IRS Abatement for Late Filing Penalties - Will I Get My Money Back?

That makes me feel better about paying upfront. Quick question though - does the "clean compliance history" apply to the kids' tax history or the parents? Since this was their first filing requirement ever, I'm not sure what the IRS would consider their "history.

For minor children in this situation, the IRS typically looks at the parents' compliance history since you're the responsible parties. So if you and your spouse have been filing and paying on time for the past 3 years, that clean history should work in your favor for the abatement request. The fact that this was the first time your children needed to file actually strengthens your case. The IRS is generally understanding when taxpayers make a reasonable mistake about a filing requirement they hadn't encountered before.

How exactly does this tool work? Does it just give generic advice or does it actually look at your specific documents? I've been getting mixed messages from different accountants about how to handle my abatement request.

I'm always skeptical of these "miracle" tax solutions. Did you really get a full abatement or just a partial one? What kind of documentation did you need to provide to both the tool and the IRS?

It actually analyzes your specific documents. You upload your IRS notice and it uses AI to identify the exact type of penalty, applicable abatement options, and creates a personalized response letter. Much more specific than generic advice I was finding online. I got a complete abatement of the penalties (about $870), just had to pay the actual tax and some interest. The tool helped me understand what documentation to include - in my case, I needed to provide evidence of the misunderstanding about filing requirements and proof that I corrected the issue promptly once discovered. The system walks you through everything step-by-step.

Wait, how does this actually work though? Like does this service somehow have special access to the IRS? I've been trying to get through for weeks about my own penalty issue.

This sounds like a scam. There's no way any service can magically get to the front of the IRS phone queue. They're probably just putting you on hold themselves and charging you for it. Has anyone else actually verified this works?

No special access - they use technology to basically do the waiting for you. They have an automated system that navigates the IRS phone tree and waits on hold, then when a human IRS agent actually picks up, their system calls you and connects you directly to that live agent. It's definitely not a scam. They don't claim to get you to the front of any queue - you still wait the same amount of time an IRS agent would normally take to answer, but you don't have to be the one sitting there listening to hold music for hours. You just go about your day until they call you when an agent is actually on the line. It saved me about 2.5 hours of hold time when I used it.

Did you have to call and follow up at all or did they just process it without any additional contact from you? I'm in a similar situation but it's been about 3 months with no word.

I didn't have to call or follow up at all. The process just worked itself through their system, though admittedly it took longer than I expected. I had resigned myself to thinking it might be denied, then suddenly got the approval letter. I believe the timeline varies a lot depending on which IRS service center is handling your case and their current backlog. If you've been waiting 3 months, that's still within the normal range based on what I've read. From other people I've talked to, 2-6 months seems to be the typical range.

This is great advice! I did this for my own abatement request and saw a code 271 on my account transcript which showed the adjustment was approved before I ever got the letter. Saved me weeks of wondering!