Tax Relief Lawyers in Wood Ridge

"Tax relief" is a term used to describe a few different concepts in Wood Ridge, New Jersey. It sometimes refers to actions that lower the tax rate that some taxpayers are obligated to pay.

When you hear the term "tax relief" used by an elected official, or someone running for office, they're almost always talking about tax cuts, which would presumably apply to the speaker's target audience. A tax cut is simply a reduction in the percentage of one's income (or whatever else is being taxed) that they have to pay in taxes.

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 skilled lawyers negotiate with the IRS or New Jersey 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 Wood Ridge, New Jersey

Scammers in Wood Ridge, New Jersey often claim that they can employ some special method enabling you pay the IRS less than you actually owe, or even erase your tax debt.

But buyer beware: these scammers in Wood Ridge, New Jersey, 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 unequivocal 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 Wood Ridge, New Jersey don't qualify for them.

And if a tax relief organization demands up-front payment, this should raise a big red flag for you. Many scammers in Wood Ridge, whether they're promising tax relief, or anything else, will take your money, and then disappear, without even pretending to try to help you. The worst of the worst will also take the money you agreed to pay them, and then make unauthorized charges to your credit card, or withdrawals from your bank account.

How Can a Tax Relief Attorney in Wood Ridge, New Jersey Help?

If you find that you are unable to pay your taxes, through no fault of your own, you may be tempted to answer an advertisement for a "tax relief" company. Before that, you should speak with a Wood Ridge, New Jersey tax lawyer.

A good Wood Ridge, New Jersey tax attorney can give you honest, unbiased legal advice that will be useful in handling any problem you have with your taxes. Of course, as you probably know, honest advice is, more often than not, the opposite of what one wants to hear, even if it is more useful than whatever puffery you'll hear from a scammer. Plus, in the extremely unlikely event that your tax attorney defrauds you, it will be much easier to seek legal action against a licensed attorney than against some scammer who probably doesn't use his or her real name.