IRS Penalty Abatement

If you haven't had significant penalties in the three years before the year in question, have filed all required returns, and have paid or arranged to pay the tax owed, the IRS will often remove failure-to-file, failure-to-pay and failure-to-deposit penalties for one tax period as an administrative waiver. You don't need to explain why you were late. Many taxpayers qualify and never ask.

If first-time abatement isn't available, penalties can still be removed when you can show you used ordinary care and still couldn't comply. Examples include serious illness, a natural disaster, a death in the immediate family, or being unable to get records you needed. The request needs a clear timeline and documents to back it up, and that's where most self-written requests fall short.

With your signed power of attorney (Form 2848), we pull your IRS account transcripts to see every penalty and how it was calculated. Then we request relief by phone, in writing or on Form 843, whichever fits the penalty. When the IRS removes a penalty, the interest charged on that penalty comes off too. If a request is denied, we can take it to the IRS Independent Office of Appeals.