Getting a letter to your home in Arizona stating that you are behind on your taxes can be scary. It’s important to know that you cannot go years without paying your taxes. The IRS will find out that you owe back taxes and come after you eventually.

They will issue a wage garnishment or put a tax lien out on your property to get the money that they are owed. A wage garnishment is where the IRS takes money from your paycheck and a lien allows them to get the money they are owed before you get any profits when you sell your house.

Eliminate What You Have to Pay

You may be able to get out of paying any money to the IRS at all if you weren’t the person who improperly filed taxes. Innocent spouse relief is a process that allows a spouse to be relieved of any fiscal responsibility for taxes that their spouse may not have paid.

You have to prove that your spouse knowingly tried to defraud the IRS by showing where certain incomes were not reported or that deductions were reported that shouldn’t have been.

If any of the tax was your responsibility, the IRS will determine how much you owe and hold you responsible for that amount alone.

Reduce How Much You Have to Pay

If you owe the IRS money and cannot afford to pay it, even over time, you can make an offer in compromise to the IRS. You have to be able to prove that there is no way you will be able to afford the payments that are required now or in the future first.

There are also tax relief programs and incentives available in Arizona that can help decrease the amount of money you owe to the IRS. It can be difficult to be approved for an incentive though, so be willing to provide any and all financial records that you can to prove that you need assistance and cannot pay.