Protect
Protecting a business that's fallen behind on taxes
Small businesses fall behind on taxes for ordinary reasons: a slow season, a lost customer, a bookkeeper who left. The trouble is that business tax debt grows fast, and some of it can follow the owners home.
I work with owners to stop the growth, deal with the part that's personal first, and agree a plan the business pays from what it earns. Your accountant stays involved; I handle the IRS.
What I help with
Where business tax trouble usually starts
Payroll tax debt
Withheld income tax and Social Security that weren't paid over. We get current deposits right first, then deal with the past quarters.
The trust fund recovery penalty
The IRS can charge the withheld part of payroll tax to the owners and managers personally. Who is responsible is often the real question, and the interview matters.
Business audits
Expenses, contractor payments, cars and home offices: the usual subjects. We answer with your books, and fix the books if they need it.
State tax notices
Sales tax, state payroll and franchise notices run on their own rules and timelines. We keep them in the same plan as the federal debt.
Business tax questions
Can the IRS close my business?
It can levy business accounts and property, and in rare cases seize them. Long before that there are notices and a chance to agree a plan, which is where we come in.
I'm a sole proprietor. Is the business debt mine?
Yes: a sole proprietor's business taxes are personal taxes. Corporations and LLCs are different, except for the trust fund part of payroll tax.
We've been contacted about an interview. Should we go?
Talk to a lawyer first. The trust fund interview decides who the IRS treats as responsible, and the answers are hard to take back.
Keep the doors open
Tell me what's behind and what the business brings in. We'll start with what can't wait.
Please don't send tax documents, Social Security numbers or account numbers through this site.