Tax Lien Withdrawal
What is Tax Lien Withdrawal?
The IRS places a tax lien on property or assets when you fail to pay a tax debt. A tax lien withdrawal makes it easier to sell your property or assets if you have a federal tax lien placed on them as it removes the Public Notice of Federal Tax Lien from the asset in question thus making it so that the IRS is no longer in competition with other creditors
How Can I Become Eligible for Tax Lien Withdrawal?
According to the IRS here are two options:
One of the options is possible if you have paid off the lien and it has been released. The criteria for this type of tax lien is as follows:
- Your tax liability has been released.
- You are in compliance for the past three years in filing all tax returns including individual, business and information returns.
- You are current on all estimated tax payments and deposits.
The other option allows you to file for a withdrawal if you have entered into a direct debit installment agreement or converted your regular installment agreement into a direct debit installment agreement. According to the IRS, the criteria for this option is:
- You are a qualifying taxpayer (i.e. individuals, businesses with income tax liability only, and out of business entities with any type of tax debt)
- You owe $25,000 or less (If you owe more than $25,000, you may pay down the balance to $25,000 prior to requesting withdrawal of the Notice of Federal Tax Lien)
- Your Direct Debit Installment Agreement must full pay the amount you owe within 60 months or before the Collection Statute expires, whichever is earlier
- You are in full compliance with other filing and payment requirements
- You have made three consecutive direct debit payments
- You can’t have defaulted on your current, or any previous, Direct Debit Installment agreement.
If you are not sure which option your needs fall under, the IRS provides other eligibility criteria to help you dictate whether a withdrawal of tax lien could work for you. In order to be eligible for this, you must request the withdrawal by filing an application with the IRS. Other criteria listed by the IRS in order to provide eligibility includes:
- You can provide evidence that the tax lien was not in accordance to IRS procedures or it was filed prematurely.
- You entered into an installment agreement to Pay off the past due tax lien.
- Your tax debt is under $25,000.
- You've entered into a direct deposit installment agreement.
- You believe that the withdrawal tax debt is in the best interest of the government and yourself.
- Withdrawal of the lien would allow easier repayment of the tax debt.
In addition to meeting the above criteria, you must provide documentation to support the claim as well as a list of financial institutions that you would like to have notified of the withdrawal of the tax lien. Find out more of our tax problem resolution services.
What Is A Direct Debit Installment Agreement?
You may notice that much of the criteria for becoming eligible while still carrying tax debt lies on entering a direct debit installment agreement. A direct debit installment agreement is simple, it is when you make installment payments directly from your bank. You can simply set this up online through the IRS website.
Next Steps:
If you are looking to sell your property and you’re worried about having a public notice of federal tax lien on your assets, making it undesirable for buyers or creditors, applying for a lien withdrawal may be the best option for you. It is best to consult a tax professional in order to decide if this is the best option for your situation and to walk you through the steps of filing for a withdrawal of tax lien. Give us a call today to consult with a tax professional about your situation and whether a Tax Lien Withdrawal meets your needs.