Tax Levies & Liens — Stop the Bleeding, Then Fix the Problem

An IRS levy isn't a warning. It's enforcement.

Your wages are being garnished. Your bank account is frozen. Your accounts receivable are being seized.

When the IRS levies, time matters. Every day you wait is another day of lost income.

We contact the IRS immediately to request levy release while simultaneously building your long-term resolution strategy. Stop the enforcement, then solve the underlying problem.

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Understanding IRS Levies

Understanding IRS Levies

What is a levy? A levy is the IRS's legal seizure of your property or income to satisfy a tax debt. Unlike a lien (which is a claim against property), a levy is the actual taking of the property.

Types of Levies

  • Wage Garnishment: The IRS contacts your employer and orders them to withhold a certain amount from your paycheck.
  • Bank Levy: The IRS freezes your bank account and can seize the funds in the account, up to the amount of your debt.
  • Accounts Receivable Levy: The IRS contacts your customers or clients and orders them to send payments to the IRS instead of to you.
  • Asset Seizure: In rare cases, the IRS can take physical property like your home, car, or boat to satisfy the debt.

How Much the IRS Takes

For wage levies, the IRS must leave you a small exempt amount for basic living expenses, which is determined by your filing status and number of dependents. The rest goes to the IRS. For bank levies, the IRS typically takes the entire balance in the account at the time of the levy, up to the amount you owe.

Notice sequence The IRS must send specific notices before levying:

  1. Notice and Demand for Payment

  2. Final Notice of Intent to Levy (Letter 1058 or LT11)

  3. 30-day waiting period

After 30 days The IRS can levy at any time. No additional warning required.

What triggers enforcement Ignoring notices, missing payment arrangements, not responding to IRS contact. The IRS levies when they believe you won't pay voluntarily.

How IRS Levies Happen

Tax Levy and Lien Information

Immediate Steps When You're Levied

Contact us immediately

Every day of wage garnishment is lost income. Every day your bank account is frozen disrupts your finances. Fast action matters.

Don't ignore employer contact

If your employer receives an IRS levy notice, they must comply. Asking them to ignore it puts them at risk and doesn't stop the levy.

Don't empty bank accounts after levy

Once a bank levy is served, moving money or closing the account doesn't help. The bank must hold the funds and remit them to the IRS after 21 days.

Document financial hardship

If the levy creates immediate economic hardship (can't pay rent, buy food, pay for medication), document it. Hardship is grounds for expedited levy release.

How We Pursue Levy Release

Power of Attorney filing

We file Form 2848 immediately so we can communicate directly with the IRS on your behalf.

IRS contact within 24-48 hours

We contact the IRS Collection division to request levy release and discuss resolution options.

Economic hardship documentation

If the levy prevents you from meeting basic living expenses, we prepare economic hardship documentation for expedited release.

Resolution proposal

The IRS releases levies when you establish a compliant resolution: installment agreement, Offer in Compromise, or Currently Not Collectible status. We prepare and submit the resolution that makes sense for your situation.

Follow-up on levy release

Once the IRS agrees to release the levy, we follow up with your employer or bank to ensure the levy is actually removed and withholding stops.

IRS Tax Liens — How They Work

What is a federal tax lien?

A lien is the IRS's legal claim against your property. It attaches to everything you own: real estate, vehicles, business assets, accounts receivable, future property acquisitions.

How liens affect you

  • Appears on your credit report (major credit damage)
  • Prevents refinancing or selling property without IRS release
  • Attaches to business assets and receivables
  • Becomes public record (searchable by creditors, lenders, employers)
  • Remains in effect until the debt is paid or the collection statute expires

When the IRS files a lien

The IRS files a Notice of Federal Tax Lien after you owe $10,000+ and have ignored payment demands. Lien filing is public notice to creditors that the IRS has a claim.

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Understanding IRS Liens and Levies

Lien Release vs. Lien Withdrawal

Release of Lien

The IRS releases the lien when the debt is paid in full, the collection statute expires, or the IRS accepts a bond. The lien is satisfied but the public filing remains on record.

Withdrawal of Lien

The IRS removes the public filing as if it never existed. This is preferable but harder to obtain. Available if the lien was filed in error, you use a Direct Debit agreement, or withdrawal helps collection.

How to Get Liens Released or Withdrawn

Pay the Debt in Full

Automatic lien release occurs within 30 days of the IRS receiving full payment and the balance being satisfied.

Direct Debit Installment Agreement

If you owe $25,000 or less and set up automatic payments, you may qualify for lien withdrawal.

Offer in Compromise (OIC)

Federal tax liens are released once the terms of the OIC are accepted and the offered amount is paid in full.

Currently Not Collectible (CNC)

In some cases, the IRS will withdraw liens for taxpayers in CNC status if it helps future compliance.

Subordination or Discharge

The IRS can subordinate its lien (allow another creditor priority) or discharge property from the lien to allow a sale.

Why You Should Care About Liens

Credit Damage

Federal tax liens can severely damage your credit score, making lenders see you as a high-risk borrower.

Employment Issues

A tax lien can affect employment in financial services, government contracting, or positions requiring security clearance.

Business Credibility

Vendors and clients can search public lien records, which damages your business relationships and credibility.

Future Property Acquisition

Liens attach to property you acquire in the future, not just what you own when the lien is filed.

Common Levy and Lien Mistakes

Ignoring Notices

The Final Notice of Intent to Levy gives you 30 days to act. Ignoring it guarantees enforcement action by the IRS.

Assuming Negotiation is Easier After Levy

The IRS levies because they believe you won't cooperate. At that point, they have all the leverage, making negotiation harder.

Not Responding to CDP Rights

You have the right to a Collection Due Process (CDP) hearing to appeal before a levy. Most taxpayers don't exercise this right.

Trying to Hide Assets

The IRS has vast access to financial records. Moving money or hiding assets can trigger fraud investigations and criminal exposure.

Assuming Bankruptcy is a Cure-All

Even if tax debt is discharged in bankruptcy, liens filed beforehand may remain attached to property you owned at the time of filing.

Tax Consultation Section

Start with Immediate Action

If you're facing or already experiencing IRS levy, contact us immediately. We'll file power of attorney, contact the IRS, and pursue levy release while building your resolution strategy.

Speak directly with a licensed Enrolled Agent who can contact the IRS on your behalf. Time matters. Confidential. No obligation.

Disclaimer

Disclaimer

Levy release is not guaranteed and depends on your willingness to establish a compliant resolution with the IRS. We pursue release as quickly as possible but cannot control IRS decision-making or response times. Liens are released when statutory requirements are met; timing varies by situation.

Contact us.

📧 info@simonsgroup.net
📞 (202) 495-1404

📍 Serving all of New York — NYC, Brooklyn, Buffalo, Rochester, Albany, and surrounding areas