Exploring Your Tax Garnishment Solution Options
If you owe back taxes, you could easily find yourself facing a wage garnishment. This will directly impact how much money you have available each pay period in order to meet your current financial obligations. Thankfully, there are options available that can help you to avoid wage garnishment or to have a stop put on any existing wage garnishment. You can learn more about some of these tax garnishment solution options below.
Option #1: Reach A Settlement With The IRS
If you are able to make a significant payment toward your tax debt, you may be able to reach a settlement agreement with the IRS in order to satisfy your debt in full while paying a reduced amount. While you certainly can attempt to negotiate a settlement agreement on your own, it is often best to retain the services of an attorney to help you in these negotiations. In many cases, an attorney will be able to obtain a more favorable agreement so that you end up paying less in the long run even after taking legal fees into consideration.
Option #2: Apply For A Payment Plan
If you are behind on your taxes, you can ask for a payment plan to put in place. In order for you to take advantage of this option, you will first need to propose a down payment and monthly payment amount. That proposal will then need to be approved by the IRS. In most cases, you will be required to submit your down payment along with your petition for a payment plan. Consequently, this may not be a viable option for people who are unable to make any form of payment towards their tax debt at this time.
Option #3: Consult A Bankruptcy Attorney Regarding Debt Relief
While most tax debt cannot be discharged as part of personal bankruptcy, the act of filing for bankruptcy can still help you to get out from under this debt. This is because debt collectors are required by law to stop any collection efforts until the court has ruled on your bankruptcy petition. This includes any wage garnishments that may be in place. Furthermore, you may be able to restructure your debt as part of your bankruptcy so that it will be easier for you to keep up with monthly payments without the need for a garnishment to be put in place. Consulting with a bankruptcy attorney will allow you to further explore this option in order to determine if is the right solution for you.