Yet the dynamics are still significant and could drastically alter how people interact with the IRS. Moreover, these harsh rules are not limited to criminal tax cases. They aren’t even limited to situations where the government thinks that you are fleeing a tax debt. In fact, you could have your passport revoked merely because you owe more than $50,000 and the IRS has filed a notice of lien.
A $50,000 tax debt is easy to amass today, especially considering interest and penalties. Moreover, the IRS files tax liens routinely. It’s the IRS way of putting creditors on notice so the IRS eventually gets paid. In that sense, the you-can’t-travel idea seems extreme. IRS tax liens cover all your property, even acquired after the lien is filed. The courts use liens to establish priority in bankruptcy proceedings and real estate sales. The IRS can file a Notice of Federal Tax Lien after:
- IRS assesses the liability;
- IRS sends a Notice and Demand for Payment saying how much you owe; and
- You fail to fully pay within 10 days.
A tax lien can also be filed by mistake. In most cases, there’s no mistake and the IRS lien is valid. But occasionally, the person might not actually owe the taxes and may just need to straighten out a pile of paperwork. With all this in mind, if this becomes law, is it subject to challenge? Is it constitutional? The right to travel is established, both between states and internationally. And although some restrictions have been upheld, it is not clear that this measure would pass the constitutional test.
Consider especially the roughly eight million Americans living overseas, many of whom are already reeling from FATCA compliance problems. Moreover, although we think of passports as useful only when traveling internationally, even stateside flights may soon make passports even more fundamental.
Article Appeared @http://www.forbes.com/sites/robertwood/2015/11/25/passports-required-for-domestic-travel-in-2016-but-irs-can-revoke-passports-for-taxes/?utm_campaign=Forbes&utm_source=TWITTER&utm_medium=social&utm_channel=Investing&linkId=19122324