How to avoid A Federal Tax Lien

With the economy continuing to struggle and layoffs and unemployment at an all-time high, more and more people are having trouble paying their bills. While an unpaid bill is bad news no matter which way you look at it, an unpaid federal tax lien can absolutely destroy your good name and your tribute, as well. A lien is given by the government when you can’t pay your tax bill. Here are a few things you can do to assist prevent a lien from ever being put in place to begin with.

Be Nice

As silly as it sounds, being nice is a huge part of avoiding a lien. As soon as you begin to receive mailings from the IRS, act in respond to them and talk to an agent about your condition. If you see of] these mailings, you won’t be shown any mercy by the IRS when it comes to putting a federal tax lien on your pay. By treating the officers you tell to with respect and understanding, you can guess to get the same treatment from them, and that can mean all the vriation in the world.

File Back Taxes Immediately

One issue that often comes up during an audit has to do with gone away back taxes. There could be years in your past where you didn’t file because you didn’t make very much money or because you simply forgot. As a prove of good faith, make an effort to file back taxes as soon as promising if you are asked to by the IRS. Again, this simply shows that you are taking their requests seriously and you are doing everything you can short of paying off your balance. You’ll be shocked at how effective this can be.

Be direct

This is the hardest part for some people. You’ve likely already been audited, and you chose to either be straightforward and up front about your tax flood back and your finances, or you dug yourself a bigger hole by continuing to lie. No matter which path you chose, if you want to stay away from a federal tax lien, you want to start telling the truth. Not only will you be able to get out from less than the huge pile of mistruths you’ve been telling, but you will be able to get the lend a hand you must and get back on the road to recovery.

Pay as Much as You can As a Good Faith Move

Even if you can only spare $10 a month, volunteer it. If you prove that you can pay something, anything, per month to facilitate lower your tax ecumber, the government and the IRS agent you are working with will appreciate it. Again, if you are being direct, they will see your full fiscal picture in front of them and know that you can only afford so much per month. It is only when you rebuff to pay anything at all do they tend to get nasty. If you want to get out from beneath an uncomfortable tax state, there are things you can do, but you should be proactive.

Darrin T. Mish is a veteran, nationally recognized tax attorney who has focused on providing IRS help to taxpayers for over a decade. He regularly travels the country training other attorneys, CPAs and enrolled agents on how to handle their toughest cases with the IRS. He is highly ranked among the top attorneys in the country, with an AV rating from Martindale-Hubbell and a perfect 10 on Avvo.com. Martindale-Hubbell has also honored him with a listing in their Bar Register of Preeminent Lawyers. He is a member of the American Society of IRS Problem Solvers and the Tax Freedom Institute. With clients on every continent but Antarctica, he has what it takes to solve your IRS problems no matter where you live in the world. If you would like more information about his practice and how he can help you, please call his office at (813) 229-7100 or toll free at 1-888-GET-MISH.

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