Tax Matters - The Top Tax Defenders Blog

Are you planning to travel out of the country this summer? We hope you are not in tax debt because that could put a damper on things. Did you know that starting in February 2018, the IRS directed the State Department to deny or revoke passports of those owing $51,000 or more in back taxes?

If you somehow missed all the clues that Tax Day was April 15 (every year), or all the specials from tax preparers running up to this year’s Tax Day, you may be wondering what to do now.

Taxes become more complicated every year, and it doesn’t look like that trend will end anytime soon. We have gathered some of the most popular posts of the last tax year so you can get an idea of the kind of problems people are trying to solve and to put some of our most valuable advice in one spot.

Getting married means sharing your life with your spouse in more ways than one. You may be combining two separate households, including your finances. If you did not talk about it before you said, “I do,” you may want to discuss those finances before you receive a surprise wedding gift from the IRS.

The IRS gives taxpayers until April 15 to file and pay their federal income taxes. People who cannot make this deadline to file can request an extension until October 15 by filling out and submitting IRS Form 4868. This extension will grant taxpayers extra time to file their returns. They must pay their estimated amount of taxes by the April 15 deadline, however.

When you owe a debt to the IRS, you might wonder what your options are for satisfying it. Rather than pay a tax debt that you cannot afford, you could settle it for less by making an Offer in Compromise to the IRS. By using these strategies, you better the chances of your IRS Offer in Compromise being accepted the first time you submit it for consideration. 

Going up against the IRS can be an overwhelming and daunting task. Most people have no idea of what the current tax laws are. You also may worry that the IRS has an unfair advantage over you as a private taxpayer.

Failure to file and pay your taxes on time each year invites a host of penalties that can inflict long-lasting damages on your life and finances. Out of all of them, you might fear going to jail the most. 

You realize you have to file and pay your taxes by the April deadline each year. Despite being aware of this obligation, you might fall short of fulfilling it. In turn, you could compromise critical aspects of your job including your ability to keep or maintain your security clearance. 

When April 15 has come and gone, you might believe that you have missed your chance to file your income tax return. You also may wonder what kind of punishments or penalties the IRS has in store for you for missing the tax filing deadline.