your tax return in hand, you can review it carefully, looking for the discrepancies in question and seeking out your own backup information. The problem could be something like a capital gain you forgot to report or a mistransposed number as you were entering your income information. Gather all the information and have it ready to bring to your appointment with the tax relief specialist.
Step #3 - Do Your Own Calculations
Now that you have your tax return and your backup documentation available, it is time to do some number crunching. This can be a long and frustrating process, so we guide our clients through this process when they work with us. The clock is ticking, and interest and penalties may continue to accumulate if you wait too long to respond.
There should be a deadline listed on the form you received from the IRS, so check it and make sure you can respond by the due date. Do not forget to allow time for mailing and delivery, even if you plan to send the documents overnight.
Step #4 - Don’t Contact The IRS Directly, Contact Our Tax Relief Firm And Get The Protection You Need
The IRS is not on your side and their primary goal is to collect the taxes they believe you owe. The IRS has a number of programs in place to lower the amount owed, but for obvious reasons they do not like to talk about them.
By seeking the services of a qualified tax relief firm like ours, you will gain access to a world of knowledge, including insider information about programs that could save you thousands of dollars and get you back on the good side of the IRS. The sooner you our tax relief firm the better off you will be.
Dealing with the IRS is rarely a pleasant thing to do, but ignoring a tax due notice will not make it go away. Delaying will just make a bad situation even worse, so it is important to act quickly. The good news is that tax relief firms exist for this very purpose, so you can settle your debt without sacrificing the rest of your financial life.
Contact Our Firm Today: We help people find tax relief and sometimes settle their tax debt for a fraction of what’s owed.
Which Tax Records to Keep and For How Long. Do This And Avoid Tax Problems Later.
Whether you are expecting a nice tax refund or preparing to write a big scary check, you know that April 15 is the annual tax filing deadline. What you may not know, however, is that tax day is every day at the IRS, and the tax agency is always reviewing the information taxpayers and business owners have provided.
That means that keeping tax records is about more than just smart bookkeeping - it is an integral form of self protection. You see, millions of Americans get letters from the IRS stating they owe back taxes or requesting more information about their tax returns.
It may be disconcerting, but the IRS has the right to request additional information months, or even years, after the return you filed has supposedly been processed and accepted. In fact, the much feared tax agency can request additional documentation for up to three years after the annual tax deadline has come and gone.
We help people resolve their back tax problems and often settle with the IRS for less than the amount they owe, but in order to do this, we need to provide the right records. Thats where having your tax records saved can be the difference between settling your tax debt or not.
As a result, it is important to retain your tax records and keep certain tax documents on hand, just in case the IRS asks for them. Here are the most common tax records and how long you should keep them around.
If you owe back taxes, our firm can help negotiate with the IRS and potentially settle your tax debt. Call us today. Our tax resolution specialists can navigate the IRS maze so that you have nothing to worry about.
Save The Tax Returns Themselves
In most cases the IRS will have up to three years to question the figures you reported on your tax return, or otherwise challenge the information you provided. You may think the tax year is over, but for the IRS the final curtain does not fall for a full 36 months.
For this reason, it is generally a good idea to keep your old tax returns for a minimum of three years. You do not necessarily have to print and retain hard copies of your tax returns - electronic documents are fine as long as you will be able to access them quickly should you need them.
If you fail to keep copies of your tax returns, you can still access them by asking the IRS for transcripts. It is best to keep your own records, and doing so will make your life a lot easier.
Pay Stubs and W2 Forms
As with the tax returns themselves, it is generally a good idea to keep your W2 forms for a minimum of three years. This will provide you with the documentation you need should the IRS find a discrepancy between the amount of income you reported to the agency and the figures your employer provided.
It is also a good idea to retain at least your year-end pay stubs, not only to help reconcile them with the W2 forms but also for other forms of income documentation. If you are applying for a mortgage, for instance, the lender may ask to see several years worth of tax returns, pay stubs and other income documents, and having them on hand will make the application process faster and easier.
Income and Dividend Forms
The IRS looks at all of the income you report when you complete and submit your tax returns, but the agency does not just take your word for the accuracy of those figures. Instead the IRS uses sophisticated matching programs to compare the amount of income you reported from various sources with what they receive from third party sources.
Those third party sources could include your bank and credit union, your brokerage firms and mutual fund companies and any other places that provide you with income. It is therefore a good idea to hold onto any income related forms you receive for at least three years, and possibly longer if you run your own business or earn income from gig work or freelancing.
Once again, these income documents can do double duty, serving as backup if the IRS questions the numbers on your tax return but also giving you the information lenders and others might need down the road. If you store these documents electronically you will not even need to worry about buying a file cabinet, so there is really no reason to not keep them around.
Filing taxes can be a stressful experience, but the difficulty does not end when you click send on your e-filed tax return. Even after that return has been filed and accepted, the IRS could still question or challenge your numbers, and that is why it is so important to retain the backup documentation until the challenge window has passed. Now that you know what to retain and for how long, you can rest a little easier when tax time rolls around.
If you do run into tax trouble or the IRS states you owe back taxes, reach out to our tax resolution firm and we’ll schedule a free, no-obligation confidential consultation to explain your options in full to permanently resolve your tax problem.
