IRS Penalty Abatement (Forgiveness)
A penalty abatement request is a written request to the IRS to remove penalties, and the interest accrued on such penalties, from your account.
The most common penalty abatement is based on “reasonable cause”, meaning that you faced a situation that was unforeseeable and beyond your control which caused you to fall behind on paying and/or filing your taxes. A penalty abatement will be granted by the IRS if we can demonstrate reasonable cause.
The IRS may also consider forgiving (abating) penalties if we can prove a substantial hardship would have occurred had you paid the tax when due. These are more difficult to get accepted but our Tax Attorneys specialize in these negotiations and have an extremely high rate of success in getting IRS penalties forgiven.
When considering a penalty abatement request, the IRS will accept as reasonable cause any circumstance that was beyond your control and had a direct impact on your ability to pay or file your taxes. The penalty abatement rules cite several examples (listed below), but any situation will be considered provided it meets the above requirements.
Reasonable Cause for Penalty Abatement:
- Medical Problems, Serious Illness, Death
- Fire, Flood, Natural Disaster
- Bad Advice from a Professional
- Theft or Embezzlement
When you retain us to negotiate your penalty abatement request you can rest assured that we will put forward the strongest argument for forgiveness backed up by recent case law and applicable statutes.
For more information on the Penalty Abatement process you may download our free guide or you can contact us immediately by phone, by email or by completing the Consultation Request Form.