What is an IRS tax lien?
A federal tax lien is the government’s claim on your property as security against an IRS tax debt. Before a lien can be filed, the IRS must notify you and send a notice of payment due. If a delinquent taxpayer refuses to pay the debt after 10 days, then the IRS can create a tax lien for the amount of the debt. Once filed, it will be attached to all of a taxpayer’s property including houses, cars, and even accounts receivable for businesses. The lien also becomes a public document, and will usually affect the recipient’s credit score.
