The IRS Won't be Ignored.. Learn how a Tax Specialist can Help

In grade school if you were ever being bothered by a bully, a well-meaning teacher or parent my have advised you to "ignore him, and he'll go away." The results on the playground were probably uneven at best, but this approach certainly won't work when dealing with the taxman.

If you get a letter from the Internal Revenue Service, the last thing you want to do is to ignore it. A letter from the IRS is the first step for them to take action against you which could lead to them seizing your assets or garnish your wages.

Instead, you should deal with the problem, either by contacting the IRS yourself, or by hiring a tax specialist to assist you. Since tax specialists have experience dealing with the IRS and are extremely well-versed in the sometimes confusing tax code, they frequently have better success in reducing tax debt.

Only Certified Public Accountants, Enrolled Agents or Tax Attorneys are allowed to deal with the IRS to manage tax debt.

A tax professional can assist you with any of the following tax problems:

• Filing a late return: If you failed to pay your tax return, the IRS will be contacting you. Eventually, they will even file a return for you, called a Substitute for Return or SFR. You generally do not want the IRS to do this however, since they may not find every deduction you are entitled to and you may end up owning much more on your return than you would if you filed it yourself. However, you can remedy this by filing a late return, even if the IRS already filed a SFR on you behalf. A tax specialist otherwise overlook.
• Contest levies liens and wage garnishments: If you received notice that the IRS is going to take action against you, you do have the option to fight the ruling and have your fees reduced or eliminated. A tax specialist can help you through this process.
• Reduce penalties and interest: In many cases, the IRS's fees and penalties can add several thousand dollars to your tax bill. A tax specialist may be able to negotiate with the IRS to have these fees reduced.

While legitimate tax relief specialists can not promise that they will settle a claim "for pennies on the world," their many years of experience may result in a reduced tax bill.

By David Plowman

411Web provides finance ideas for its readers. Our postings, articles and e-mail responses are not meant as to serve as personal advice, nor are they endorsements of any investment or personal finance strategy. Any financial or investment plan must take into consideration an individual.s personal experience and circumstances. Individuals may want to contact their investment or tax advisor on these subjects.