he has never resolved this. Since then my parents passed away and left me an inheritance in which I used for a down payment for a house. We lived in California and I've heard that the wife could be responsible for the husbands back taxes. Do you think I should worry about losing my house? I was never involved in his buisness.
2007-12-19 05:25:46 · 14 answers · asked by susan_112147 1 in Business & Finance ➔ Taxes ➔ United States
your divorced from him. I would not worry about it. Maybe check witha lawyer and asked to get a honest answer.
2007-12-19 05:28:09 · answer #1 · answered by Monica K 4 · 1⤊ 2⤋
You really should consult an attorney or CPA who specializes in your particular situation, but some things to consider are.
You may have some liability for the actions of your husband while you were married. How much liability you have will depend greatly on how you filed your taxes. Jointly or separately? Has the IRS taken any action (or notified you) against you in regards to your ex-husband’s tax situation?
You also say it’s been over 20 years. Likely this is your biggest benefit as the delay in taking any action (or attempting to) against you will work in your favor. If you’ve heard nothing about your responsibility to his taxes and debts in two decades, you certainly have a great defense on why you should not be connected to it.
Again, everyone can give you their best guess or opinions. Unless someone has been in your EXACT same situation and can speak from experience, I would suggest a consultation with a lawyer and/or CPA.
2007-12-19 05:32:29 · answer #2 · answered by Big K 1 · 2⤊ 0⤋
does he owe from personal taxes or from his business??
if its personal and you filed jointly and were married at the time then you could be in for a call.
If it was from his business and you were not a partner or co owner then they should not bother you although I agree that you should still contact a lawyer as you would not want to lose your inheritance. Also find as many documents from that time period that support your claim that you were not involved with him as it will help strengthen your case.
and yes some things have statute of limitations however I think there may be different times for personal and business so you would need to check into that as well.
also statue of limitation starts from the date the taxes were filed so if he filed several years later you still could be in this mess if he filed 20 years ago but did not pay you are most likely off the hook.
2007-12-19 05:35:30 · answer #3 · answered by Blessed Rain 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Federal taxes must be collected within 10 years of assessment. It would appear the statute of limitations for collection has already expired, unless there were circumstances which extended the statute.
I do not practice in CA, so I am not familiar with their rules if this involves state taxes.
CA is a community property state, so it is possible that half your ex-husband's income (and consequently half the tax bill) was considered to be yours.
2007-12-19 05:38:55 · answer #4 · answered by taxreff 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Are the back taxes 20 years old? There is a statue of limitations for collecting back taxes. You may consult a tax lawyer about this but I think they only have 10 years to collect.
2007-12-19 05:35:14 · answer #5 · answered by Slick 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
I'm assuming these are income tax bills, not trust accounts like payroll taxes.
According to your post, the tax debt arose during the time you were married. You do not state whether you filed a joint return or a separate return. You also do not state whether the separate return, if there was one, included half of the community income like it was supposed to.
California takes community income and property very seriously. If he owed the money while you were married, you both owed the money (this includes pre-marital debts too!)
When you have filed since the divorce, has the IRS taken your refunds?
Since you don't have the facts, neither do we.
2007-12-19 05:41:06 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
A wife cannot be held liable for the seperate debts of her husband in California. The couple's community property--half of which is owned by each spouse--can be held liable for the seperate debts of the other spouse. This is a subtle but confusing and significant difference.
If the tax debt is almost 20 years old, the statute of limitations for collection should have expired unless it involves a particular tax shelter that has lingered in Tax Court for years. If that is the case and you filed a joint return, it affects you too and I'm suprised you were able to finance your home purchase.
I am an enrolled agent, a tax specialist licensed by the US Treasury Department to represent taxpayers (along with attorneys and CPAs.) If you would like some additional information outside this forum, you can send me email trough
my profile.
2007-12-19 05:37:53 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 1⤋
1
2017-03-03 19:37:56 · answer #8 · answered by ? 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
There is always that possibility. The tax man has a very long reach. He needs to resolve the matter with the IRS (or State of California), negotiate a settlement and start making payments.
2007-12-19 05:30:30 · answer #9 · answered by Prophet 1102 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Texting lets you control the tone and establish what kind of conversation you want to have. Learn here https://tr.im/Y0Qcn
This is probably the most important part. With texting, you can stop and think about what you want to say to your ex at each step of the way. Instead of reacting emotionally, you can take your time, figure out the right thing to say (I’ll give you most of it), and be strategic with your ex without saying something that you’ll regret.
2016-02-11 20:19:35 · answer #10 · answered by Shiloh 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I put the plan in motion and it didn't even take a week for things to turn around. She called me late last night and we talked for hours. She said she wants to be together with me again. I'm just thrilled right now. We're going out tonight and I feel strongly that we will get back together. Read more here https://tr.im/k1CUh
2015-03-08 13:44:52 · answer #11 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋