Payroll Tax Problems
All businesses, large and small, are required by the U.S. tax code to pay payroll taxes. The IRS considers payroll taxes to be their money before it ever leaves your hands, so failure to pay your company's payroll taxes on time amounts to stealing from the federal government in their eyes. The results are large tax penalties and aggressive collection efforts from the IRS.
How Payroll Problems Start
If you've missed a payroll tax deposit accidentally, high tax penalties and interest charges begin to accrue immediately and will compound each pay period. By the time you realize your mistake, the fees are gaining steam and you're faced with a mammoth tax bill that your business can't afford to pay
Another reason businesses experience payroll tax problems, is because the funds set aside for payroll tax deposits are used for other expenses. If a business owner is experiencing a lag in cash flow, he might decide to borrow from the company's payroll withholdings to pay off some bills with the intention of catching up before the IRS takes notice.
But the IRS is watching and before long the tax penalties and interest build up and lead to major tax problems that can threaten the life of the business. If your business doesn't have the cash or assets to pay your back payroll taxes, the IRS will not hesitate to go after individual owners. And in serious cases, they may even choose to criminally prosecute the offenders.
Unpaid Employment Taxes are Serious Business
The IRS takes unpaid employment taxes very seriously and will aggressively pursue any business that fails to pay its payroll taxes on time. Failure to file and to pay your company’s payroll taxes can result in significant penalties. In fact, this is the IRS one penalty that equals 100% of the taxes due. Penalties may be the least of your problems. If you owe delinquent payroll taxes and ignore the problem, the IRS could eventually shut down your business and sell off the assets to pay the taxes due. If the business cannot pay the taxes due, the IRS will go after any individual it deems to be a responsible person.
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That’s right, the IRS can collect the payroll taxes due from any officer, employee, even the company’s bookkeeper, if the IRS deems those individuals to be a responsible person. And the IRS’s determination of who are responsible persons is quite broad. The IRS will usually find that several persons within a company are responsible persons. Furthermore, since the withheld funds belong to the IRS, failure to pay these taxes is considered a form of theft. The world’s most powerful collection agency may file criminal charges against you which could include imprisonment.
We Can Solve Your Payroll Tax Problems
Before your payroll tax problems escalate, contact ENG Accounting & Taxation Srvc Inc. for a consultation. We can work directly with the IRS to initiate a payment plan like an offer in compromise or installment agreement that will allow you to pay off your tax debt over time and get your business back in good standing with the IRS.
