tax penalty from 5 years ago?

Question

My boyfriend recieved a packet in the mail from the irs saying he owes 1200.00 for failure to file in 2001. 2 problems arise from this. One he was in the military for most of the tax year mentioned and two he never recieved a W-2 for the 2001 tax year. He served over 5 years in the navy, was in a tax free zone for at least a month. He has filed taxes for every year but this one. Had he been able to file for 2001 ( gotten his W-2 ) he would have gotten a refund. Can anyone give us suggestions on how to handle this? Thank you for helping

Answer 1

Does he still have his 2001 tax info? If so, he needs to prepare and file a 2001 tax return. If he doesn't have it, he needs to get it, or ask the irs for a transcript of account for 2001. That will show him what the irs has reported for him for 2001 income and some deductions. If he is owed a refund for 2001 he is out of luck for getting it. You only have 3 years to file a return that you are owed a refund for, and the time limit for 2001 ran out on April 15, 2005. At least though with filing a 2001 return showing no tax, and actually instead a refund, he'd get the irs off his back. He can't ignore the notice, as it won't go away, and if he does ignore it, the irs can garnish his wages, levy his bank accounts, go after his assets. He can't ignore it and hope it goes away.

Answer 2

It was up to him to request a duplicate W-2 from his finance office so that he could file a timely return. He can still do that and file the missing return. Since the IRS claims that he owes money, he should file that return immediately.

If he has a refund coming unfortunately it is now lost forever as it is too late to claim a refund for tax year 2001, but at least the debt will go away. The deadline for claiming any refunds from 2001 was April 15, 2005

Answer 3

He should contact the military for a copy of his W-2 for that year. It should show the time he was in a combat zone so the income can be excluded. If he can't get a copy from the Navy, he should ask the IRS for a copy.

It's unusual for the IRS to contact someone about not having filed, if they would have had a refund coming. It's too late to get it now anyway (he should have addressed this in 2002 as soon as he realized he didn't have his W-2) but if he's been contacted, he needs to adress it now. If he really had a refund coming, he wouldn't owe penalties for not filing, so if they're saying he owes $1200, then either their records or his are wrong.

Answer 4

1. You do not need a W-2 to file. It is a good idea to wait until February, but if you do not have it by the deadline, then you should file anyway. The IRS says "file your tax return on time even if you do not receive your Form W-2. If you do not receive the missing information in time to file, you may file you may use Form 4852, Substitute for Form W-2, Wage and Tax Statement. Attach Form 4852 to the return, estimating income and withholding taxes as accurately as possible."

2. In response to the comment (by Judy?) "If he really had a refund coming, he wouldn't owe penalties for not filing, so if they're saying he owes $1200, then either their records or his are wrong.":

The IRS does not know what he could have deducted if he had filed. They are probably right that if he filed by claimed no dependents or deductions, then he would have owed. File the return to show them that he did not owe money. Unfortunately, it is probably to late to get the refund.

3. To obtain the W-2, the IRS says "If you do not receive your Form W-2, contact your employer to inquire if and when the W-2 was mailed. If it was mailed, it may have been returned to your employer because of an incorrect or incomplete address. After contacting your employer, allow a reasonable amount of time for your employer to resend or to issue the W-2.

If you still do not receive your W-2 by February 14th, contact the IRS for assistance at 800-829-1040. When you call, have the following information:

Employer's name, address, city, and state, including zip code.


Your name, address, city and state, including zip code, and Social Security number"

Answer 5

The packet your boyfriend received should have the income wages for that year included. If not he should call the phone number listed in the packet to request the W2's to be sent to him. It is our responsibility to make sure we receive our w2 by Jan 31 each year.
Have him file the return and attach a letter stating he was in the service and proof he was in the serving between Jan 01, 2001 thru Dec. 31, 2001.

Answer 6

Can't tell ya exactly how to handle this one but I can tell ya what just happened to me! The Feds wrote me a similar nasty-gram and it was true that I did not file for 2002. They claimed that they filed for me at the HIGHEST tax rate and I owed them abuncha thousand bucks and had 'til such-n-such date to file my own for that year or pay-up!! So I called them and said "what's up with that?" and they were actually very nice and helpful and suggested that I order from them free of charge a "Transcript of Account" for any tax years in question and they would mail them right out. I received it in my mailbox ten days later but it had all the W2 info and investment payouts etc.. Sooooo... I printed the tax forms I needed from the IRS website, filled 'em out and found that I had a small refund coming!!! It was past the "Statute of Limitations" to get the refund but at least I didn't have to pay in. Don't know about the Military part of it but dealing with the IRS wasn't as "unpleasant" as I thought it might be. Have him give 'em a call...... they'll work with him. GOOD LUCK! : )

Answer 7

It grow to be as much as him to request a replica W-2 from his finance place of work so as that he could desire to record a well timed return. He can nevertheless try this and record the lacking return. with the aid of fact the IRS claims that he owes money, he could desire to record that return right this moment. If he has a reimbursement coming regrettably it particularly is now lost consistently because it particularly is in basic terms too previous with the aid of declare a reimbursement for tax year 2001, yet a minimum of the debt will flow away. The time shrink for claiming any refunds from 2001 grow to be April 15, 2005

Answer 8

You state he was in a tax free zone at least a month.

Military servicemen are not subject to income tax for their compensation for any month that they spend at least one day in a combat zone. I think that is what you are referring to.

That does NOT mean he doesn't owe income tax on the balance of his earnings. As stated above, he can contact DFAS to get a copy of his W-2, which will indicate how much of his compensation was taxable and how much was not.

If he is still in the military, he needs to handle this matter promptly. Otherwise the IRS will forward it to his Chain of Command ... which is not good.

Answer 9

You need to get a copy of the W2; either from DFAS or directly from the IRS, and then file the return.

Get the return filed. As it is so old, he won't get a refund but, if you are correct, it would erase the balance due.

Answer 10

Pay the tax, request abatement of penalty due to reasonable cause.