What Can I Do if the IRS Garnishes My Wages?

If the IRS garnishes your wages they are playing hard ball. This means you have a tax debt or related problem that you have yet to address. Believe it or not, some people think this can never happen to them but they continually test the IRS until they find out differently. If the IRS garnishes your wages you need to know what you can do about it. It makes more sense to deal with the IRS on your terms than for them to take money from your paycheck.

When you owe back taxes one of the worst things that can happen is having your wages garnished. Some people think that the IRS can only come after them and take their assets – this is not true. As you can see, they have the authority to take money from each paycheck until they get exactly what they want; this has nothing to do with assets.

If the IRS garnishes your wages you should follow these steps:

1. Make sure you file your back taxes. By law, the IRS cannot get rid of a levy if there are missing tax returns. For this reason, you need to be 100 percent sure that all of your returns have been filed and are in the possession of the IRS.


2. Determine how much money you owe. You may be afraid to learn how much you owe the IRS, but it is an important detail. This goes along with step number one. You will not know how much you owe until every last return is filed.


3. Once you pay your back taxes the IRS will stop garnishing your wages. After all, they got what they wanted. How you pay your back taxes is up to you. The IRS does not care as long as they are getting their money. Your options include: paying in full, an installment agreement, or an offer in compromise. If you can prove it, you may also want to consider asking to be placed in the status of currently not collectible. If the IRS agrees, they will immediately release the levy for anywhere from six to twelve months. Just remember that this is only a temporary measure.

Before the IRS can begin to garnish your wages they are required by law to send you a final notice. If you receive one of these you should act fast. The longer you wait to take action the better chance there is that your wages will eventually be garnished.

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