A workable plan for non-filed tax returns

Individuals, self-employed people, estates, and business owners who have one or more overdue federal returns, cannot confirm what was filed, have incomplete records, or received an IRS non-filer or substitute-for-return notice.

• One or more required federal returns were not filed
• Records are incomplete and income documents must be reconstructed
• The IRS prepared or may prepare a substitute return
• Filing compliance is needed before a collection option can be considered

• IRS return, account, wage-and-income, and verification-of-non-filing records for each possible missing period
• The last filed return, including carryforwards, depreciation schedules, basis information, and elections that affect later years
• Income forms reported to the IRS compared with W-2s, 1099s, K-1s, brokerage records, and payer corrections supplied by the client
• Business, rental, or self-employment books and source records needed to reconstruct supportable income and deductions
• Non-filer notices, substitute-return assessments, payment history, and any notice-specific response deadline

We first confirm identity, years, entities, and filing history. A document plan is created for each period, returns are prepared from supportable information, and unresolved estimates or limitations are discussed before filing authorization.

Filing a return and paying the balance are separate issues. The IRS states that many payment and relief options require missing returns to be filed, but eligibility depends on the taxpayer's complete facts and current compliance.

• Identify required returns and available transcripts
• Reconstruct income, expenses, basis, and payments from reliable sources
• Prepare returns in the correct sequence
• Estimate balances and coordinate the next collection step

• A tax-year filing map identifying the returns believed to be required, the records available, and unresolved filing questions
• An IRS transcript inventory and a year-by-year missing-document request
• Reconstruction workpapers tying reported income, supportable deductions, payments, and carryforward information to source records
• Completed past-due federal returns for the client's review, authorization, and filing within the agreed scope
• A post-filing summary of estimated balances, processing follow-up, and the next compliance or collection step

Protect sensitive records. Do not send tax documents, Social Security numbers, bank records, IDs, or other sensitive files through ordinary email. Call the office before transmitting sensitive records.

• Every IRS notice or letter, including all pages and response envelopes when available
• Copies of the last returns filed and any unfinished or previously prepared returns
• Forms W-2, 1099, 1098, K-1, brokerage statements, and other income records for each missing year
• Bank, credit-card, bookkeeping, payroll, and merchant-processor records for a business or rental activity
• Receipts, mileage records, closing statements, depreciation schedules, and basis records supporting deductions or asset transactions
• Proof of estimated payments, extensions, withholding, refunds applied forward, and other tax payments
• Identity information and the prior addresses or entity details needed to match IRS records

For individuals, Florida does not impose a personal income tax, so the overdue income-tax returns are ordinarily federal. Florida businesses may still have separate corporate income, sales and use, reemployment, or other state filings that will not appear on an IRS transcript and must be checked separately. Living or operating in Deerfield Beach does not change federal filing rules, but local and state records may help establish operating dates and reconstruct business activity.