Appealing a Levy

[buzzardbreath]

Never done this before. Never had to.

IRS sends "Final notice of intent to levy" for an issue that is being tossed around in the electronic audit correspondence division. We've contacted the collection people who say that they don't have ANY information that the issue has been resolved. We've contacted the correspondence division who say their issues are stacking up on their desks and they don't have the manpower to do anything except to mail out letters telling taxpayers they should "get a solution in 60-90 days".

Some of my taxpayers have received 60-90 day letters two or three times.

The levy notice says we can ask for an appeal, but does not give any information or reference as to exactly how to go about doing that.

So I'll ask the forum - just exactly how do we go about doing that?

Notice the question is how to appeal a levy, not how to appeal audit results.

[geekgirldany]

If you have been going through what you described... then for me it is time to get the Taxpayer Advocate involved. Fill out the Form 911 and start working with them as soon as possible. They will also help on the levy part... or should.

[buzzardbreath]

Normally this works

Danyelle, this usually works but not this year.

Taxpayer advocate offices are telling us they won't get involved as long as there has been no conclusion from the correspondence office.

The taxpayer advocate people are having a horrible year with delays such as this and are blown away.

[DaveinTexas]

Taxpayer Advocate is a waste of time

In my opinion the Taxpayer Advocate is useless, I don't even know why they exist. If you have a Power of Attorney for the client you have a few options to get this resolved.

1. Call ACS right away and setup an Installment Agreement. This is not an admission of guilt but will stop the Levy Action immediately. Meanwhile, your client pays a couple of months (maybe) on the Installment Agreement, and hopefully your client's case is resolved with the IRS. In other words, the Installment Agreement buys you a bit of time and keeps the IRS Collection Division off your client's back while the case is being worked.

2. I have had some great successes calling the Practitioner Priority Service (PPS), see link below. I have used PPS for getting Levies removed; even with SFRs filed on behalf of my clients and the returns were no where near processing. Call PPS and explain your situation, that you have already submitted the information in a timely manner and you are simply awaiting IRS processing. PPS may ask you to fax them the information you submitted so they can include the info in their files. PPS is much more helpful (most times) than the Taxpayer Advocate.

[appelman]

My experience

Presumably the levy has not actually been issued yet. In such cases, when the issue is still under consideration, I have always gotten 30-day freezes through PPL. Either the PPL agent does it, or they transfer me to ACS, which does it. In a case I am working with now, this month-to-month business went on for almost a year, until ACS got tired of it and themselves initiated a transfer to the Taxpayer Advocate. TA is working it now. They seem diligent and responsive and have promised a resolution by the end of October. On verra!

Never done this before. Never had to.

IRS sends "Final notice of intent to levy" for an issue that is being tossed around in the electronic audit correspondence division. We've contacted the collection people who say that they don't have ANY information that the issue has been resolved. We've contacted the correspondence division who say their issues are stacking up on their desks and they don't have the manpower to do anything except to mail out letters telling taxpayers they should "get a solution in 60-90 days".

Some of my taxpayers have received 60-90 day letters two or three times.

The levy notice says we can ask for an appeal, but does not give any information or reference as to exactly how to go about doing that.

So I'll ask the forum - just exactly how do we go about doing that?

Notice the question is how to appeal a levy, not how to appeal audit results.

[buzzardbreath]

How to Appeal a Levy

Thanks to all of you who have responded and proposed ideas OTHER than appealing a levy.

Each of the ideas has been tried, and we have had 30-day extensions. I appreciate all these other suggestions - well-meaning as they may be, no one has answered the question.

But I ask you again, does anyone know how to appeal a levy? The intent letter says we can appeal but not give us details as to how to do so.

[WhiteOleander]

Thanks to all of you who have responded and proposed ideas OTHER than appealing a levy.

Each of the ideas has been tried, and we have had 30-day extensions. I appreciate all these other suggestions - well-meaning as they may be, no one has answered the question.

But I ask you again, does anyone know how to appeal a levy? The intent letter says we can appeal but not give us details as to how to do so.

Try this

http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f9423.pdf

[DaveinTexas]

CDP Hearing

Thanks to all of you who have responded and proposed ideas OTHER than appealing a levy.

Each of the ideas has been tried, and we have had 30-day extensions. I appreciate all these other suggestions - well-meaning as they may be, no one has answered the question.

But I ask you again, does anyone know how to appeal a levy? The intent letter says we can appeal but not give us details as to how to do so.

You have up to 1 year from the date of the Levy Notice to appeal the levy with a CDP Hearing request.

See form 12153: http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/f12153.pdf

Good luck, fill us in when you get some results!

[New York Enrolled Agent]

You have up to 1 year from the date of the Levy Notice to appeal the levy with a CDP Hearing request.

Dave

I'm going to disagree a bit.

First to Buzz - it's hard to tell exactly what your taxpayer received. It could be a CP504 notice of levy but from your post I'm going to assume that your taxpayer received a letter 1058 that gave notice of levy and right to a hearing in appeals. If so you have 30 days to request a collection due process (CDP) hearing. Dave gave you a link - complete Form 12153 and mail it off and you will get an Appeals conference.

If you miss the 30 day deadline, you have up to one year from the date of the notice to request an equivalent hearing (EH).

A timely request for a CDP results in a required stoppage of the levy action. A request for an EH does not require stoppage but both the regulations and the IRM say that generally levy action will stop.

[DaveinTexas]

Great follow up sir

Dave

I'm going to disagree a bit.

First to Buzz - it's hard to tell exactly what your taxpayer received. It could be a CP504 notice of levy but from your post I'm going to assume that your taxpayer received a letter 1058 that gave notice of levy and right to a hearing in appeals. If so you have 30 days to request a collection due process (CDP) hearing. Dave gave you a link - complete Form 12153 and mail it off and you will get an Appeals conference.

If you miss the 30 day deadline, you have up to one year from the date of the notice to request an equivalent hearing (EH).

A timely request for a CDP results in a required stoppage of the levy action. A request for an EH does not require stoppage but both the regulations and the IRM say that generally levy action will stop.

That's what I get for answering questions during this crazy week. Good information and thank you for being so thorough.

[buzzardbreath]

Thanks to All

Thanks to all who have responded. It helps me determine a course of action.

The collection division is not willing to wait on the audit/correspondence office for a determination. Instead they reinforce further collection notices, and taxpayer really does not owe the money. But he has to wait on the audit/correspondence office to clean up the problem.

Audit/correspondence office has sent out two letters - stating they need 45 days to examine the facts, and yet another letter stating they need yet another 60 days. In the meantime, we have held off collection division as long as we could.

Very unfair. Kind of situation that needs bringing to the attention of our congressman. In general, congress makes a lot of noise but will do very little to impede the machinery of the IRS. But I have known congressmen to make inquiries and get results sometimes.

[Burke]

We've contacted the correspondence division who say their issues are stacking up on their desks and they don't have the manpower to do anything except to mail out letters telling taxpayers they should "get a solution in 60-90 days".

Which very well may be true with budget cuts and everything else going on. Contacting a congressman may bump a case up to the top, but they are the ones who control these purse strings and nothing is going to get better until that is resolved.

[New York Enrolled Agent]

The collection division is not willing to wait on the audit/correspondence office for a determination. Instead they reinforce further collection notices, and taxpayer really does not owe the money. But he has to wait on the audit/correspondence office to clean up the problem.

Very unfair. Kind of situation that needs bringing to the attention of our congressman. In general, congress makes a lot of noise but will do very little to impede the machinery of the IRS. But I have known congressmen to make inquiries and get results sometimes.

You have apparently not shared all the details of the taxpayer's situation in your posts.

You say "The collection division is not willing to wait ...". It appears your taxpayer may have been dilatory.

The only way collection activity can be currently in place is because an assessment has been made. Did the taxpayer self-assess? Or did the IRS make a subsequent assessment to a tax return? If that is the case, there was certainly an opportunity for the taxpayer to contest the proposed assessment. IRS assessments are made only after the issuance of a 90-day letter. Did you not react to that Notice? If the taxpayer didn't act, I fail to understand why this is unfair. Taxpayers have rights - shame on them if they didn't use them. Levy action is not something that occurs over night - you need to give details.

[DaveO]

A former IRS agent gave me the following tip; Whenever I'm responding to a CP2000 or CP504 I add the follwing sentance or similiar at the bottom of the letter.

Should this information not be sufficient to adjust the taxpayers account as requested I request an immediate transfer to appeals for further review.

I sometimes get a call from appeals but I always get some action.

[buzzardbreath]

Details mostly redundant

NYEA, thanks for your response.

I will make a general statement about making a post on this forum. First, it's sometimes hard to get the respondents to simply answer the question - in fact, if you read the first few responses to this thread you will find this to be the case. Secondly, if you give out details that do not contribute to the issue at hand, this gives opportunity for respondents to go off on another tangent which may not significantly relate to the topic.

Others have noted that the tandem of preparer/taxpayer did not jump through the necessary hoops from the outset, and therefore have placed the situation in jeopardy of levy. I believe we did everything timely, but did not drag the forum through the garden on the original post. Some of my posts are notoriously lengthy in their own right, and no need to elongate them further.

Chronology is as follows:
1. Taxpayer was notified by correspondence that a deficiency on April 2nd, to the horror of my client. Out of courtesy for the season, I asked to postpone response until after April 15th.
2. April 29th - taxpayer agreed in part to a $3400 assessment, and paid $1400 promptly. We called the correspondence office, who agreed the remaining $2000 would be absolved if we could supply them with the information.
3. May 3rd - I prepared a package for the taxpayer's signature, outlining the facts and presenting documentation which would resolve the $2000.
4. July 1 - Notice of Intent to Levy and Right to Appeal issued to taxpayer for remaining $2000 plus penalty/interest.
5. Sometime during July - Taxpayer gets letter acknowledging our May 3rd correspondence and announcing it would take another 60 days to arrive at a resolution. Power-of-attorney executed.
6. July 23 - Collection office notified by phone that audit division had the resolution held up. They told us that wasn't their problem, i.e. WE would have to take the initiative to get the audit division to complete their work. 30-day extension was granted.
7. July 24 - Notified audit division by phone, who acknowledged receipt of our May 3rd letter, and asked me to fax the details (again) to someone who would personally make sure a decision would be forthcoming. 26-page fax sent.
8. Sept 9 - Collection office notified that a levy on social security payments would be imminent, inviting us again to call them, or to appeal. (No instructions given as to how to appeal).

I guess I didn't realize all the above would be of any interest to anyone for purposes of answering an initial question. As far as I can tell, none of this altered the question, or the answer.