The IRS Wage Garnishment: How It Works.

Posted by Jeffrey Siegel on August 14, 2019

The IRS has the power to garnish or legally seize any income you make to satisfy federal tax debt or taxes owed. Garnishments can apply to your hourly wages, salary, commissions, and bonuses. The IRS will contact your employer directly and require them to directly send the IRS a portion of your income. Your employer is required by law to comply with the IRS garnishment, typically within one full pay period of receiving the notice from the IRS. The difference between the IRS and most creditors, however, is that the IRS does not need to take you to court to get a judgment in order to garnish your wages, and the IRS can garnish more of your wages than a regular creditor can garnish.

The IRS Wage Garnishment Process

When the IRS seeks to garnish your wages for a tax debt that you owe, or use any other legal means to enforce payment of the taxes that you owe, it will first send you a written notice that sets out the amounts that you owe, including the tax, penalties, and interest. This notice should also provide you with a due date by which you must pay the balances in full. Assuming that you do not pay the balance in full, you later will receive another notice, entitled “Final Notice of Intent to Levy,” Once thirty days have passed from the time you have received the final notice, and you still have failed to pay the balance due, the IRS can proceed with garnishing your income.

The Amount that the IRS Can Garnish From Your Wages

The law places limits on the amount that a regular creditor can garnish from your wages. However, these normal limits do not apply to the IRS. Rather, the tax code requires the IRS to leave you with a certain amount of income after garnishing your wages to pay your tax debt. The tax code contains a table that corresponds to the number of exemptions that you claim for tax purposes, and sets forth the amount that is necessary for you and your family to pay for basic living necessities. Unfortunately, a garnishment by the IRS can amount to 70% or more of your income.

Need back tax help in Kansas City?  Bank account levied in Kansas City?  Paycheck garnished in Kansas City?  Lien on business or home in Kansas City? If you or a client need help fighting off the IRS, call Jeffrey R. Siegel, your Kansas City tax attorney.  We help with IRS liens, wage garnishments, levies, offers in compromise, innocent spouse relief, federal employment tax, Trust Fund Recovery Penalty and installment agreements.  Bring back some stability to your life, and call (913) 735-4829.