Category: Uncategorized

Hearing Available Under Collection Due Process (CDP) (Part II)

For Levy Notices:

For each tax and period, the IRS is required to notify you the first time it collects or intends to collect a tax liability by taking your property or rights to property

The IRS does this by issuing you a pre-levy or post-levy notice. The notice is mailed, given to you, or left at your home or office. During the 30-day period from the date of the notice, you may request a hearing with Appeals. There are four exceptions to issuing this notice before levy:

1. When collection of the tax is in jeopardy.

2. When the IRS levies your state tax refund.

3. When the criteria for a Disqualified Employment Tax Levy is met.

4. When the IRS serves a federal contractor levy.

You may request a hearing after the levy action in these instances.

If your request for a CDP hearing is not timely, you may request an equivalent hearing. To receive an equivalent hearing, your request must be postmarked on or before the end of the one-year period after the date of the levy notice or on or before the end of the one-year period plus 5 business days after the filing date of the Notice of Federal Tax Lien.

(IRS Publication 1660) (TTT 02/12/19)

Hearing Available Under Collection Due Process (CDP) (Part I)

For Lien Notices:

By law, you have the right to a CDP hearing when you receive a Notice advising you of this right and you timely postmark a request for a hearing to the address indicated on the Notice. You are limited to one hearing under section 6320 (Notice and opportunity for hearing upon filing of notice of lien) and 6330 (Notice and opportunity for hearing before levy) for each tax assessment within a tax period.

You may contest the CDP determination in the United States Tax Court.

Lien Notice: The IRS is required to notify you the first time a Notice of Federal Tax Lien is filed for each tax and period. The IRS must notify you within 5 business days after the lien filing. This notice may be mailed, given to you, or left at your home or office. You then have 30 days, after that 5-day period, to request a hearing with Appeals. The lien notice you receive will indicate the date this 30-day period expires.

Next week a discussion on Levy Notices.

(IRS Publication 1660) (TTT 02/05/19)

Your Collection Appeal Rights (Part II)

 

The two main procedures to appeal IRS collection activities are the Collection Due Process (CDP) and Collection Appeals Program (CAP) discussed in last week’s blog post.

CAP generally results in a quicker Appeals decision and is available for a broader range of collection actions. However, you cannot go to court if you disagree with the CAP decision. CAP procedures will be discussed in a future blog post.

You may represent yourself at CDP, CAP and other Appeals proceedings. Or, you may be represented by an attorney, certified public accountant, or a person enrolled to practice before the IRS. Also, you may be represented by a member of your immediate family, or in the case of a business, by regular full-time employees, general partners or bona fide officers.

A Low Income Taxpayer Clinic (LITC) may represent you if you qualify. LITCs are independent from the IRS and most provide representation before the IRS or in court on audits, tax collection disputes, and other issues for free or for a small fee. Some clinics can provide multilingual information about taxpayer rights and responsibilities. Publication 4134, Low Income Taxpayer Clinic List, provides information on clinics in your area and is available at your local IRS office, by calling 1-800-829-3676, or from www.IRS.gov.

If you want your representative to contact the IRS or appear without you and to receive and inspect confidential material, you must file a properly completed Form 2848, Power of Attorney and Declaration of Representative. You may also authorize an individual to receive or inspect confidential material but not represent you before the IRS, by filing a Form 8821, Tax Information Authorization. These forms are available at your local IRS office, by calling 1-800-829-3676, or from www.IRS.gov

(IRS Publication 1660) (TTT 01/29/19)

Your Collection Appeal Rights (Part I)

 

You may appeal many IRS collection actions to the IRS Office of Appeals (Appeals). Appeals is separate from and independent of the IRS Collection office that initiated the collection action. Appeals ensures and protects its independence by adhering to a strict policy of prohibiting certain ex parte communications with the IRS Collection office or other IRS offices, such as discussions regarding the strengths or weaknesses of your case. Revenue Procedure 2012-18 has more information about Appeals’ independence and ex parte communication and is available at www.IRS.gov.

 

The two main procedures are Collection Due Process and Collection Appeals Program. Other procedures will be described in future blog posts.

 

Collection Due Process (CDP) is available if you receive one of the following notices:

• Notice of Federal Tax Lien Filing and Your Right to a Hearing under IRC 6320
• Final Notice – Notice of Intent to Levy and Notice of Your Right to a Hearing
• Notice of Jeopardy Levy and Right of Appeal
• Notice of Levy on Your State Tax Refund – Notice of Your Right to a Hearing
• Post Levy Collection Due Process (CDP) Notice

 

Collection Appeals Program (CAP) is available for the following actions:

• Before or after the IRS files a Notice of Federal Tax Lien
• Before or after the IRS levies or seizes your property
• Termination, or proposed termination, of an installment agreement
• Rejection of an installment agreement
• Modification, or proposed modification, of an installment agreement

 

More information next week.

(IRS Publication 1660) (TTT 01/22/19)

How Do You Remove a Lien Against Your Property?   Requesting a Withdrawal of a Lien – Option Two    Part VI

A “withdrawal” removes the public Notice of Federal Tax Lien and assures that the IRS is not competing with other creditors for your property; however, you are still liable for the amount due. For eligibility, refer to Form 12277, Application for the Withdrawal of Filed Form 668(Y), Notice of Federal Tax Lien (Internal Revenue Code Section 6323(j)) (PDF) and the video Lien Notice Withdrawal.

Two additional Withdrawal options resulted from the Commissioner’s 2011 Fresh Start initiative. Last week option one was discussed.

Option Two

The other option may allow withdrawal of your Notice of Federal Tax Lien if you have entered in or converted your regular installment agreement to a Direct Debit installment agreement. General eligibility includes:

• You are a qualifying taxpayer (i.e. individuals, businesses with income tax liability only, and out of business entities with any type of tax debt)
• You owe $25,000 or less (If you owe more than $25,000, you may pay down the balance to $25,000 prior to requesting withdrawal of the Notice of Federal Tax Lien)
• Your Direct Debit Installment Agreement must full pay the amount you owe within 60 months or before the Collection Statute expires, whichever is earlier
• You are in full compliance with other filing and payment requirements
• You have made three consecutive direct debit payments
• You can’t have defaulted on your current, or any previous, Direct Debit Installment agreement.

(IRS.gov) (TTT 01/15/19)

How Do You Remove a Lien Against Your Property?   Requesting a Withdrawal of a Lien – Option One    Part V

A “withdrawal” removes the public Notice of Federal Tax Lien and assures that the IRS is not competing with other creditors for your property; however, you are still liable for the amount due. For eligibility, refer to Form 12277, Application for the Withdrawal of Filed Form 668(Y), Notice of Federal Tax Lien (Internal Revenue Code Section 6323(j)) (PDF) and the video Lien Notice Withdrawal.

Two additional Withdrawal options resulted from the Commissioner’s 2011 Fresh Start initiative.

Option One

One option may allow withdrawal of your Notice of Federal Tax Lien after the lien’s release. General eligibility includes:

Your tax liability has been satisfied and your lien has been released; and also:

• You are in compliance for the past three years in filing – all individual returns, business returns, and information returns;
• You are current on your estimated tax payments and federal tax deposits, as applicable.

Next week – How to request a withdrawal of a Federal Tax Lien – Option Two?

(IRS.gov) (TTT 01/08/19)

How Do You Remove a Lien Against Your Property?   Requesting an Immediate Certificate of Release Part IV

If you have an immediate or urgent need for a Certificate of Release of Federal Tax Lien, you can visit or telephone the local IRS office. A list of local offices, their available services, and their hours of operation may be found on the IRS website www.irs.gov by searching “Local Contacts.”

When visiting the IRS office, be prepared to show proof of payment or other documentation that demonstrates your liability has been satisfied. If there is an unpaid balance on your liability, you must pay the balance with a certified check, cashier’s check, or acceptable money order before a certificate of release can be issued. For other forms of payment, the certificate of release will be issued within 30 days of the liability being satisfied.

To request a payoff or other information about your Notice of Federal Tax Lien, contact the Centralized Lien Operation as listed below General information about Federal tax liens may be found at www.irs.gov by searching “liens.”

Telephone Number: 800-913-6050

Outside the United States: 859-669-4811

Fax number: 855-390-3528

If you prefer to write, your request should be mailed or faxed to the following address:     Internal Revenue Service                                                                                             Centralized Lien Operation                                                                                                P.O. Box 145595, Stop 8420G                                                                                   Cincinnati, OH 45250-5595

Next week – How to request a withdrawal of a Federal Tax Lien?

(IRS.gov Publication 1450) (TTT 01/01/19)

We hope you have a blessed holiday season! We are excited and ready for the new year and new tax filing season!

How Do You Remove a Lien Against Your Property? Requesting a Certificate of Release Part III 

Requesting a Certificate of Release If the Federal tax lien has not been released, you can request a Certificate of Release of Federal Tax Lien. The request must be in writing and should be mailed to the Advisory Group servicing your area. Use Publication 4235, Collection Advisory Group Addresses, to determine the address to mail your request. 

Your request must contain the following information: 

• The date of your request 

• The name and address of the taxpayer 

• One copy of each Notice of Federal Tax Lien you want released 

• Why the lien should be released 

• A telephone number with the best time for us to call you should we need additional information 

If you have paid the tax liability, enclose a copy of any of the following with your request: 

• An Internal Revenue receipt 

• A canceled check 

• A record of payment by electronic fund transfer 

• Any other acceptable proof of payment 

We may need to research your account. We will provide a certificate of release once we have confirmed your liability is satisfied. 

Next week – How to request an immediate Certificate of Release? 

(IRS.gov Publication 1450) (TTT 12/18/18)

How Do You Remove a Lien Against Your Property? Part II

The IRS suggests four methods to remove a lien against your property: Pay in full, Discharge of property, subordination, and withdrawal.

A. Pay in full option:

(1) When your tax debt is paid in full, the IRS will release your lein within 30 days (IRC 6325(a). The IRS will issue a Certificate of Release of Federal Tax Lien for filing in the same location where the notice of lien was filed. If we have not released the lien within 30 days, you can ask for a certificate of release.

(2) Requesting a Copy of the Certificate: If it has been more than 30 days since you satisfied your tax liability and you have not received a copy of the Certificate of Release of Federal Tax Lien, you may call the Centralized Lien Operation to check the status of the certificate.

Telephone Number: 800-913-6050

Outside the United States: 859-669-4811

Fax number: 855-390-3528

If you prefer to write, your request should be mailed or faxed to the following address:

Internal Revenue Service

Centralized Lien Operation

P.O. Box 145595, Stop 8420G

Cincinnati, OH 45250-5595

The copy of the certificate you receive will not show the official recording information. For a copy of the recorded certificate, you must contact the recording office where the Certificate of Release of Federal Tax Lien was filed.

Next week – How to request a Certificate of Release?

(IRS.gov) (TTT 12/11/18)