The Internal Revenue Service today announced several additional steps it is taking this tax season to help people having difficulties meeting their tax obligations because of unemployment or other financial problems.
Listed below are the details for some of the efforts that the IRS emphasized in its press release:
1. New Flexibility for Offers in Compromise
IRS employees will be permitted to consider a taxpayer's current income and potential for future income when negotiating an offer in compromise. Normally, the standard practice is to judge an offer amount on a taxpayer's earnings in prior years. The IRS may also require that a taxpayer entering into such an offer in compromise agree to pay more if the taxpayer's financial situation improves significantly.
2. Hundreds of Saturday Open Houses to Resolve Taxpayer Issues
The IRS will hold special Saturday open houses to give struggling taxpayers more opportunity to work directly with IRS employees to resolve issues. The offices will be open on March 27 and three additional Saturdays in the spring and early summer.
3. Special Outreach Efforts to Unemployed
Efforts [to reach unemployed persons struggling to meat their tax liability include opportunities for these taxpayers to make payment arrangements and resolve both federal and state tax issues in one place.
4. Special Section of IRS.gov Created
Taxpayers who are unemployed or struggling financially can find information on a new page on the IRS Web site, IRS.gov.
Below are some related videos from the IRS YouTube Page:
Owe Taxes But Can't Pay? --- English
Unemployment Compensation --- English | Spanish
Job Search Expense --- English | Spanish | ASL
Posted by Joshua Hock, Associate Editor, Wealth Strategies Journal
Leave a comment