Source: ezinearticles.com
So you received an IRS wage levy? A wage levy is one of the harshest collection mechanisms used by the IRS. If you are slow to act on this the IRS can leave you with little money to pay the remainder of your bills. The wage levy will remain in place until the IRS has collected enough money to pay off your entire tax liability, until you have reached another form of arrangement with them, or some other "miscellaneous factor" has come into play to force them to stop the levy. Below are 5 ways you can legally stop a wage levy.
Pay Taxes Owed in Full - This is the most obvious way to stop a tax levy. Once taxes are paid in full the IRS will immediately halt collection actions and remove the levy. Most likely you cannot pay in full because you do not have the money. If you don't have the money you can consider borrowing from friends, selling some assets on eBay, taking out a loan, paying on credit card or even refinancing your home. If none of these seem feasible, that is OK, the IRS has many other mechanisms to pay back taxes owed.
Enter into an Installment Agreement - An installment agreement will allow you to pay taxes owed over a period of time in monthly increments. Once you have you installment agreement accepted you will be considered to be in good standing with the IRS. You will remain to be in good standing with the IRS as long as you are on time and in full with your monthly payments. If our installment agreement request is accepted your IRS wage garnishment will be stopped.
File for an Offer in Compromise - An offer in compromise allows a taxpayer to settle their taxes owed for far less than the total amount. The only way to qualify is if you meet a strict set of requirements and go through a complicated tax filing. If you are considering this method, you should consider hiring a tax professional to analyze your situation to see if you are a likely candidate and then let them handle the filing on your behalf.
Prove Financial Hardship - This is one of those methods that are a "miscellaneous factor". This does not solve your tax problem, it only postpones it but it will temporarily halt collection actions. The IRS will then reassess your situation at some point down the road to see if your financial situation has improved enough for them to begin collection actions again or require you to pay in full.
Quit your job and find another one - Once you quit your job the IRS obviously has no more income to garnish. If you were to find another employer it would likely take the IRS several months before they can start to garnish those wages. This could buy you enough time to setup some other sort of agreement with the IRS while the IRS is trying to find you.
No matter what your situation it is highly suggested that you hire a tax professional to analyze your situation and figure out what the best method would be for you to use. A tax professional can prepare and handle all negotiations on your behalf so you don't have to.
Find more detailed information on how to stop IRS wage garnishment. View our detailed guides on each method stopping the wage levy. Connect with tax professionals if you need wage garnishment help
