THE BEST PRACTICES FOR FILING PAST-DUE BACK TAX RETURNS

A taxpayer should use these best practices to resolve a late filed return:

Use IRS wage and income transcripts to file an accurate return.  Late filed prior year returns are closely screened by IRS tax examiners before acceptance to make sure that all income items reported to the IRS (Forms W-2 and 1099) are included on the return.  Taxpayers can pre-screen their returns for accuracy by obtaining their IRS wage and income transcripts directly from the IRS and confirming these items were reported accurately on their return.  This will speed up the acceptance of the return as well as reduce the likelihood of an audit or discrepancy notice.

Monitor processing and acceptance. The IRS can take 4-6 months to accept a return as filed – especially if the return is paper filed or if the IRS has current or prior SFR enforcement activity.  Taxpayers should periodically contact the IRS (i.e. every month) to check on the status of the filed return.

Request a collection hold to allow to process a return when an SFR has been filed.    Taxpayers with an SFR filing will have a balance owed to the IRS.  The taxpayer should request a collection hold to avoid collection enforcement during the time period in which the IRS is reviewing and determining acceptance of the late return.

Only the current and past six years are

 required to be filing compliant.  The IRS usually only requests individual taxpayers to file the current and six prior years’ returns to be compliant.  However, the taxpayer should file any prior tax year in which the IRS filed an SFR.   Taxes owed from an SFR can usually be lowered by filing an original return that claims additional deductions and credits not allowed in an SFR.  Taxpayers who want to know how many years the IRS requires should ask the IRS.  If the IRS requests more than the prior six years, the taxpayer should confirm that the IRS has made a deviation from their normal six-year policy.   Deviations from the six-year policy rule require an IRS manager approval.

Advance Tax Relief provides assistance to individuals struggling with unmanageable IRS tax burdens. To assess your tax situation and determine if you qualify for tax relief, contact us for a free consultation.

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