Yes, it's possible. An IRS levy can include all of your assets, even those not held by you (think wages, retirement accounts, dividends, bank accounts, licenses, rental income, accounts receivables, the cash loan value of your life insurance, or commissions, etc.).
An IRS levy permits the legal seizure of your property to satisfy a tax debt. It can garnish wages, take money in your bank or other financial account, seize and sell your vehicle(s), real estate and other personal property.
If the bank does not comply with a levy, the IRS can hold them responsible for the tax debt and add penalties equal to 50% of the tax liability. The 21-day freeze allows the taxpayer time to appeal.
Yes, the IRS can freeze your account under certain circumstances. The IRS possesses full authority to freeze assets, like bank accounts, as they see fit to collect unpaid taxes. However, the IRS can only freeze assets in an individual or joint bank account that is required to pay a delinquent tax debt.
The IRS can no longer simply take your bank account, automobile, or business, or garnish your wages without giving you written notice and an opportunity to challenge its claims. When you challenge an IRS collection action, all collection activity must come to a halt during your administrative appeal.
Insurance proceeds and dividends paid either to veterans or to their beneficiaries. Interest on insurance dividends left on deposit with the Veterans Administration. Benefits under a dependent-care assistance program.
There is not a limit placed on the IRS for how many times they can levy your account. It is likely that they will continue to levy funds until you make an arrangement to pay back your owed taxes. However, it is worth noting that the IRS has a 10-year statute of limitations for collecting debts.
Most of it comes from three sources: Your filed tax returns. Information statements about you (Forms W-2, Form 1099, etc) under your Social Security Number. Data from third parties, like the Social Security Administration.
If you filed on time but didn't pay all or some of the taxes you owe by the deadline, you could face interest on the unpaid amount and a failure-to-pay penalty. The failure-to-pay penalty is equal to one half of one percent per month or part of a month, up to a maximum of 25 percent, of the amount still owed.
If you have not paid your taxes or reached another agreement with the IRS at the end of the 21-day period, the agency can seize the funds in your account. This means the bank must turn over your money to the IRS. Even after the funds are gone, you can still file a claim with the IRS to have the money returned to you.
The Takeaway
So, can the government take money out of your bank account? The answer is yes – sort of. While the government may not be the one directly taking the money out of someone's account, they can permit an employer or financial institution to do so.
And you find out that the IRS really does not care about your credit card problem. The payments you are sending to the credit cards, well, the IRS tells you to send that to them, or they will garnish your accounts.
The short answer is YES. The IRS accepts credit card statements as proof of tax write-offs (here are the best apps to track receipts for taxes).
Under federal law, most creditors are limited to garnish up to 25% of your disposable wages. However, the IRS is not like most creditors. Federal tax liens take priority over most other creditors. The IRS is only limited by the amount of money they are required to leave the taxpayer after garnishing wages.
In most cases, the IRS must send you one or more notices demanding payment and send a Notice of Intent to Levy before issuing a bank levy. The IRS can levy without prior notice in rare cases, such as an IRS jeopardy levy. The IRS issues a jeopardy levy without notice to the taxpayer.
When the levy is on a bank account, the Internal Revenue Code (IRC) provides a 21-day waiting period for complying with the levy. The waiting period is intended to allow you time to contact the IRS and arrange to pay the tax or notify the IRS of errors in the levy.
Generally, any person in a trade or business who receives more than $10,000 in cash in a single transaction or in related transactions must file a Form 8300.
The IRS may levy (seize) assets such as wages, bank accounts, Social Security benefits, and retirement income. The IRS also may seize your property (including your car, boat, or real estate) and sell the property to satisfy the tax debt.
> If you selected debit from your bank account, that information is passed on to the state and IRS and they will do the debit when they process your return information -- usually 1-3 weeks for e-file and 3-4 weeks if mailed in.
In general, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has 10 years to collect unpaid tax debt. After that, the debt is wiped clean from its books and the IRS writes it off. This is called the 10 Year Statute of Limitations. It is not in the financial interest of the IRS to make this statute widely known.