United States Federal law allows the IRS to perform the action of an IRS tax levy. By using this law, the IRS is granted the authority to seize any property considered an asset in order to resolve a tax debt. This also means that the IRS is not required to go through getting a court in order to obtain permission to seize property. This option is typically reserved by the IRS for cases where an individual is in a state of gross negligence toward the tax liability assessed to him, and as such the IRS is allowed to levy and seize any accounts receivables, wages, social security payments, real property, and in some extreme cases, the residence of the individual the debt has been assessed to.
Items Considered Exempt from a Tax Levy
Assuming the IRS has followed the proper procedures involved in a tax levy on property, there are still certain items they cannot file a levy against. These are some of the items that cannot be taken from you:
- Any unemployment benefits that may be owed to you are not given allowance to tax levy. The funds generated by unemployment are federally protected by law.
- Any money owed to the debtor as part of a settlement due to a worker’s compensation claim is not allowed to be levied against.
- Any child support payments that are due to the debtor are not to be levied by the IRS
- Any disability or public assistance money owed to the debtor by any government program cannot be touched or taken by the IRS. This includes any welfare settlements or heating assistance income.
- Any residence or real property owned by the debtor but used by any other person as a personal place of residence
Filing for Appeal in Tax Levy Cases
As with any judgment filed by the IRS, the taxpayer has the right to appeal the decision. If you decide to appeal the tax levy being put on your property, you need to file a request for a Collection Due Process hearing between yourself and the IRS. This request will have to be presented to the IRS office that is listed on the notice of levy you received, as this is the office that will have record of your case readily available, making the processing of your request much easier and timely. It is sometimes an option to request this hearing over the phone with the office that sent you the notice, but it’s always a better idea to have any correspondence in writing.
Getting Help
If you determine your case to be worthy of appeal or if you want to resolve your IRS levy as quickly as possible, the assistance of an experienced attorney can be crucial to the outcome of your case. Your lawyer can explain all of your options for dealing with the tax levy and can help you take the steps to negotiate with the IRS and take care of your tax debt once and for all.
