If you're expecting a tax refund but have concerns about creditors garnishing it, you may be worrying too much. Federal law allows only state and federal government agencies (not individual or private creditors) to take your refund as payment toward a debt.
The IRS provides a toll-free number, (800) 304-3107, to call for information about tax offsets. You can call this number, go through the automated prompts, and see if you have any offsets pending on your social security number.
BFS will send you a notice if an offset occurs. The notice will reflect the original refund amount, your offset amount, the agency receiving the payment, and the address and telephone number of the agency. BFS will notify the IRS of the amount taken from your refund once your refund date has passed.
The IRS won't start garnishing your wages without giving you notice and an opportunity to make payment arrangements. But, unlike most other creditors, it doesn't have to first sue you and get a judgment to start the garnishment process.
Will student loans take my tax refund in 2021? First, it's important to note that, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the government has halted tax refund garnishment on student loans dating retroactively from March 13, 2020. This action remains in effect until January 31, 2022.
In California, there's now a 90-day grace period for mortgage payments and a moratorium on initiating foreclosure sales or evictions. But for anyone facing economic hardship, one thing that remains unchanged is wage garnishments. For the most part, novel coronavirus is having no effect on court-issued garnishments.
There are several agencies that can garnish your federal tax refund. They include student loan agencies, child support agencies, unemployment offices and the IRS itself.
The IRS may immediately levy against property without issuing a Notice of Intent to Levy under certain conditions. For example, if the collection of the tax is in jeopardy, no prior notification will be served.
The IRS can only take your paycheck if you have an overdue tax balance and the IRS has sent you a series of notices asking you to pay. If you don't respond to those notices, the IRS can eventually file federal tax liens and issue levies. In 2017, the IRS issued more than a half million levy notices.
Here is a link to the IRS website that explains what notice the IRS must give before levying. The good news is that normally the IRS sends you five letters (five for individuals and four for businesses) before actually seizing your assets.
They file their 2021 tax return on April 15, 2022 showing a refund. Under the new policy, the IRS will not offset that refund, allowing the taxpayer to receive the refund.
Send in Form 433-A with any necessary documentation and wait for a response. If you qualify, you are switched to Currently Not Collectible status, and the IRS doesn't garnish your refund.
August 31, 2020 by Robin Scott-Hutchens, EA
The IRS has the ability to levy or take your refund and apply it to your outstanding debts. Even if you have an installment agreement in place and are meeting your obligation on those payments, the IRS will still use your refund to pay down the balance you owe even more.
IRS procedures prior to garnishment
If you fail to pay this invoice, at some point after you will receive a Final Notice of Intent to Levy and a Notice of Your Right to a Hearing. These last two documents must be sent at least 30 days before the IRS begins to garnish your wages.
The IRS is allowed to garnish 100 percent of your wages from your second job that doesn't cover your living expenses and they can take the entirety of any bonus you receive up to the amount you owe in back taxes.
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 you receive an IRS bill titled Final Notice, Notice of Intent to Levy and Your Right to A Hearing, contact the IRS right away. Call the number on your billing notice, or individuals may contact the IRS at 1-800-829-1040; businesses may contact us at 1-800-829-4933.
The IRS sends these notices to your last known address, or the agency gives them to you in person at home or work. Once you receive the final notice, the levy may occur after 30 days have passed. In rare cases, the IRS can levy your bank account without providing a 30-day notice of your right to a hearing.
This notice is your Notice of Intent to Levy as required by Internal Revenue Code Section 6331 (d). It is your final reminder telling you that we intend to levy your wages, bank accounts, or your state tax refund because you still have an unpaid balance on one of your tax accounts.
You may owe the government for unpaid child support, unpaid income tax, and more. If you qualify for a tax return and have outstanding debt, it's very likely that your tax refund will be garnished, and the money taken will be used to offset your outstanding debts.
Beginning March 30, 2020, the IRS generally suspended the initiation of levies and NFTLs until at least July 15, 2020. "New" levies and NFTLs will not be initiated until after July 15, 2020, unless there are pressing circumstances.
One-time forgiveness, otherwise known as penalty abatement, is an IRS program that waives any penalties facing taxpayers who have made an error in filing an income tax return or paying on time. This program isn't for you if you're notoriously late on filing taxes or have multiple unresolved penalties.
The Internal Revenue Service unveiled the People First Initiative on March 25, 2020. It is an unprecedented effort to temporarily scale back many collection and enforcement activities by the IRS during the COVID-19 global pandemic.
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.
Did you receive a notice from the Treasury Department that your tax refund will be offset? A refund offset means that instead of getting the refund you expected, your overpaid federal income taxes will go toward an unpaid government debt.