Common Question
Yes. If you owe back taxes, the IRS keeps your refund and applies it to the debt. It can also be taken for certain other debts. Here is how it works and what you can do.
The short version. If you owe federal tax, the IRS will keep your refund and apply it to the balance automatically. This is called an offset, and it happens before you ever see the money. Refunds can also be offset for other debts like state taxes, child support, and certain federal debts. Once a refund is applied to a real debt, getting it back is difficult unless the offset was wrong or you have an injured spouse claim.
Beyond federal tax, your refund can be intercepted through the Treasury Offset Program for state income tax, past due child support, and defaulted federal debts such as certain student loans. The IRS applies its own tax debts first, then other agencies can claim what is left.
If you filed a joint return and your share of the refund was taken for a debt that belongs only to your spouse, you may be able to recover your portion by filing an injured spouse claim, Form 8379. This is different from innocent spouse relief.
If the offset was correct, the focus shifts to resolving the underlying balance.
If your refund was offset, there is a debt behind it. Send your case in for a free review and we will tell you what it is and how to handle it.
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These are the controlling Internal Revenue Code sections and Internal Revenue Manual parts. Links go to the live IRS.gov pages so you can confirm every point yourself.
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Send the short version of what your refund was taken for and we will tell you what the debt is and how to handle it.
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