How Georgia collects
When a Georgia balance goes unpaid after assessment, the Department of Revenue's collection tools include:
- State tax executions. Georgia's version of a tax lien. An execution is filed against the taxpayer and becomes a public record that attaches to property. Partial releases are available in some situations, for example to let a specific property be sold.
- Bank levies. The department can levy bank accounts, but only once an active lien (execution) has been filed.
- Garnishments. The department can take property, money, or credits that third parties hold for you or owe you.
- Notices of delinquency (businesses). For unpaid sales tax or withholding tax, the department can issue a notice of delinquency that holds money, property, or credits held by third parties, such as a bank, for repeated 30-day periods, up to 100% of the delinquent balance. No execution is required first. The hold stays in place until the department levies or garnishes the assets, or the delinquent amount is paid.
- Refund offsets.
Because a notice of delinquency can freeze a business bank account without an execution on file, Georgia businesses with sales or withholding tax problems should act early.
Georgia payment plans
Georgia offers installment agreements to individuals and businesses that can't pay in full:
- The plan can't exceed 60 months, and the minimum payment is $25 a month.
- You must have filed the last five years of Georgia returns.
- You can't be in bankruptcy, and you can't have a pending offer in compromise.
- There's a $50 administrative fee for auto-draft plans, or $100 for plans paid by mailed check. The fee is added to the balance.
- Future returns must be filed and paid on time, or the plan can default. Missed or returned payments can lead to cancellation and additional fees.
Plans can be requested through the Georgia Tax Center (GTC) online or on Form GA-9465 by mail. For larger balances, or accounts with an execution and levy already in place, we prepare the financial information and negotiate terms directly.
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Get a Free ReviewGeorgia offer in compromise
Georgia's offer in compromise program has three grounds:
- Doubt as to collectibility. You can't pay the full amount, even by selling assets or using a payment plan.
- Doubt as to liability. You have a legitimate dispute about part or all of the assessed tax.
- Economic hardship. You don't dispute the tax, but full payment would cause hardship, for example because of advanced age or serious illness.
To apply, you generally need all returns filed, a final assessment for every liability, and no open bankruptcy. Collectibility and hardship offers use Form OIC-1 with a collection information statement (CD-14C for individuals and the self-employed, CD-14B for businesses), plus recent bank statements, pay stubs, and proof of any special circumstances. There's a $100 nonrefundable application fee, waived for applicants who qualify as low-income, and it's applied to the balance if the offer is accepted.
The minimum offer is based on your asset equity plus projected future income, similar to the IRS approach, and acceptance isn't guaranteed even at that number. The department may reject offers for overstated expenses, undervalued property, missing documentation, unremitted trust fund taxes, or a history of noncompliance. You generally have 14 days to respond to a notice of intent to deny. While an offer is pending, you must keep filing and paying current taxes, and collection is generally suspended unless the offer appears designed to delay.
Unremitted trust fund taxes are a common deal-breaker. If a business collected sales tax or withheld employee taxes and didn't pay them over, expect the department to want those amounts addressed. That's true in Georgia and in most states.
Georgia businesses
Most Georgia business problems involve sales tax and payroll withholding. Owners and officers can be personally assessed for these trust-type taxes. If your business also owes federal payroll taxes, the IRS's trust fund recovery penalty adds a second layer of personal exposure. We address both together, starting with getting current filings and deposits back on track.
Federal adjustments and Georgia bills
When the IRS changes your federal return, Georgia generally adjusts your state return too, and may send its own bill months later. If you're resolving an IRS audit or CP2000, budget for the Georgia side as well.