How long have you been paying? There are some of you out there who have been in debt to the IRS for years.
Maybe you're in a payment plan, but you're just not seeing that debt go down.
You ask yourself if you're ever going to pay it off.
The IRS-Hitman has good news and bad news.
The bad news is you will probably never pay it off.
The good news is that the IRS only has a limited time to collect.
The IRS is limited by a Statute of Limitations which gives them 10 years to collect on a debt.
After the 10 years the debt is erased.
Sounds simple, right? There's always a catch...
It's not as simple as you might think.
Don't think that you can just get away with not paying your debt for 10 years.
Mainly because during those 10 years the IRS is going to be using every type of collection action they can against you.
Also you will have a tax lien on your credit that won't come off until the debt is paid or the Statute runs out and that's going to keep your credit score so low you won't be able to get a loan for anything.
So you need to be working with the IRS in some way to keep the IRS-Hitmen away.
10 isn't such a magic number...
There are also factors that can extend the length of a Statue: If you apply for an Offer in Compromise, which can take up to a year to go through the system; the time it takes for a decision to be made on the Offer is added to the Statute.
If you file for Bankruptcy, the IRS can't take any collection action against you while it's in process.
However once the Bankruptcy is discharged or dismissed the amount of time you were in Bankruptcy also increases the time of the Statute.
Finally the IRS can file a form 900 waiver if you enter into an installment payment plan that can increase the length of the Statute of Limitations by another 5 years.
This is usually done if you can only afford a low monthly payment that probably won't even cover the interest accruing on the debt.
All good things...
I know it doesn't offer much peace of mind, but it is good to know that the IRS can't stay on your back forever.
So if you know you've had a debt for a while, check and see if the Statute may be about to expire.
Now you have the smoking gun...
Use it!
Maybe you're in a payment plan, but you're just not seeing that debt go down.
You ask yourself if you're ever going to pay it off.
The IRS-Hitman has good news and bad news.
The bad news is you will probably never pay it off.
The good news is that the IRS only has a limited time to collect.
The IRS is limited by a Statute of Limitations which gives them 10 years to collect on a debt.
After the 10 years the debt is erased.
Sounds simple, right? There's always a catch...
It's not as simple as you might think.
Don't think that you can just get away with not paying your debt for 10 years.
Mainly because during those 10 years the IRS is going to be using every type of collection action they can against you.
Also you will have a tax lien on your credit that won't come off until the debt is paid or the Statute runs out and that's going to keep your credit score so low you won't be able to get a loan for anything.
So you need to be working with the IRS in some way to keep the IRS-Hitmen away.
10 isn't such a magic number...
There are also factors that can extend the length of a Statue: If you apply for an Offer in Compromise, which can take up to a year to go through the system; the time it takes for a decision to be made on the Offer is added to the Statute.
If you file for Bankruptcy, the IRS can't take any collection action against you while it's in process.
However once the Bankruptcy is discharged or dismissed the amount of time you were in Bankruptcy also increases the time of the Statute.
Finally the IRS can file a form 900 waiver if you enter into an installment payment plan that can increase the length of the Statute of Limitations by another 5 years.
This is usually done if you can only afford a low monthly payment that probably won't even cover the interest accruing on the debt.
All good things...
I know it doesn't offer much peace of mind, but it is good to know that the IRS can't stay on your back forever.
So if you know you've had a debt for a while, check and see if the Statute may be about to expire.
Now you have the smoking gun...
Use it!
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