Sarasota Tax Debt Settlement Lawyer

Sarasota Tax Debt Settlement Attorney

Many emergencies can prevent someone from paying their taxes on time. While it can be stressful to see the penalties for a tax debt, it is important to pay what you owe sooner rather than later. If you ignore the issue, the debt will only grow. If you do not have the financial means to pay your tax debt, a Sarasota tax debt settlement lawyer is an important ally to have to protect your financial interests and deal with tax agencies for you.

When you have an experienced and dedicated tax attorney helping you in Sarasota, you can understand what settlement options are available to you and what is most useful for you. An attorney can review your financial situation and goals to determine what type of debt settlement is appropriate and represent you in discussions with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).

TaxSmith, LLC: Addressing Taxpayer Debt in Sarasota

The team at TaxSmith, LLC has decades of tax law experience in Sarasota and throughout Florida. We understand how tax codes affect individual and business taxpayers on a local, state, and federal level. Taxes and tax debt are often stressful and complex subjects. We want to provide clear tax advice and answer your questions so that you better understand your situation. Our comprehensive legal support can make this much easier for you.

If you ignore your tax debt, the IRS will eventually resort to collection actions. This includes garnishment of your wages, liens on your property, and levies to take property and financial accounts. Unresolved property liens can cloud titles for years—our step-by-step process shows how to release them legally It is important to act prior to collection actions or as soon as you are aware that one is happening. Our firm can help you act quickly to resolve these situations.

What Are My Options for Settling My Tax Debt?

Tax debt settlement is a useful way for certain taxpayers to address their debts, but it’s not available for every person. Most taxpayers who owe unpaid taxes to the IRS or a state agency must pay that amount in full.

You can negotiate your tax debt if you cannot pay in full due to financial hardship. The closest Taxpayer Assistance Center Office to Sarasota is at 5971 Cattle Ridge Boulevard. If you want to address your tax debt in person at this office, your tax settlement attorney can represent your interests and help you negotiate a reasonable outcome.

There are numerous options to limit your tax debt or give you more time to pay it back. This includes:

• Penalty abatement. Penalty abatement is the removal of specific penalties and sometimes their interest from your tax liability. Specific penalties, like failure to pay, can be removed under first-time abatement. Other penalties, like information errors or lack of documentation, can be waived for reasonable cause, such as if the information was destroyed by circumstances outside your control.
• Installment agreement. This is a payment plan for taxpayers and is especially helpful if you provide for your needs off of a monthly budget but do not have the resources to pay a lump sum. An installment agreement still requires that you pay the full debt and its interest but lets you pay a portion of it each month.
• Currently Not Collectible. If your tax liability is marked as Currently Not Collectible, then you have temporary relief from most collection actions. When your financial circumstances improve, you will have to pay back the full debt, as well as the interest and penalties that accrued during the pause.
• Innocent spouse relief. Tax debts that were created on a joint tax filing by your spouse or ex-spouse could be waivable. You must prove you didn’t know about the underpayment or other errors and that you did not benefit from the money.
• Offer in compromise. This is the most traditional type of debt settlement, which allows you to resolve your entire tax liability for a lesser amount. The amount will vary depending on the type of payment and your financial resources. Offers in compromise are incredibly beneficial, but very few taxpayers qualify for them and are approved. In 2023, only 42% of the 30,163 proposed offers in compromise were accepted by the IRS.

FAQs About Sarasota,FL Tax Debt Settlement Law

What Is the IRS Hardship Program?

There are several options the IRS presents for those facing financial hardship. If you are dealing with temporary financial hardship, one option is the Currently Not Collectible status.

This temporarily delays the collection of your debt until your financial situation improves and you can pay back the entire debt. Penalties and interest will still accrue, but you can avoid most collection actions like levies or garnishment. There may be other options for addressing your tax debt if you face hardship.

What Is IRS One-Time Forgiveness?

IRS one-time forgiveness is a first-time penalty abatement, which enables taxpayers to waive a tax penalty from their tax debt and potentially its associated interest. You may qualify for one-time forgiveness of tax penalties if you have a good history of tax compliance. This includes not having any penalties on your tax returns for the prior three years, except for penalties waived through good cause. You may be able to waive penalties like the failure to file.

Can I Negotiate My Tax Debt?

You may be able to negotiate your tax debt. If paying your debt is not financially possible or doing so would put you in financial hardship, then tax agencies are generally willing to negotiate. Negotiating your tax debt can take several forms, including setting up a payment plan, waiving specific penalties, or pausing collection. Skilled negotiators routinely secure terms like 72-month payment plans or partial penalty waivers that taxpayers rarely achieve alone. Settling your debt for a lesser sum is one option, but it is difficult to qualify for and secure.

Does Settling With the IRS Hurt Your Credit?

Settling with the IRS does not hurt your credit. When you settle your tax debt, it is not reported to credit bureaus, nor is it public information. You have a right to confidentiality from the tax agency. Tax debt could affect your credit if you do not pay the IRS or negotiate another resolution because the IRS will begin collection actions. Levies or liens on your property or accounts will become public information, which could harm your credit.

Settle Your Tax Liability With TaxSmith, LLC in Sarasota

At TaxSmith, LLC, we want to help you effectively address your tax debt. You have options if you can’t pay the debt, and tax agencies are willing to negotiate. Let our team represent your interests during negotiations. Contact our firm today.