Can the Internal Revenue Service Garnish Your Wages?

If you’ve failed to pay back taxes, the Internal Revenue Service can make life pretty tough. If you’re arrested for tax evasion, you can even go to jail.

But have you ever wondered whether the IRS can garnish your wages?

The IRS does indeed have quite a few methods for collecting unpaid taxes. The only problem is that most of them are less like garnishing your wages and more like throwing you in jail.

Here’s what you need to know about the IRS garnishing your wages. Read on!

Understanding the IRS’s Authority to Garnish Wages

The IRS cannot levy your wages without first giving you a notification. The notice will tell you the amount of the overdue taxes, interest, and penalties assessed, as well as details on the IRS’ plan to garnish your wages. The notice will also provide information about how to dispute the levy or arrange for payment.

If the garnishment is successfully challenged then the IRS must end the collection action. When processing a levy, the IRS will usually notify your employer of the garnishment and provide your employer with a garnishment order.

Your employer must then comply with the order and send a required part of your wages to the IRS. The amount of wages subject to garnishment depends on the situation and can be up to 75% of your disposable earnings.`

How to Determine if You’re at Risk of Wage Garnishment

Wage garnishment allows the IRS to deduct a certain amount of money from your paycheck and send it to the government in order to pay off a debt. In order to determine whether or not you are at risk, check to see if the IRS has sent a formal notice to your employer regarding wage garnishment.

The IRS will typically send at least three notices before attempting to garnish your wages. It is important to check your wages to determine if the IRS is garnishing them, as the IRS may begin garnishing wages without prior notice. 

Strategies to Avoid Having Your Wages Garnished

The first is to pay your taxes on time. If you can’t afford to make full payments, you should contact the IRS to set up installment agreements. The IRS has several options for paying tax troubles. 

You can make efforts to negotiate a settlement with the IRS, such as an Offer in Compromise. You can fill out Form 668-W(c)(Do Not File) and send it to your employer instructing them to stop garnished wages. 

What to Do When Facing an IRS Wage Garnishment

Contact the IRS as soon as possible to discuss the circumstances leading to the garnishment and potential ways to have the garnishment removed or modified. Contact your employer to determine how much of your wages will be garnished and what you can do to stop or reduce the garnishment. 

You can find an international tax attorney or accountant to help you develop a comprehensive plan for dealing with garnishment and other outstanding tax obligations. 

Get in Touch With Internal Revenue Service Today

Ultimately, the Internal Revenue Service can often garnish taxpayers’ wages if their tax debt is not paid. To avoid this situation, the IRS encourages taxpayers to pay any owed taxes as quickly as possible.

Expert assistance is available online and through IRS resources to help make this process easier. Don’t wait – contact the IRS now and get back on track.

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