Offer-In-Compromise Down Payment Requirement Could be Repealed

Last week, two Congressmen introduced The Tax Compromise Improvement Act of 2009, new legislation intended to encourage taxpayers to settle their tax debts by submitting Offers In Compromise (OIC) to the IRS.

Current law mandates a nonrefundable 20% down payment be submitted with each OIC application. A mandatory non-refundable fee, combined with a very low chance of acceptance (the IRS rejects more than 75% of all OIC applications), makes the OIC program much less alluring to taxpayers who are searching for ways to settle unpaid tax debts. In fact, the number of OICs received by the IRS fell by 21% from 2006 to 2007 when this down payment requirement took effect.

Should Congress pass this pending legislation , the nonrefundable down payment requirement would be repealed. Without this requirement,the OIC would be a much more attractive option to the countless taxpayers who are struggling to settle their tax debts with the IRS.

As our testimonials and success stories demonstrate, our tax attorneys have filed many successful OICs. If you have a tax problem and need a tax lawyer, call the tax attorneys, at Brager Tax Law Group, A P.C.