Your hard-earned money is likely something that you hold dear. Because you may not be generating much income right now, you may feel an even greater pull to keep as much money close as possible. Unfortunately, you also have outstanding debts, which make it difficult for you to keep as much of your income as you would like. Even more troubling, you have found yourself unable to meet your tax obligations.
An inability to pay your owed taxes is certainly not a unique situation. Many taxpayers in Georgia and across the country face similar problems, which is why the Internal Revenue Service and Department of Revenue offer various options for tax relief. However, if you have not fully explored these options or taken other steps to address your outstanding balance, you may face wage garnishment.
What is wage garnishment?
If a creditor obtains a court order for wage garnishment, it means that your employer will hold back a specific amount from your paycheck, which means you never see those funds. For someone who wants to keep as much of your income as possible due to your financial struggles, the idea of having no control over such withholding can seem frustrating, unfair and concerning.
In cases of tax debt, the IRS could garnish up to 15% of your wages. However, certain factors go into consideration when determining the amount, such as standard deductions and your number of dependents. Still, any portion of garnishment could greatly affect your financial situation. Fortunately, you have options for lessening or even bringing this action to an end.
What can you do?
After receiving a garnishment notice, you may want to take steps to address your tax debt in another way. If you have yet to look into payment options and relief methods offered by the IRS, doing so may be to your benefit. You could find that you qualify for a payment plan, offer in compromise, currently not collectible status or other avenue that could help you address your balance. While you would still have to adhere to stipulations set forth by the IRS, you would not have to face garnishment.
Of course, other options may also exist for ending the garnishment, depending on your specific circumstances. While it can certainly seem intimidating to deal with the IRS, you may find that a more favorable option for paying off your tax debt exists.