IRS Audits, Tax Debt & Payment Plans

When this page is for you

This page covers two things: IRS audits, and tax you owe but cannot pay at once. If you have just received a letter or a penalty and are not sure what it means, start with Government Notices & Penalties — we will read it with you and bring you back here if it turns into an audit or a balance to settle.

IRS audits

Most audits are handled by mail; some are held at an IRS office or at your business. With a signed Form 2848 we deal with the examiner for you: we answer the information requests, organise the support and attend meetings so you do not have to.

Before anything is signed we go through the examination report line by line. If the adjustments are wrong, we disagree in writing and, where it is worth it, file a protest with the IRS Independent Office of Appeals. If a 90-day notice of deficiency arrives, its Tax Court deadline cannot be extended — call us the day it comes, and we will work with a tax attorney if the case needs to go to court.

Tax you owe

An unpaid balance moves through reminder notices to a final notice of intent to levy. From that final notice you have 30 days to request a Collection Due Process hearing (Form 12153), which pauses most collection while the case is heard. Acting before a levy is always easier than getting money back after it.

• Short-term payment plan or installment agreement, including the streamlined version with no financial statement
• Partial-payment installment agreement when the full balance cannot be paid before the collection period ends
• Currently not collectible status when paying would leave you unable to meet basic living expenses
• Offer in compromise when the balance is more than you could realistically ever pay
• Release of a bank levy or wage garnishment, and withdrawal, discharge or subordination of a federal tax lien
• Help from the Taxpayer Advocate Service (Form 911) when an IRS action is causing real hardship

Unfiled years and IRS-prepared returns

If you have not filed, the IRS may file for you with a substitute for return, which usually leaves out deductions and credits. Filing your own return for those years normally brings the balance down, and it is the first step before any payment plan or offer will be accepted.

Businesses and payroll tax

Unpaid payroll taxes are treated seriously because part of them belongs to employees. We set up an in-business installment agreement to keep the company operating, and work to protect owners and managers from the trust fund recovery penalty being assessed against them personally. The letter that proposes that penalty is covered on our Government Notices & Penalties page.

Foreign assets and collection

IRS financial statements (Form 433-A or 433-F) ask about accounts, property and income abroad. For clients with ties to China we make sure what is disclosed is complete and consistent with past FBAR and Form 8938 filings, so a payment plan or offer is not undone later.

How we work

1. Free first consultation: we look at your IRS letters and account records and tell you where the case stands.
2. We sign on with Form 2848, so the IRS calls us, not you.
3. We file anything missing and correct the numbers first.
4. We choose and negotiate the audit response or the payment option that fits your finances.
5. We keep you in good standing afterwards so the case stays closed.

Why clients choose us

• A licensed CPA represents you before the IRS, including in Appeals.
• Fully bilingual: we explain every step in Chinese and speak to the IRS in English.
• Cross-border experience for clients with assets and income in China.
• Every document and IRS reply is kept in your client portal.
• A flat fee, agreed before any work starts.

Outcomes depend on your facts and on the IRS decision, so no one can promise a particular result. We promise that every deadline is met and every option you qualify for is considered.