Finding Tax Relief: Ideal Tax Review

An Overview of Ideal Tax 

Ideal Tax is a tax resolution and mediation firm that is dedicated to assisting clients in optimizing their tax relief strategies. This company offers a variety of comprehensive services related to helping clients find tax relief, but their main specializations include removing wage garnishments, bank levies, and bank liens, reducing tax debt, and assisting with tax audits. With the knowledge that tax debt can be the cause of significant stress and anxiety for some people, aiming to serve its community by providing the best resolution for its client’s tax issues.

When Was Ideal Tax Founded?

Ideal Tax was established on April 29th, 2010 in Orange County, California. During its first two years of business receiving a significant demand that encouraged it to develop a new platform that could accommodate the growth of the company. In 2012 and 2013, the company invested over $100,00 into creating a new proprietary client platform that allowed staff members to assist thousands of clients with the same level of personalized approach as before the expansion.

What Is The IRS Fresh Start Program?

As you browse the website, one of the first sections you come across describes the IRS ‘IRS Fresh Start Initiative Program‘ Qualification Assistance that they provide as a service. The IRS Fresh Start Initiative is a program designed to help taxpayers restore their good standing with the IRS. The idea of the program is to help people pay what they owe in taxes without causing them an additional financial burden and navigating this program is one of the main services.

Tax debt reduction programs can provide significant relief for eligible applicants, but for someone who is not well-versed in taxes and tax law, it can be complex to navigate. For this reason, people may want to receive professional help from a company when applying for the IRS Fresh Start Program.

Some of the types of tax relief that can be found through the IRS Fresh Start Program include:

• Installment Agreements

An installment agreement is an IRS payment plan that permits an individual to pay back their tax debt in increments. If the IRS approves an installment agreement, you will no longer receive collection letters from the IRS as they can see that you are working toward paying your tax debts.

• Offer in Compromise

If the IRS approves an offer in compromise, instead of having to pay back the full tax liability, there is an agreement allowing the individual to pay less than the full amount that was initially owed.

• Currently Non-Collectible Status

If an individual or small company cannot afford to make any payments to the IRS without facing financial hardship, the IRS may agree to flag your accounts as currently non-collectible, which will temporarily halt all collection activities.

• Penalty Abatement

If a taxpayer has accrued fees and penalties due to failing to file their tax return, the IRS may agree to waive the fees if it is a first-time offense.

Among other services, they helps clients apply for the IRS Fresh Start Initiative and determine which form of tax relief they qualify for.

Other Services

• Amending Tax Returns

If a tax return was submitted with incorrect information, an amended tax return can be filed to correct the tax return if it is for the current tax year.

• Back Taxes

Back taxes refer to the tax debt that has accumulated from unpaid taxes from a previous tax year.

• Tax Audits

The IRS may conduct a tax audit to thoroughly investigate an account with the goal of ensuring the details listed in the tax return are correct.

• Trust Fund Recovery Penalty

If a corporation fails to pay what it owes in trust fund taxes, a trust fund recovery penalty may be placed on the company.

• Bank Levy

If a creditor or the IRS issues a bank levy, they can seize the taxpayer’s bank account funds to collect tax payments.

• Innocent Spouse Tax Relief

If a married couple filed jointly and there were errors on the tax return, the innocent spouse may gain protection from the underpayment of taxes.

• Seizure

If someone has unpaid tax debts, the IRS may seize their personal assets to secure payment for what is owed.

• Tax Lien Subordination

Tax liens are placed on an asset by a collector to ensure they have a legal claim if they need to seize the asset to secure payment for unpaid tax debt.

• Wage Garnishments

If an individual does not make tax payments, the IRS may instruct their employer to withhold funds from their paycheck and send the payments to the IRS.

Tax Experts

The process of being deemed eligible for tax relief programs with the IRS is dependent on the individual’s financial history as a taxpayer, but even when the individual has all of the information they need, it can be a daunting process to find the appropriate forms, fill them out correctly, and ensure they are sent on time without help from experts such as the staff at a company. Some people prefer to onboard the help of experienced tax consultants for qualification assistance when applying to the IRS Fresh Start Program to optimize their chances of getting the most money back knowing that they did the right thing.

There are many different types of tax professionals with unique roles in the industry. Here is a list of the tax professionals employed according to their website:

• Tax Attorneys

Tax attorneys are experts in tax law and serve their clients by representing them during tax disputes. People may find it helpful to consult directly with a tax attorney when facing serious tax problems.

• Certified Public Accountants (CPAs)

CPAs are trusted financial advisors that can offer consultation in accounting and tax-related issues.

• Licensed Enrolled Agents

An enrolled agent is a federally-authorized tax advisor who can represent their clients in front of the IRS during tax issues such as appeals, audits, and collections. These ex-IRS agents were once employed by the IRS.

Tax Accreditation

Company accreditation as well as testimonials, including both positive and negative reviews, are important factors in determining if a company is reputable. Ensure they highlight any accreditations on the home page of its website and includes a testimonial page.

• National Association of Tax Professionals (NATP)

As a member of the NATP, an organization that connects tax professionals and provides industry-leading tax code insights, federal tax research, and tax education.

• American Bar Association (ABA)

What is ABA? The largest voluntary association of lawyers in the world that provides a national voice for the lawyer profession and advocates for just laws.

• Better Business Bureau (BBB)

The BBB is a private, 501 non-profit organization dedicated to advancing marketplace trust by helping consumers connect with companies. BBB-accredited business since 2014 and has a BBB rating of A+. Additionally, customer reviews on this platform has an average rating of 4.0 stars with over 200 customer ratings.

• Best Company

Best company provides accurate and accessible company reviews and ratings to help consumers find the most appropriate business for their needs. Best Company rating of 4.5 stars with over 100 reviews on that platform.

• Business Consumer Alliance (BCA)

BCA is a private, non-profit organization that rates companies to promote self-regulation. On this platform, currently has a rating of 3.0 stars.

How Does Ideal Tax Help Reduce Tax Debt?

It is time to look into the process of working with Ideal Tax to reduce tax debts. The home page of the website briefly outlines their four-step process, and below, we will go into detail about each step and what a client could expect.

1.     Free Consultation

The first step of the process is to meet with a case manager for a free consultation about your tax issue. This free consultation gives the client the opportunity to disclose what they are looking for in the service as well as provide the representative with all of the financial documentation and information that will be needed to evaluate their situation. The free consultation is also a good time for the client to ask questions about the whole process of gaining tax relief and ask the tax expert to clarify things that they are unsure about.

Many tax relief companies charge significant rates for their initial consultation, sometimes being upwards of several hundreds of dollars. For people who are already facing financial struggles and have significant tax debts, paying a large fee for a consultation may be too big of a risk. The free consultation at IdealTax allows clients to meet with tax managers who are experienced in solving tax problems which opens the door for more potential clients to seek tax help from a firm that can provide superior customer service. Meeting directly with the company representative can allow them to connect confidently and establish a level of rapport that makes the person feel more comfortable investing in services.

One aspect that should be noted, however, is that there is no pricing information available on the website, so during this free consultation it would be a good idea to ask questions about what this investment may be.

Additionally, there has a minimum debt requirement of $7,500 for the client to be eligible to work with them. Compared to other tax relief companies that sometimes have a minimum debt requirement upwards of $10,000, opens its service to more people for who it can help find tax resolutions.

2.     Instant Protection

Upon signing on-board the first step taken will be filing a ‘Stay of Enforcement.’ will refer to this step as ‘instant protection’ because the IRS will be unable to collect tax payments, place tax liens, or seize assets while a stay of enforcement is placed.

The formal name for the instant protection step is ‘currently non-collectible status.’ It is important to note that despite the verbiage explaining that this form of protection is ‘instant,’ that is not quite how it works. Only the people who the IRS deem cannot reasonably afford to make tax payments will be eligible to receive CNC status, and to be approved for this status, they have to wait until the IRS reviews their case. Additionally, interest will still accrue on the debt owed, so the approved person should be aware that even though they do not have to make payments toward their tax debts at the time, their debt will increase until a tax resolution is found. Typically the homepage outlines the four-step process does not mention these details which can be slightly misleading for the client.

Although the details about CNC status are not clearly stated under the second step of the process, there are resources on their website that highlight in detail what CNC status means and how it can help people find tax relief, along with information about other forms of tax relief.

3.     Investigate

The tax investigation step is when the case managers, tax attorneys, and other tax experts will review all details of the case to find the best tax resolution that can help reduce the client’s tax debts and save them as much money as possible. Technically, the individual could conduct this research themselves without the help to explore the resources available on the IRS website and other free information to determine where their tax issue lies in terms of finding tax relief. Two examples of tax relief could include settling the debt for less than what was owed or setting up a payment plan.

While it is possible for individuals to achieve a favorable settlement for their tax problem without the help of representatives. There are benefits to receiving professional assistance. The technical language regarding tax laws can be confusing for people who are not well-versed in the industry, and it can be difficult to understand even relatively simple tax topics. Having a tax attorney or other tax expert to explain complicated topics, evaluate which tax relief options would be most appropriate for their tax issue, and negotiate with creditors on their behalf can make people feel more comfortable that they are making the right decision to save all the money they can.

4.     Resolution

During the resolution step of the 4-step Process, the client will be presented with the plan for their tax solution. They will guide the client through the rest of the process to ensure that the plan is executed correctly.

If clients have the time and dedication to put toward research, it is possible that they could find the same tax relief outcome without investing in the services provided. Ultimately, the IRS will make its decision based on the case details, financial information, and tax history, however, many people feel that the investment is worth the money that they paid if they are confident that everything is taken care of.

The Bottom Line:

Providing dedicated services to their clients to help them relieve their financial burden by reducing their tax debts through legal tax relief programs. While it is possible for people to manage their tax problems alone, there are many benefits to seeking professional help. Overall, if someone is looking to work with a tax resolution firm that has a wealth of experience aiding customers in reducing their tax debt utilizing comprehensive tax relief services.