The library
Guides for retirees and Pinellas County taxpayers
Plain-English explanations of how the IRS treats Social Security, retirement accounts, required distributions, and pensions, with the Code sections and IRS procedures behind each one.
IRA & 401(k) Levies
When the IRS can reach retirement savings, and why Florida law does not stop it.
5 guides
- Can the IRS Levy Your IRA in Florida?Florida protects IRAs from almost every creditor. The IRS is the exception. The real protection for your retirement savings is not state law; it is a set of procedures in the Internal Revenue Manual that most people never read.Read the guide
- IRS Levies on 401(k) and Employer Retirement PlansYour 401(k) plan document says benefits cannot be assigned, attached, or levied. That promise has one written exception: a federal tax levy. Here is how the IRS reaches employer plans, and the limit that often makes a levy worth far less than the IRS hoped.Read the guide
- Does a Federal Tax Lien Attach to Your IRA or 401(k)?A levy takes. A lien waits. The federal tax lien attaches to your IRA and 401(k) the moment the tax is assessed and you fail to pay after demand, and it stays attached until the debt is paid or the collection period ends. Here is what that means for retirement savings.Read the guide
- IRS-Levied Retirement Funds and the 10% Penalty ExceptionIf the IRS levies your IRA or 401(k) before you turn 59 and a half, the 10 percent additional tax does not apply. If you withdraw the same money yourself to pay the IRS, it usually does. That difference is written into the Code, and it can be worth thousands.Read the guide
- Should You Cash Out Your IRA to Pay the IRS?Using retirement savings to pay the IRS feels responsible. Sometimes it is. Often it creates a second tax bill, raises the tax on your Social Security, and spends money the IRS might never have been able to reach. Run the numbers first.Read the guide
Early Withdrawals
The 10% additional tax, its exceptions, and the rollover mistakes that create tax bills.
4 guides
- The 10% Early Withdrawal Penalty: Exceptions That Actually ApplyTake money out of a retirement account before 59 and a half and the IRS adds 10 percent, unless an exception applies. There are more exceptions than most people realize, and some only work for IRAs while others only work for employer plans. Mixing them up is how people end up with IRS notices.Read the guide
- The Rule of 55: Penalty-Free 401(k) Withdrawals After Leaving WorkIf you leave your job in or after the year you turn 55, withdrawals from that employer's 401(k) are exempt from the 10 percent early distribution tax. It is one of the most useful exceptions for early retirees, and one of the easiest to lose by accident.Read the guide
- Busted 72(t) SEPP Plans: Recapture Tax and How to Avoid ItA substantially equal periodic payment plan lets you draw on an IRA before 59 and a half without the 10 percent additional tax. Change the payments too early and the IRS recaptures the tax on every payment you took, plus interest. Here is how to keep a SEPP intact.Read the guide
- Failed 60-Day Rollovers: When an IRA Transfer Becomes a Tax BillA rollover check sits in a drawer for 70 days. A second IRA-to-IRA rollover happens within the same 12 months. Either way, money that was supposed to stay tax-deferred becomes taxable income, and sometimes an excess contribution too. Here is how it happens and how to fix it.Read the guide
RMDs
Required minimum distributions, the 25% excise tax, and how to ask for a waiver.
5 guides
- Missed RMD Penalty: The 25% Excise Tax and the 10% Correction RateForgetting a required minimum distribution used to cost half the amount you failed to take. Since 2023, the excise tax is 25 percent, and it drops to 10 percent if you fix the shortfall promptly. In many cases the IRS will waive it entirely. Here is how the tax works and what to do first.Read the guide
- How to Request an RMD Penalty Waiver on Form 5329The IRS can waive the excise tax on a missed required minimum distribution when the miss was a reasonable error and you are fixing it. The request is made on Form 5329 with a short explanation. Done right, it is one of the most reliable forms of relief in the tax code.Read the guide
- RMD Age 73 and 75: Required Beginning Date Rules After SECURE 2.0The age for required minimum distributions has changed twice since 2019, which is exactly why so many retirees are unsure when theirs start. Here is the current rule by birth year, the April 1 deadline that creates a two-distribution year, and the exceptions that let some people wait.Read the guide
- Inherited IRA 10-Year Rule: Annual RMDs and Penalty ReliefIf you inherited an IRA after 2019, the rules may have changed under your feet more than once. The IRS waived penalties for several years while it wrote final regulations. That grace period is over. Here is what beneficiaries need to know to avoid the excise tax now.Read the guide
- Qualified Charitable Distributions: Satisfying RMDs Without the Tax ProblemIf you give to charity and take required distributions, a qualified charitable distribution lets you send IRA money straight to the charity, satisfy your RMD, and keep the amount out of taxable income. It is one of the best tools retirees have. It is also easy to report wrong.Read the guide
Pensions & Withholding
Pension levies, withholding elections, and estimated tax penalties for new retirees.
4 guides
- IRS Levies on Private Pensions and Annuity PaymentsA levy on a bank account takes what is there today. A levy on a pension can take part of every payment for years, even after the collection statute would otherwise have expired. Here is how that works and what you can do about it.Read the guide
- Form 1099-R Distribution Codes That Trigger IRS NoticesEvery retirement distribution comes with a Form 1099-R, and the IRS has a copy. The small code in box 7 tells the IRS whether to expect regular tax, the 10 percent additional tax, a rollover, or nothing at all. When your return tells a different story, a notice follows.Read the guide
- Withholding on Pensions and IRAs: Forms W-4P and W-4RRetirement income does not come with an employer's payroll department making sure enough tax is withheld. You set the withholding yourself, on three different forms, and the defaults often leave retirees short. Here is how to get it right.Read the guide
- Estimated Tax Penalties for New Retirees and the Age-62 WaiverYour first year of retirement is often your first year without a payroll department withholding enough tax. Then the IRS adds an estimated tax penalty. The Code has a waiver written for exactly this situation, and most new retirees never ask for it.Read the guide
Retiree Collection Options
Offers, hardship status, and what the IRS cannot take from someone living on a fixed income.
5 guides
- Offers in Compromise for Retirees on a Fixed IncomeAn offer in compromise settles IRS debt for less than the full balance when the IRS cannot reasonably expect to collect it all. For retirees, the math turns on two things: how the IRS values retirement accounts, and how it treats income that will never grow.Read the guide
- Living on Social Security Alone and Owing the IRSIf Social Security is all you have, and it barely covers rent, food, and medicine, the IRS has a status built for you. It is called currently not collectible, and it stops enforced collection while the 10-year clock keeps running.Read the guide
- Medicare Premiums and Medical Costs on IRS Financial StatementsFor retirees, health care is often the biggest number in the monthly budget. The IRS financial standards account for that, but only if you report it correctly. Here is how Medicare, supplemental coverage, and medical bills fit on Forms 433-A and 433-F.Read the guide
- What the IRS Cannot Take From a RetireeThe list of property the IRS cannot levy is short and specific. It lives in section 6334 of the Internal Revenue Code, and it overrides the Florida exemptions most retirees count on. Here is what is actually protected, what is protected only by IRS policy, and what is not protected at all.Read the guide
- The Roth Conversion Tax Bill You Can't PayRoth conversions are sold as smart planning, and often they are. But the tax is due in the year you convert, recharacterization is gone, and a conversion done without a plan for the tax becomes an IRS balance due. Here is how that happens and what to do about it.Read the guide
Pinellas Collection Guides
Levies, liens, payment plans and Revenue Officers for St. Petersburg and Pinellas County taxpayers.
22 guides
- Clearwater IRS Help: Why Local MattersClearwater taxpayers deserve representation from someone who knows Pinellas County, not a call center in another state.Read the guide
- Currently Not Collectible in Pinellas CountyIf you can't pay, the IRS shelves your account. Florida's exemptions make qualifying easier than most states.Read the guide
- IRS Audit Representation in Pinellas CountyIRS audits in Pinellas County are handled by examiners from the Tampa office. Representation changes everything.Read the guide
- IRS Bank Levy in Pinellas CountyThe IRS froze your bank account. You have 21 days before the money transfers. Here is how to use that window.Read the guide
- IRS Collection Statute: Pinellas County GuideEvery IRS debt expires after 10 years. In Pinellas County, Florida's exemptions make running the clock a real strategy.Read the guide
- IRS Penalty Abatement for Pinellas TaxpayersPenalties can add 25% or more. First-time abatement and reasonable cause can eliminate them.Read the guide
- IRS Revenue Officer in Pinellas CountyRevenue Officers covering Pinellas County operate out of the Tampa IRS office. When one shows up, you need representation.Read the guide
- IRS Wage Levy in Pinellas CountyFlorida protects wages from most creditors. The IRS plays by different rules.Read the guide
- Local Tax Lawyer vs. National FirmsNational firms spend millions on ads. They don't spend that on your case.Read the guide
- Offer in Compromise for Pinellas County TaxpayersFlorida's asset protection laws create unique advantages in OIC calculations for Pinellas County residents.Read the guide
- Payroll Tax Lawyer in St. PetersburgSt. Pete's hospitality, marine, and construction industries generate payroll tax cases constantly.Read the guide
- IRS Installment Agreements for Pinellas ResidentsA payment plan with the IRS. Simple in concept, strategic in execution if you know the rules.Read the guide
- Pinellas County Tax Lien GuideA federal tax lien filed in Pinellas County attaches to everything you own. Here is how it works and what to do about it.Read the guide
- Pinellas Homestead Exemption and IRS DebtYour Pinellas County home has significant protection from IRS collection under Florida's homestead exemption.Read the guide
- Pinellas Retirement Accounts and IRS DebtFlorida protects retirement accounts from most creditors. The IRS is not most creditors, but its own rules put real limits on levying retirement savings.Read the guide
- IRS Problems in St. Petersburg: A Local GuidePinellas County has a unique mix of tourism workers, retirees, small business owners, and tech professionals. The IRS exposure is different here than anywhere else in Florida.Read the guide
- St. Pete Real Estate and IRS LiensSelling or refinancing St. Pete property with an IRS lien requires specific IRS procedures. Plan early.Read the guide
- Self-Employed in St. Pete? Tax Problems SolvedSt. Pete's creative economy and remote worker influx means thousands of self-employed professionals facing estimated tax problems.Read the guide
- St. Pete Small Business IRS ProblemsSt. Petersburg's booming small business scene creates IRS exposure that most owners don't see coming until it's an emergency.Read the guide
- Tax Bankruptcy in Pinellas CountyPinellas County bankruptcies go through the Middle District of Florida, Tampa Division. Florida's exemptions make this powerful.Read the guide
- Tourist Industry Tax Problems in PinellasPinellas County's tourism economy creates specific payroll tax and cash flow challenges that the IRS targets.Read the guide
- Unfiled Returns: St. Pete ConsequencesFlorida has no state return. But the federal obligation doesn't disappear, and the IRS knows what you earned.Read the guide
Social Security
The 15% levy, CP91 notices, and how Social Security gets taxed in the first place.
7 guides