USA Tax Settlement provides tax relief services in Sylmar, CA for IRS and FTB back taxes. If a levy, wage garnishment, or growing penalty balance has you worried, we negotiate directly with the IRS and FTB on your behalf. Based in Granada Hills, we’ve served Sylmar since 2018 with a free, no-obligation consultation.
“Our mission is to help taxpayers get out from under their Unpaid Taxes and we operate under the ethos that everyone deserves a second chance.”
Our experienced tax attorneys in Los Angeles, specialize in IRS tax resolution. We fight for your financial freedom so you can move forward with peace of mind.
An Offer in Compromise (OIC) allows eligible taxpayers to settle their IRS tax debt for less than the full amount owed. We prepare your Form 656 package, determine your eligibility, and manage the entire IRS process from application to resolution. Most cases take several months to complete, depending on their complexity.
If you can't pay in full but can pay something every month, an installment agreement stops most active collection action while you pay down the balance over time. We figure out a payment amount that actually fits your budget rather than one the IRS proposes by default, which is often higher than necessary.
A federal tax lien attaches to your property and can show up on public records. A levy is when the IRS or FTB actually takes money, from your bank account or your paycheck. Both are stoppable, and often reversible, once you're in an active resolution with the taxing agency. If your wages are already being garnished, this is usually the first thing we address.
Beyond an Offer in Compromise, there are other negotiated paths, including penalty abatement and Currently Not Collectible status. We review your full file to figure out which combination gets you the strongest outcome.
If you haven't filed in a few years, the first move is almost always getting those returns filed and accurate, because the IRS and FTB generally won't negotiate a settlement or agreement until you're current on filing. We prepare and file back returns, then move into resolution.
Once we're engaged, we deal directly with the IRS or FTB on your behalf, including responding to notices, handling any calls, and representing you if a revenue officer is assigned to your case. You stop being the one on the phone.
A Notice of Deficiency, sometimes called a 90-day letter, means the IRS proposes to increase what you owe and gives you a strict window to respond or petition Tax Court. Missing that deadline can lock in the higher amount. If you received one of these, don't wait to call.
If you have a foreign bank account and haven't filed a Report of Foreign Bank and Financial Accounts, penalties for missing this can be steep. We help residents with overseas family accounts or property get compliant before it becomes a bigger problem.
Tax planning focuses on future decisions that may affect your tax obligations. Reviewing your financial situation throughout the year can help reduce surprises at filing time and support long term compliance.
The IRS charges two separate penalties on top of the tax itself: a failure to file penalty of 5 percent per month, capped at 25 percent, and a failure to pay penalty of 0.5 percent per month, also capped at 25 percent. The failure to pay penalty drops to 0.25 percent once you have an approved installment agreement but jumps to 1 percent if a final notice of intent to levy goes unanswered for ten days.
On top of both penalties, the IRS charges interest that compounds daily, currently 7 percent a year for individuals, and that interest keeps running even while you are on a payment plan. This is why a return filed late but unpaid is far cheaper, penalty-wise, than a return that is simply never filed. Filing on time, even without the money to pay, stops the larger of the two penalties from growing.
If your income is simple and under the current IRS threshold, free help is a real option. The Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program, run in partnership with CSU Northridge, holds free clinics at Los Angeles Mission College, 13356 Eldridge Avenue in Sylmar, on Saturdays during tax season for taxpayers who qualify by income.
VITA is built for straightforward current year returns. It is not set up to negotiate a settlement with the IRS, respond to an audit, or fight a bank levy. If your situation involves back taxes, a notice of deficiency, unfiled prior year returns, or a balance the IRS is actively trying to collect, that calls for a tax attorney or enrolled agent who can represent you directly with the IRS.
Simple and Manageable step by step process
Free Consultation
The first step involves a free consultation where we sit down with you and our expert IRS tax lawyer will thoroughly review your situation to discuss the best solutions for your IRS tax issues.
Document Preparation
Next, and depending on which resolution route we decide to take, we’ll gather and prepare all of the necessary documents to submit your file.
IRS Submission
Once we’ve completed all of the required paper work and we’ve gotten your documents in order, we’ll compile a packet for submission to the IRS.
Resolution
Finally, we’ll work directly with the IRS to resolve your case in order to provide you with the most favorable outcome possible given your situation.
Costs vary based on how complicated your case is, whether returns need to be filed first, and which program you qualify for. A straightforward installment agreement generally costs less to set up than a full Offer in Compromise, which requires a detailed financial disclosure and more back and forth with the IRS. We quote a flat fee after the free consultation, once we know what your case actually requires, rather than charging by the hour with no ceiling and no idea what the final bill will be.
The balance keeps growing from interest and penalties, as shown above, and there is no cap on how much interest can add up over time even though the penalties themselves stop at 25 percent. Eventually the IRS can file a federal tax lien against your property, garnish your wages, or levy your bank account. The FTB can take similar action at the state level. None of this happens instantly. It moves through a series of notices first, which is exactly why it is worth addressing a notice as soon as it arrives instead of waiting for the next one.
A CPA generally focuses on accounting, bookkeeping, and tax preparation, and is a good fit if your only need is an accurate return filed correctly and on time. An enrolled agent is licensed by the IRS specifically to represent taxpayers in collections and audits, and has passed IRS testing on collections, audits, and appeals. A tax attorney adds legal privilege to that representation, meaning your conversations are protected in a way they are not with a CPA, and can go further in Tax Court if a case requires it. For simple return preparation, a CPA may be enough.
Do not ignore the letter and do not call the number on it without reviewing your file first. Read the notice type printed in the corner, note the response deadline, and keep the envelope. Then get a professional to review it before you respond, since an early misstep can close off options that were otherwise available.
Back taxes are unpaid federal or state tax bills from a prior year. The balance grows because the IRS and FTB add interest and penalties on top of what you already owe, and that interest compounds. A $5,000 balance from three years ago can easily be worth much more today. Waiting does not make the bill smaller. It makes it larger.
A client facing an IRS debt of $32,751.66 was able to settle their balance for only $750 through strategic tax resolution. This resulted in a total savings of $32,001.66, offering a fresh financial start and peace of mind.
Another client owed $34,010.35 to the IRS. With expert representation, their debt was successfully reduced to $3,200, saving them $30,810.35 and resolving a long-standing tax burden.
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My journey in the USA TAX SETTLEMENT stems from witnessing firsthand the challenges business owners face. As a dedicated LA tax attorney, I understand the complexities of IRS tax issues and work tirelessly to find solutions for our clients. Understanding the complexities of tax debt personally drives our commitment to finding solutions for every client we serve.
CP14, CP504, and Final Notice of Intent to Levy letters each represent a different stage. A CP14 is the first bill. A CP504 warns that the IRS may seize a state refund. The Final Notice starts a 30-day clock before a bank or wage levy can be filed.
A lien attaches to your property and shows up on public record, which can affect financing or selling a home. A levy allows the IRS to take money directly from your bank account or paycheck. Both are stoppable if you act before they are filed.
Missing returns from several years back often need to be filed before any settlement option becomes available, since the IRS generally will not approve an Offer in Compromise or a formal payment plan until you are current on filing.
The state has its own collection process, separate from the IRS, including wage garnishments and bank levies of its own. It is possible to owe both the IRS and the FTB at the same time on the same income, which means two separate negotiations.
Money owed from prior tax years that has not been paid in full, now growing every month from the penalties and interest described above.
Disputes over deductions, income reporting, or business expenses that the IRS wants to verify or deny. An audit that goes unanswered can turn into a Notice of Deficiency, which starts its own strict deadline.
Our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) provide clear and concise answers to common tax concerns. If you don’t find what you’re looking for, feel free to call us at 1-866-511-2585 or email info@usataxsettlement.com for a personalized free consultation.
Not always, our experienced tax professionals can often resolve issues without court intervention.
Absolutely. We explore options like Offer in Compromise, installment plans, and penalty relief.
Bring your IRS notices, tax returns, W-2s, 1099s, and any relevant financial records.
Fees vary by case complexity, but we offer free initial evaluations to review your situation.
We work with both individuals and businesses.
How much can we save you on your tax debt? Our expert IRS tax attorneys in Sylmar will analyze your case and create a custom legal strategy to get you maximum relief.
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