When a penalty comes off, its interest goes with it. Let a team of former IRS agents build your IRS penalty abatement case.
MD Sullivan Tax Group helps individuals and business owners across the U.S. win IRS penalty abatement. Our team of tax attorneys, CPAs, enrolled agents, and former IRS agents carries 130+ years of combined IRS experience, and you never have to speak to the IRS yourself.
| Call (762) 800-1040 | Get Your Penalties Reviewed |
What Your IRS Penalties Are Costing You Right Now
Penalties often grow faster than the tax you originally owed. Three charges stack on your bill at the same time:
- Failure to file: 5% of the unpaid tax for every month your return is late, up to 25%.
- Failure to pay: 0.5% of the unpaid tax per month, up to 25%.
- Interest: currently 7% a year, compounded daily, and it builds on the penalties too.
The IRS has written rules for canceling these charges. Plenty of taxpayers never ask. Our IRS penalty abatement service goes after those charges directly.
Heading: That Penalty Isn’t Permanent.Body: Two IRS rules can wipe penalties off your bill. Our team checks both and files your IRS penalty abatement request for you. |
Which IRS Penalties Can Be Removed
We focus on the penalties with the best odds of coming off:
- Failure to file: you filed late or did not file at all.
- Failure to pay: you filed but did not pay the full balance on time.
- Failure to deposit: you run a business and missed or were late with payroll tax deposits.
Accuracy-related and fraud penalties are a harder fight. They need a different argument, and we tell you up front if your case falls there.
What Happens to the Interest
Interest is set by law, so the IRS rarely cancels it outright. The exception that matters: when a penalty comes off, the interest charged on that penalty goes with it. That is how we remove IRS penalties and interest together.
The IRS also grants IRS interest abatement when its own errors or unreasonable delays caused extra interest, and in federally declared disasters.
Heading: The IRS Added It. We Can Challenge It.Body: Failure-to-file and failure-to-pay charges often come off with the right request. Start your IRS penalty abatement review with a free consultation. |
Two Ways to Get Approved for IRS Penalty Abatement
A One-Time Pass for Clean Records
First-time penalty abatement is a one-time pass for taxpayers with a clean record. You usually qualify if:
- You had no significant penalties in the prior three years
- You have filed all required returns
- You have paid the tax or set up a payment plan
You do not need to explain why you were late.
When Life Got in the Way
Reasonable cause penalty relief applies when events outside your control stopped you from filing or paying on time, even though you used ordinary care. Situations that count:
- Serious illness
- A death in the family
- A natural disaster
- Records you could not get
- Wrong written advice from the IRS
The IRS wants dates and documents. We build that proof.
Not sure which path fits? We check both before we file anything.
| Let’s Check If You Qualify for Penalty Relief |
What Our IRS Penalty Abatement Service Includes
You get a complete request package, built to remove IRS penalties and interest wherever the rules allow:
Step 1: We Pull the IRS’s Own Numbers
We request your transcripts and find every penalty, its date, and its exact amount. You see where the money went.
Step 2: We Pick Your Strongest Argument
We match you to first-time penalty abatement, reasonable cause penalty relief, or both, and choose the route with the best odds before anything is filed.
Step 3: We Build Your Proof File
Medical records, disaster notices, letters, payment history. We gather what backs your dates and turn it into a clear written explanation.
Step 4: We Talk to the IRS, You Skip the Hold Music
We file the request, take the calls, and answer the follow-up letters. You never spend an afternoon on hold.
Step 5: We Fight Any “No”
Many denials trace back to weak paperwork. If yours is denied, we appeal to the IRS Independent Office of Appeals with a stronger, fact-based case.
| Let’s File Your Abatement Request |
What to Expect
The IRS may approve a first-time penalty abatement request by phone during the call. Written requests and reasonable cause cases are decided by mail and take several weeks, sometimes longer.
In your free consultation, you hear which route fits your case and what relief is realistic.
Why Choose MD Sullivan Tax Group for IRS Penalty Abatement
Penalty relief is won on paperwork and precision. Our team includes people who have worked inside the IRS and know what a reviewer checks first.
- A team of tax attorneys, CPAs, enrolled agents, and former IRS agents working on your file together
- 130+ years of combined IRS experience
- Nationwide practice covering federal and state tax problems
- You never speak to the IRS; we handle every call, letter and deadline
- A free consultation that tells you whether your penalties are worth fighting
Our founder, Michael D. Sullivan, brings credentials few firms can match:
- Former IRS Revenue Officer and Offer in Compromise specialist
- In private practice since 1983
- Co-author of an Amazon #1 IRS guide
- Featured on Fox Business, NBC, and ABC Washington
| Call (762) 800-1040 |
You Are Already Paying for That Penalty. Let’s Find Out If You Have To.
If your penalties are not worth fighting, we tell you that in the free consultation, before you pay us anything.
If unfiled returns started the clock, we file them and pursue failure-to-file penalty relief in the same engagement.
Your best shot at IRS penalty abatement starts with one conversation. Every month of delay adds interest to your balance, so a free call today costs you nothing while waiting does.
| Book Your Free Consultation |
FAQs
The most common ones are the failure-to-file, failure-to-pay, and failure-to-deposit penalties. These can often be removed through first-time abatement or reasonable cause. Accuracy-related and fraud penalties are much harder to remove and usually need a different argument.
It is a one-time pass for people with a clean record. You usually qualify if you had no significant penalties in the prior three years, have filed all required returns, and have paid or arranged to pay the tax. You do not need to explain why you were late.
Events outside your control that stopped you from filing or paying on time despite ordinary care. Examples include serious illness, a death in the family, a natural disaster, records you could not get, or wrong written advice from the IRS. You need dates and documents that back up the story.
Usually not. Interest is set by law. But when a penalty is removed, the interest charged on that penalty goes away too. Interest can also be reduced for unreasonable IRS errors or delays and in federally declared disasters.
A lot. The failure-to-file penalty is 5% per month up to 25%, and the failure-to-pay penalty is 0.5% per month up to 25%. Together they can add close to half the original tax, before interest at 7% a year compounded daily.
For first-time abatement, you can often ask by phone or reply to your notice. For larger amounts or reasonable cause, file Form 843, Claim for Refund and Request for Abatement, with a written explanation and supporting documents.
You can appeal to the IRS Independent Office of Appeals, which reviews the case separately from the person who denied it. Many denials come from weak documentation, so a stronger, fact-based request often succeeds on appeal.
