Taxes are a major part of our monthly budget. We need to keep paying taxes in order to enjoy our precious civil rights while living in a country. A majority of citizens work as career professionals, private contractors, or own small and medium businesses. And to keep doing that, they need to keep paying the taxes they owe to tax authorities. IRS Fresh Start Program really helps you in this scenario
The circumstances don’t always stay the same always for everyone, and we are often faced with financial difficulties. Taxes are the expense most likely to be skipped when somebody is faced with short income, but this is the mistake that can put anybody under more financial stress and even criminal investigation for evading taxes if not handled carefully.
This is because all the unpaid taxes don’t vanish just because we don’t pay. All the unpaid taxes accumulate over time, and after all the due dates expire, these taxes become your tax debt, which starts to appear in your background checks and also in your credit score. So if you are thinking about skipping tax payments, think again. We have a better option for you.
If the earlier discussed circumstances are similar to yours, you may be wondering what to do to get out of this tough situation. You might be wondering if there is some sort of fresh start you can have so you don’t make the same mistakes again. Guess what, the IRS offers just that to the people not able to pay off tax debt, but they genuinely want to keep contributing to the system.
FRESH START PROGRAM: IRS offers the fresh start program to genuine financially distressed citizens willing to pay-off their tax debt but cannot do so due to tough financial standing. IRS offers three debt repayment options under the fresh start program. Every US citizen with a tax debt of more than $10,000 and less than or equal to $50,000 can avail of this facility by applying for a fresh start program. In addition to eliminating tax liabilities, taxpayers can also avoid many further detriments of owning a tax debt. The further relief that a taxpayer can enjoy includes avoiding interest incurred on the tax debt, penalties borne on non-payment of taxes, tax liens, avoiding seizure of assets, and saving them from wage garnishment.
How to Avail of the IRS Fresh Start Program?
To avail of the IRS fresh start program, there are some ways the taxpayers can apply.
The first option allows them to opt for an extended installment agreement for their tax payment. This allows taxpayers to pay their old taxes along with the current taxes for an extended period. Under this option, the IRS grants six years to taxpayers for repayment of tax debt. Collection activities of IRS like tax liens, seizures of assets, and wage garnishment also stops.
The second option is an offer in compromise of OIC under which the taxpayer offers the IRS a lesser amount than he can actually pay. The amount offered under the offer in compromise can sometimes be substantially lower than the actual value of tax liability.
However, the taxpayer needs to satisfy tax authorities that they are genuinely unable to pay off tax debt even under extended installment offers.
So if you want to start fresh in the US, the IRS fresh start program is designed specifically for the people like you.
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Zee Maq is a content writer who specializes in writing business and finance content. She has nine years of experience and loves to provide problem-solving content to help people tackle challenges in their everyday lives.