Overcoming the courtesy disconnect
Moving IRS collection cases forward when no one picks up the phone
Benjamin Wagner, JD | October/November 2026 Footnote
Editor's note: Updated September 29, 2026
For tax practitioners, resolving an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) collection case has traditionally depended, at least in part, on being able to communicate with someone at the IRS. But staffing reductions, processing backlogs and increasingly lengthy telephone wait times have made that simple proposition considerably more difficult.
When reaching an IRS employee becomes an obstacle, practitioners need other ways to keep cases moving. Fortunately, the IRS provides several procedural tools that can help. The key is knowing which tools fit the problem and when to use those tools before valuable deadlines or opportunities disappear.
When in doubt, write it down
Perhaps the simplest strategy is also one of the most useful: Respond to IRS correspondence in writing. Written responses create a record of the taxpayer’s position and establish the course of action the taxpayer intends to pursue. When telephone contact is difficult, a written request can also allow a practitioner to advance a matter without waiting indefinitely to reach an IRS employee.
The broader lesson is not to allow an unanswered telephone call to become an unanswered IRS notice. After contacting the IRS in writing, practitioners should consider the procedural and collection tools available, identify which best fits the taxpayer’s particular problem and understand how to use it effectively.
With that in mind, here are several tools practitioners can consider when addressing common collection problems and keep a taxpayer’s case moving forward.
Consider the streamlined route
When a taxpayer can afford to pay the liability over time, an installment agreement may provide the most practical solution. Traditional and partial-payment installment agreements generally require taxpayers to disclose their financial condition through forms such as Form 433-A, Collection Information Statement for Wage Earners and Self-Employed Individuals, and provide supporting documentation. The IRS uses that information to evaluate the taxpayer’s equity in assets, monthly disposable income and ability to pay.
A streamlined installment agreement can eliminate much of that burden for qualifying taxpayers. Rather than undergoing a full financial analysis, the taxpayer agrees to pay the liability within the applicable streamlined period through automated withdrawals.
Do not waste collection due process rights
Some IRS notices come with something particularly valuable: the right to a collection due process (CDP) hearing. Notices involving federal tax liens and proposed levies may permit taxpayers to request a CDP hearing using Form 12153. The deadline matters; a timely CDP hearing request generally provides protections that an untimely request does not, including potential judicial review and suspension of the collection statute while the CDP hearing is pending.
A CDP hearing can also provide an opportunity to pursue collection alternatives, including installment agreements, Offers in Compromise (OICs), currently not collectible status and lien relief. Depending upon the circumstances, taxpayers may also raise hardship, spousal defense or challenges to the underlying liability when they did not previously have an opportunity to dispute it.
Once a CDP hearing request is filed, the matter is ultimately assigned to an IRS settlement officer. Practitioners should raise all applicable issues and supporting evidence during appeals, as omitted matters may not be available later in Tax Court.
While waiting, taxpayers should become current with filing and payment obligations and assemble the financial documentation needed to support their proposed resolution. Preparation and current compliance can substantially improve the likelihood of obtaining a favorable collection alternative.
A federal tax lien does not always stop a transaction
A Notice of Federal Tax Lien can create serious obstacles when a taxpayer wants to sell or refinance a property, but practitioners should remember that the lien is not necessarily the end of the transaction.
A discharge removes the specific property from the tax lien. A subordination, by contrast, leaves the lien in place but allows another creditor to obtain priority over the IRS in regard to specific property. That can make refinancing possible when the transaction will produce funds for the government or otherwise improve the IRS’s ability to collect.
Timing is critical. Requests for discharge or subordination generally should be submitted at least 45 days before the anticipated transaction to give the IRS sufficient time to evaluate the application.
In other circumstances, practitioners should consider whether the lien itself can be withdrawn. Certain taxpayers using qualifying direct-debit installment agreements may be eligible, and withdrawal may also be appropriate where doing so would facilitate collection or service the best interests of both the taxpayer and the United States.
Think creatively about offers in compromise
An offer in compromise (OIC) generally allows a taxpayer to settle a liability for less than the full balance based largely upon the taxpayer’s reasonable collection potential. But the numbers do not always tell the entire story.
For example, a taxpayer may currently have limited income yet have a history suggesting significantly greater future earnings. In that situation, the IRS may hesitate to accept an otherwise viable OIC because it believes the taxpayer’s income could rebound.
A future-income collateral agreement can bridge that gap by allowing the IRS to accept the OIC while requiring additional payments if the taxpayer’s income later increases substantially. The agreement generally lasts five years, and its terms are negotiable and should account for reasonable living expenses and anticipated changes in the taxpayer’s circumstances.
For practitioners, collateral agreements are an important reminder that an initial obstacle does not necessarily require abandoning the OIC altogether. Sometimes, the solution is to structure the deal differently.
Know which appeal fits the problem
A Collection Appeal Program (CAP) hearing provides another avenue for challenging collection action. A CAP hearing may be available for disputes involving liens, levies, seizures, installment agreements and certain wrongful levy claims.
A CAP hearing can be fast. The IRS aims to resolve many cases within five business days, although more complicated matters may take longer. The speed, however, comes with tradeoffs. Unlike CDP hearings, a CAP hearing generally does not allow the taxpayer to challenge the existence or amount of the underlying liability, and the IRS does not consider alternative collection resolutions outside of the specific action being challenged. There is also generally no right to Tax Court review of the CAP hearing determination.
Therefore, the practitioner needs to identify whether an appeal is available and which appeal procedure best serves the taxpayers objective.
When tax debt threatens a passport, act quickly
Seriously delinquent federal tax debt can affect a taxpayer’s ability to obtain or retain a passport. Once the IRS certified the debt to the State Department, a passport may be denied or revoked.
Taxpayers can seek reversal of the certification through full payment, an approved installment agreement, an accepted OIC or other qualifying resolution. Those with imminent international travel may request expedited decertification by promptly contacting the IRS and providing proof of upcoming travel and, when applicable, relevant State Department documentation.
Keep the case moving
IRS delays may change how practitioners communicate with the agency, but they do not eliminate the procedural tools available to taxpayers. Written correspondence, streamlined payment arrangements, CDP and CAP hearings, lien discharges and subordinations, lien withdrawals, collateral agreements and expedited passport procedures can all provide ways forward.
The most important habit may be the simplest: Do not wait for someone at the IRS to pick up the telephone before taking the next available step.
Benjamin Wagner, JD, is the founder of Wagner Tax Law, where he represents businesses and individuals in IRS and state tax controversies, including audits, collections, administrative appeals and litigation. He is the past chair and current legislative co-chair of the Minnesota State Bar Association Tax Section.
Don’t miss Ben Wagner’s session at TAX26, Nov. 16-17, at the Minneapolis Convention Center!
C3. Beyond the Courtesy Disconnect: Modern Tools to Resolve IRS Cases
