The IRS is resuming certain collection and enforcement processes that were suspended since April 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. On June 15, 2021, the IRS began following up with taxpayers who have failed to respond to prior balance due notices.
Balance due notices, levies and liens. The IRS will resume sending follow-up letters to taxpayers who have failed to respond to prior notices with 30 days (45 days if out of the country) to respond or pay their tax bills. Taxpayers who fail to respond could levied/liened beginning August 15, 2021.
Levies in coordination with other state and federal agencies. The IRS will begin to levy taxpayer assets via the following programs beginning July 15, 2021:
- Federal Payment Levy Program (FPLP, whereby the IRS can collect a taxpayer’s overdue taxes through a continuous levy on certain federal payments disbursed by Bureau of Fiscal Services);
- State Income Tax Levy Program (SITLP, whereby the IRS can levy a taxpayer’s state tax refund); and
- Municipal Tax Levy Program (MTLP, whereby the IRS can levy a taxpayer’s city/municipal tax refund).
Passports. Additionally, IRS passport revocations for failure to pay will resume on July 15, 2021 while certifications had begun back in March of this year.
References: For balance due notices, see FTC 2d/FIN ¶S-1629.1. For Notice of Federal Tax Lien, see FTC 2d/FIN ¶V-6001. For levies in general, see FTC 2d/FIN ¶V-5100. For revocation of passport for taxpayers with seriously delinquent tax debt, see FTC 2d/FIN ¶V-3507.
IRS webpage: IRS Operations During COVID-19: Mission-critical functions continue (6/15/2021)