My business owes the IRS $100,000 — the revenue officer stage

Without the Simple Payment Plan, the IRS uses a full financial analysis (IRM 5.14.5). For a business that means Form 433-B: bank accounts, receivables, inventory, equipment, real estate, loans, monthly income and expenses. The IRS may ask the business to borrow against or sell assets before agreeing to monthly payments. Owners of closely held businesses are often asked for a personal Form 433-A too.

Balances this size — especially payroll — are commonly assigned to a revenue officer, a field collector who sets deadlines in writing. Typical first requests: file every missing return, make every current deposit, provide the 433-B and supporting statements, and explain how the balance arose. Missing those deadlines can lead to levies on bank accounts and receivables, or to seizure of business assets.

Publication 15 requires employers who accumulate $100,000 or more of employment tax liability on any day to deposit it by the next business day. A business with a payroll this large that falls behind can incur failure-to-deposit penalties of 2% to 15% very quickly, which is how some balances reach six figures.

If payroll taxes are part of the balance, the IRS will investigate who is responsible for the Trust Fund Recovery Penalty — usually through Form 4180 interviews. Options that may be explored: a full-pay agreement based on 433-B, a partial-payment installment agreement, penalty relief, an Offer in Compromise if the business genuinely can't pay, or appeals through the Collection Appeals Program if you disagree with a revenue officer's decision.

Get current first, organize 433-B documents, and get professional help before your first revenue officer meeting. The free business tax relief assessment highlights which routes may fit.