How Can I Pay My Past-Due Taxes?

November 18, 2022

If a person falls behind on their tax payments, they risk the loss of their tax credits, even if their income doesn't reflect the owed tax amount. In addition, if a taxpayer generates a taxable income, the owed amount will increase according to the penalties and interests that will add up to each tax obligation that the person fails to fulfill.


It's no secret that the process of collecting taxes represents one of the most important assets to help a government stay afloat. From this standpoint, tax payments become an essential factor in a country's economy. Each person has the obligation of filing their taxes on time, regardless of their residency status inside the U.S.

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) encourages all taxpayers to file and pay the taxes they owe as soon as possible in order to avoid the accumulation of interests, considering the penalties allocated to the taxes that you already owe. If you've wondered: 'How can I pay the taxes I owe?', we tell you all you need to know so you can cover any debts in a time-effective manner.

Why Should I File a Past-Due Tax Return?

If you don't waste time paying past-due tax returns, you prevent the accumulation of interests. When you don't declare your taxes on time, you get a penalty for the unfiled taxes and another penalty corresponding to the unpaid taxes, both applied during the same month. This means that both penalties come together to represent 5% of the tax amount per month or a portion of the month in which you fall behind. After you've gone for five (05) months without filing and paying your taxes, the penalty will reach its maximum amount and it will stay at 25% of the unpaid taxes from the expiration date. The interests for each penalty are also accumulated month after month until you pay the total amount of the taxes you owe.

Besides the conditions described above, you need to consider other aspects that would negatively affect your reputation as a taxpayer. These are some issues you might come across if you go too long without paying your past-due taxes:

• If You Don't File Your Past-Due Taxes, You Could Lose Your Tax Credits: If you keep putting off the payment of your past-due tax return, you may lose your tax credits. In that sense, if you're qualified to get a refund for retained taxes or earned income credit, you may lose those benefits by not filing your tax returns. When it comes to refunds, you will lose the right to reclaim this benefit if you fail to file your taxes after three (03) taxable periods.

On a related note, when you file your latest tax return while owing the tax returns from previous years, your refund will still be kept from you until you file and pay all the taxes you owe.


• If You Work Independently, You'll Stop Reporting to the Social Security Administration: If you work independently, your income records corresponding to previous work will stop being reported to the social security administration after you stop paying your federal taxes on time. This will compromise all the credits that are destined to your eventual retirement.


• Your Credit Reputation Will Be Affected: When you don't file your tax returns, you're affecting your odds when it's time to request a bank loan or any other financial procedure. One of the main requirements people must meet to be granted loans or mortgage credits is to be up-to-date with all their tax payments.

What To Do If You Can't Pay the Taxes You Owe?

It's important to at least file your past-due taxes if you want to stop collecting interest for each month that goes unpaid. However, if you are financially unable to meet your tax obligations, the IRS offers a payment plan that lets you set a deadline to issue your payments corresponding to expired taxes. You need to qualify for the plan, and your request should be filed alongside the electronic tax declaration. If you haven't filed your tax return, you must do so to complete your request.

We invite you to check our blog post "What happens if I don't pay my taxes in the U.S.?" to get more information about the request process. And if you don't know how to go about it, we recommend seeking the assistance of a professional tax preparer to help you file your tax information. These forms are filed in English, so if you don't fully master the language, the process might turn confusing very quickly. A certified tax preparer can help you navigate each step more efficiently.

Our Tax Preparers Help You File Your Past-Due Taxes

United Tax & Accounting Group offers the best tax preparers to help you and your company. Our accounting and tax services has a decade-long history of helping individuals and businesses of all kinds in the preparation of their taxes. We also specialize in debt negotiations in the event of unpaid taxes. Our certified tax preparers will provide all the assistance you need to pay any pending debts with the IRS.

Don't miss this opportunity and file your expired taxes as soon as possible! Contact our tax preparers today if you have trouble paying the amount you owe. You can call (786) 431-5576 or fill out our website's contact form. You can also bring your questions to our online chat, and we'll clear all your doubts. Our specialists will be happy to give you all the assistance you need to file your individual and business taxes.