Getting Tax Help From the IRS When You Can"t Pay Your Taxes Come Tax Day

Most people dread the coming of April 15th, the day they pay the IRS their pound of flesh (or, to be more accurate, the day the IRS takes its pound of flesh); some people though find it simply terrifying.
They don't have enough money and they don't know what to do about it.
If you don't quickly take measures and follow the process set out for people who will be unable to pay their taxes on time, you could find yourself forced down a path you never want to tread - where you lose all your assets and your pride to the IRS.
In almost every case, if your hardship is genuine, you can get tax help from the IRS.
Certainly, they are not going to excuse you your taxes; but they'll go easy on you and can work out an arrangement that you can afford.
Your basic plan with asking the IRS for tax help is to file for an extension before tax day arrives.
An extension is something you can get by filing a 1040 form.
You need to send in the form, your full return and a check with your taxes.
Doing this tells the tax man that you are trying to be responsible even if you can't quite swing your taxes just then.
When you call the IRS to ask for tax help, the call may take a certain amount of time.
You have to remember that there are hundreds of other people exactly like you that the department tries to deal with each day.
As tax day approaches, everyone's all harried and anxious about what to do, and the IRS' phonesare usually completely ringing off the hook with people calling, asking all kinds of questions.
If being put on hold for long periods of time is not your idea of fun, you could just as well write the IRS explaining what the problem is.
The only problem is that this way, it could be a couple of weeks before you receive a reply.
They'll probably give you a time you can come in and speak to a representative at the IRS offices to clear things up, or they will call you.
So what can you expect when you call the IRS asking for a little more time? You mustn't really worry about being audited - they usually don't do that.
All they'll do is to ask you you didn't prepare for this paying through your company or making quarterly tax payments.
If you have all the answers ready, and if you have all the paperwork you need at hand, things should go smoothly.
The part in all of this that gets people all anxious is that they need to negotiate.
The idea of negotiating with a skilled IRS auditor unnerves most people.
Sometimes, people are so happy to be given an extension that they will make commitments that they really can't keep.
You'll need to have done a little homework beforehand to know exactly how much you can pay and why you can not pay more.
If the debt you owe the IRS is large, it will mean paying it off in small parts, and you'll probably need to find a tax advisor or lawyer to help you.