Tax Relief Lawyers in Winston Salem
"Tax relief" is a term used to describe a few different concepts in Winston Salem, North Carolina. It occasionally refers to actions that lower the tax rate that some taxpayers are obligated to pay.
When a government official or politician talks about "tax relief," they are usually talking about a tax cut, which is a reduction in a specific tax rate.
However, when most people think of "tax relief," they are thinking of an individual, law firm, or corporation that claims to offer a way to get out of paying some or all of one's back taxes. They usually claim that they will have brilliant lawyers negotiate with the IRS or North Carolina tax authorities, to reduce your tax liability. While some of these businesses are legitimate, there are also many scams in this area.
Tax Relief Scams in Winston Salem, North Carolina
Scammers in Winston Salem, North Carolina often claim that they can employ some exceptional method enabling you pay the IRS less than you actually owe, or even erase your tax debt.
But buyer beware: these scammers in Winston Salem, North Carolina, and elsewhere, cannot possibly deliver on their promises, and they know it. Luckily, most tax relief scams have a few common factors that can give them away to vigilant consumers.
One of the biggest warning signs that one should look for is an explicit promise that someone can eliminate your tax debt. This is simply not a promise that anyone can honestly make. While the IRS does have programs to assist people who are truly unable to pay their back taxes, through no fault of their own, they only apply in the most extreme cases, so the vast majority of taxpayers in Winston Salem, North Carolina don't qualify for them.
Also, any demand for upfront payment, before any actual services are rendered, is another warning sign that you may be dealing with a fraudster. This is because many tax scammers in Winston Salem will simply take whatever money you give them, and drop off the face of the Earth (figuratively, unfortunately), without doing anything to help you, or even pretending to. Adding insult to injury, if you pay them with a credit card, they may well make additional unlawful charges to it.
How Can a Tax Relief Attorney in Winston Salem, North Carolina Help?
If you find that you can't pay your taxes, and this is not a result of any fault or irresponsibility on your part, a tax attorney in Winston Salem, North Carolina may well be able to help you.
A competent and reputable tax attorney in Winston Salem, North Carolina will give you objective legal advice on how to handle a tax law issue. A reputable tax attorney delivering honest advice, however, will tell you the truth, which may not necessarily be what you want to hear. The upside, of course, is that the information they're giving you is actually useful, as opposed to the "advice" given to you by a tax relief scammer, which, if followed, would put you in a worse position than you were before. Plus, you will have a good deal of legal recourse against a tax attorney, in the unlikely event that a licensed attorney defrauds you.