Penalty Abatement: IRS Tax Relief Options and Eligibility

Each year, the IRS assesses billions of dollars in penalties, yet millions of taxpayers qualify for relief they never request. This webinar dives into the most common IRS penalties—Failure to File, Failure to Pay, and Accuracy-related—and explores the specific criteria the IRS uses to determine "Reasonable Cause."

Nicholas Preusch will guide you through the administrative waivers available, including First-Time Abate (FTA), and provide a strategic framework for drafting successful abatement requests. You will learn how to move beyond simple excuses and build a "facts and circumstances" case that proves your client exercised ordinary business care and prudence.

Learning Objectives:

• Identify the most frequently assessed IRS penalties and the specific taxpayer behaviors that trigger them.
• Differentiate between the five primary IRS penalty relief methods and determine the best timing for each.
• Evaluate the "Reasonable Cause" criteria for late-filing, late-payment, and accuracy-related penalties.
• Analyze the "Ordinary Business Care and Prudence" standard as applied by IRS examiners.
• Draft persuasive, compliant penalty abatement requests and navigate the IRS appeals process when a request is denied.

Session Highlights:

• The IRS Penalty Landscape: A look at current 2026 enforcement trends and "automatic" penalty assessments.
• Reasonable vs. Unreasonable Cause: Real-world examples of what works (e.g., natural disasters, serious illness) versus what doesn't (e.g., reliance on a third party, lack of funds).
• The FTA "Gift": How to utilize First-Time Abate for clients with a clean three-year compliance history.
• Form 843 & Beyond: Mastering the paperwork and the "Practitioner Priority Service" phone line for immediate relief.
• The Penalty Relief Letter: A walkthrough of how to structure a written request to get a "Yes" from the IRS on the first try.

Who Should Attend:

This webinar is essential for tax and accounting professionals who want to provide high-value resolution services to their clients:

• CPAs and Enrolled Agents (EAs) managing post-filing notices.
• Tax Attorneys involved in tax controversy and litigation.
• Payroll Professionals dealing with "Failure to Deposit" penalties.
• Tax Staff responsible for responding to IRS CP14, CP161, and CP501 notices