If you disagree with an IRS decision, you can file an appeal. But if you miss the IRS appeal deadline, you can lose this right. Despite this, you still have other options for resolving your tax dispute. However, they won’t be as good as if you filed your appeal on time.
If you want to challenge the IRS, it’s best to talk to a professional – contact the tax appeals attorneys at Seattle Legal Services, PLLC. We can help you avoid missing any appeal deadlines, but if you have already missed one, we’ll explain your alternatives and how to make the most of them.
Key Takeaways
- Common IRS appeal deadlines – Most IRS appeals have 30-day deadlines, although there’s a 60-day deadline for contesting the Trust Fund Recovery Penalty.
- Missing a deadline – This usually means a loss of appeal rights and a resumption of the IRS tax collection actions, such as liens and levies.
- Collection Due Process (CDP) deadline – Taxpayers have 30 days to appeal their lien or levy using CDP, although an Equivalent Hearing is available for up to a year if a taxpayer misses this due date.
- Equivalent Hearing – This appeal process is similar to CDP, except taxpayers can’t further challenge the IRS in the U.S. Tax Court, and the IRS can continue trying to collect back taxes while the appeal is pending.
Common IRS Appeals and Their Deadlines
If there’s a tax assessment or an IRS decision concerning tax relief, there’s probably some type of appeals process available. Many types of IRS matters potentially subject to an appeal (and their typical appeal deadlines) include:
- Rejected penalty relief (30 days)
- Rejected offer in compromise (30 days)
- Rejected innocent spouse relief (30 days)
- Rejected, denied, terminated, or modified installment agreement (30 days)
- Trust Fund Recovery Penalty (TFRP) (60 days)
- Audit (30 days)
- Unpaid tax collection enforcement action, such as a lien or levy (30 days)
IRS Letters With Appeal Options
It’s important to note that the exact appeals process, as well as the amount of time to file an appeal, should be set out in a letter or notice from the IRS. The appeal deadline “clock” usually starts ticking on the date of this document, establishing the start of the appeal “window.”
Commonly used IRS letters and notices giving rise to appeal rights include:
- Letter 11 – Final Notice of Intent to Levy and Notice of Your Right to a Hearing
- Letter 73 – Notice of Levy and Your Right to a Hearing
- Letter 1058 – Final Notice, Reply Within 30 Days
- Letter 1153 – Proposed Trust Fund Recovery Penalty Notification
- CP90 – Final Notice, Notice of Intent to Levy and Notice of Your Right to a Collection Due Process Hearing
- CP92 – Notice of Levy Upon Your State Tax Refund, Notice of Your Right to a Hearing
- CP297 – Final Notice, Notice of Intent to Levy and Notice of Your Right to a Collection Due Process Hearing
- CP2000 – Request for Verification of Unreported Income, Payments and/or Credits
What Happens If You Miss an Appeal Deadline?
If you miss the appeal deadline, you typically lose your right to appeal the IRS decision. Losing the right to challenge the IRS is bad enough, but another significant consequence is that the IRS is now allowed to proceed with collection actions.
For example, if the IRS sends you Letter 11 or 1058 and you don’t file an appeal within the 30-day window, then the IRS will proceed with its tax levy. This could mean the IRS will garnish your wages, garnish your Social Security benefits, or freeze funds in your bank account. It could also result in the State Department revoking your passport or denying your application for renewing an existing one if you have a “seriously delinquent” tax debt.
A less tangible loss that comes with a missing appeal deadline is a weaker negotiating position. The IRS may be more willing to compromise if it knows you have an appeal pending (or at least the right to file an appeal). But if this right goes away, the IRS knows you have fewer options should the IRS do something you disagree with.
The bottom line for many tax cases is that if you miss an appeal deadline, you can’t file an appeal. Yet things aren’t so simple for certain tax matters. Most notably, with the Collection Due Process Appeals option, your right to challenge the IRS still exists if you miss the appeal deadline. The catch is that your appeals rights are more limited.
Collection Due Process Appeals
Collection Due Process (CDP) is one of the two main appeal options when protesting an IRS collection action (the other being the Collection Appeals Program, or CAP). CDP is available only to challenge an IRS lien or levy and only after receiving a notice that explicitly mentions the right to a CDP appeal.
Appealing an IRS Lien Notice
When the IRS files a Notice of Federal Tax Lien, they must notify you of that filing within five business days. After this five-day period, you then have 30 days to request a CDP hearing with the IRS Independent Office of Appeals. The lien notice should provide the exact deadline for filing an appeal.
Appealing an IRS Levy Notice
The IRS can send you a pre-levy or post-levy notice. You then have 30 days from the date of either notice to request a CDP hearing with the IRS Independent Office of Appeals. This notice will typically come before the actual levy, although there are exceptions, such as the IRS believing that its ability to collect the tax is in jeopardy.
What makes the CDP appeals so special is that if you miss the deadline, there’s actually another appeal option available called an Equivalent Hearing.
The Equivalent Hearing
The deadline for requesting an Equivalent Hearing (EH) is one year from either:
- The date of the levy notice (if appealing a levy) or
- The end of the one-year period plus five business days after the filing date of the Notice of Federal Tax Lien (if appealing a lien).
The EH offers the same appeal rights as a CDP hearing, except for three important differences:
- During the EH appeals process, the IRS may continue its tax collection enforcement actions against you;
- You can’t appeal the EH decision to the U.S. Tax Court if you disagree with it; and
- The EH process doesn’t suspend the 10-year statute of limitations deadline for collecting back taxes. This pause would occur if you filed a timely appeal through CDP.
Other Options If You Missed an IRS Appeal Deadline
If you miss your appeal due date and an Equivalent Hearing isn’t available, then you can try one or more of the following options for dealing with your tax situation:
- Applying for an offer in compromise
- Requesting penalty abatement
- Setting up an installment agreement
- Asking for Currently Not Collectible (CNC) status
- Requesting audit reconsideration
Not all of these possibilities will be available, and you might have several options to consider. Talking to a tax professional can help you better understand each option and decide which makes the most sense for you.
Contact Seattle Legal Services for IRS Appeals Help
If you’re thinking about appealing the IRS, make an informed decision by talking to a tax appeals attorney from Seattle Legal Services, PLLC. Contact us as soon as you can, as the clock may be ticking on filing an appeal, and missing the deadline could result in escalated tax enforcement. You can schedule a free consultation by either calling us at 425-428-5262 or using our online contact form.
Missed IRS Appeal Deadline FAQs
Can I appeal any disagreement with the IRS?
You can’t file an appeal for certain disagreements. For instance, you can’t file an appeal if you’re objecting to a tax assessment or other IRS action on moral, religious, philosophical, or political grounds. In some cases, such as if the IRS sends a lock-in letter to increase your tax withholding, you have the right to request a reconsideration but not an appeal necessarily.
What if I have a really good reason for missing an IRS appeal deadline?
In certain cases, the IRS may be willing to extend an appeal deadline or otherwise allow you to file a late appeal. However, the IRS usually isn’t required to do this, and you shouldn’t expect the extension, no matter how good of a reason you might have for the delayed appeal.
Can I file an appeal in court?
Depending on the case, you can appeal to the U.S. Tax Court. In some cases, you’ll have this right without first filing an appeal with the IRS.
Is mediation an option instead of an IRS appeal?
Yes, you can try to mediate your case with the IRS before filing an appeal. One such option is Fast Track, where an independent mediator from the IRS Independent Office of Appeals will work with you and the IRS to settle your dispute. Note that some IRS appeals programs may not be available for Fast Track eligible cases.
Sources
– https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p1660.pdf
– https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p5.pdf
– https://www.irs.gov/government-entities/federal-state-local-governments/appeals-process
– https://www.irs.gov/appeals/penalty-appeal
– https://www.irs.gov/appeals/letters-and-notices-offering-an-appeal-opportunity
– https://www.irs.gov/appeals/preparing-a-request-for-appeals
– https://www.irs.gov/appeals/fast-track
– https://www.irs.gov/appeals/innocent-spouse
– https://www.taxpayeradvocate.irs.gov/notices/equivalent-hearing-within-1-year/
– https://www.taxpayeradvocate.irs.gov/notices/taxpayer-requests-cdp-equivalent-hearing-or-cap/