Tax Resolution Attorney Serving the DMV
Stephen Thienel helps individuals and businesses resolve back taxes, IRS liens, and levies across Maryland, D.C., and Virginia. Free 30-minute consultation.
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Tax resolution is the work of settling tax you already owe, and Stephen Thienel handles it for individuals and businesses across Maryland, Washington, D.C., and Virginia, with an LL.M. in Taxation.
Tax resolution is how you deal with a balance the IRS or a state has already assessed. It is not about whether you owe. It is about the terms on which you pay, or whether you can pay less. Thienel Law, PLLC represents individuals and business owners across Maryland, Washington, D.C., and Virginia who are carrying back taxes, facing a lien or levy, or watching penalties and interest grow. Stephen Thienel practices tax law with an LL.M. in Taxation, and he handles each matter personally: reading the notices, dealing with the collector, and matching you to the resolution the law actually allows. Because he is licensed in all three DMV jurisdictions and also prepares returns, a federal balance that spills into a state notice stays with one advisor.
What is tax resolution, and who needs it?
Tax resolution is the set of legal and administrative options for a tax debt already assessed. It covers how you pay, whether penalties can come off, and whether the total can be reduced. It differs from an audit, which decides whether you owe in the first place.
The people who need it are ordinary: business owners behind on payroll or estimated taxes, self-employed professionals who under-withheld, households hit by a hard year, and executors who inherited a decedent’s unpaid balance. What they share is an assessed number and deadlines that reward acting early.
What happens if you ignore back taxes?
An unpaid balance does not sit still. Interest compounds and penalties stack, so the number you owe next year is larger than the number today, and the account keeps moving toward enforced collection.
The government’s tools get sharp here. The IRS can file a lien, a public claim that attaches to your property and follows it. It can also levy, seizing wages, bank accounts, or receivables. Before most levies, though, the law gives you a window. You generally get written notice at least 30 days out and the right to request a hearing before the IRS can levy. Miss that window and you lose a layer of protection you cannot get back.
What does tax resolution representation include?
Stephen handles the balance from the first notice to a closed account. Representation typically includes:
- A review of your notices, transcripts, and the assessed balance before anything is filed
- A signed authorization so the IRS or state deals with your attorney, not with you
- An installment agreement when you can pay over time, which the IRS is authorized to grant and in some cases must
- An offer in compromise when the facts support settling for less than the full balance
- Penalty relief where reasonable cause or a first-time abatement applies
- Currently-not-collectible status when paying anything now would leave you short on basic living expenses
- Collection due process and appeals when a lien or levy notice arrives and the clock is running
- The same work for Maryland, D.C., and Virginia balances, which each state collects on its own terms
You work on clear, flat terms agreed up front, so the cost of resolving the balance is not its own surprise.
How does Steve handle a tax debt from start to finish?
It starts with a free 30-minute consultation. That call is a fit conversation, not tax advice: you describe the notices you have received, Stephen explains how he works, and you both decide whether to work together. If you are ready to hire an attorney for a tax balance, that is the place to start.
Once engaged, Stephen pulls your account transcripts, confirms what is owed and for which years, and takes over contact with the collector. The matter runs on secure uploads, e-signatures, and online meetings. You deal with one attorney from the first call through the resolution, not a rotating case team.
How are federal and state back taxes different in the DMV?
Federal collection follows one national process, and its outer limit is long. The IRS generally has ten years from the date a tax is assessed to collect it, a clock that certain agreements and appeals can pause. Within that window it offers the same tools everywhere: installment agreements, offers in compromise, and collection due process.
State back taxes are a separate track. Maryland, the District of Columbia, and Virginia each run their own tax agency, with their own payment programs, liens, and appeal clocks, which are often short. A federal balance frequently triggers a matching state notice. Since Stephen is licensed in Maryland, D.C., and Virginia, both sides of that problem stay with one advisor instead of three.
How does tax resolution fit the rest of the tax practice?
Resolving a balance is one part of a full tax practice. Many clients arrive for the debt and stay for the work that keeps it from returning:
IRS audit and tax controversy
Defense when the balance is still being contested rather than collected
Learn moreTax compliance
And return preparation, so future filings are correct and current
Learn moreTax planning
Structures income and estimated payments so you are not short again in April
Learn moreBusiness tax
Counsel on payroll and entity issues, a frequent source of owner balances
Learn moreBecause Stephen also prepares returns, the filing and the resolution sit with one advisor.
What clients say about working with Steve
I have worked with Steve Thienel for more than 20 years now and the experience has been amazing. Steve and his team are very thorough, they review all sides of a situation, and are very measured in how they approach a solution. They are 100% client focused and a pleasure to work with!
Throughout years, Steve has been my go to guy for business, real estate, and legal work. Steve works fast and is highly reliable. I would recommend Steve to anyone.
Received expert advice including options when applicable. Filings were timely and I was kept informed each step of the way. First class service!!!
I have been receiving services from Mr. Thienel for over 15 years. I have found his legal services to be of exceptionally high value and quality. His services are always timely, professional and thorough!
Reviews are published as given. Thienel Law does not offer compensation for reviews.
Frequently asked questions
Can I settle my tax debt for less than I owe?
Sometimes, through an offer in compromise. The IRS can compromise a liability when it decides that accepting less will still be the most it can realistically collect, usually because your income and assets cannot cover the full balance. It is discretionary, not automatic, and the financial disclosure is detailed. An offer the IRS does not reject within 24 months is treated as accepted by law, which is one reason the paperwork has to be right the first time.
How long can the IRS collect back taxes?
Generally ten years from the date the tax was assessed. After that, the balance becomes legally uncollectible. The clock is not always continuous, though: an installment agreement, a pending offer in compromise, a collection due process hearing, or a bankruptcy can suspend it and push the date out. Knowing your real collection deadline often shapes the whole strategy.
What is the difference between a tax lien and a levy?
A lien is a claim; a levy is a taking. A federal tax lien is a public notice that attaches to your property and protects the government's interest if you sell. A levy actually seizes something, such as wages or a bank account. Before most levies you are entitled to advance notice and a hearing, so a levy is rarely the government's first move.
Will the IRS take my paycheck or bank account?
Not without warning, in most cases. For most levies the IRS must send written notice at least 30 days ahead and offer you a hearing first, where you can propose an installment agreement or an offer in compromise instead. Acting during that window is what keeps a levy from happening. Ignoring the notice is what allows it.
Do you handle Maryland, D.C., and Virginia back taxes too?
Yes. Stephen is licensed in Maryland, Washington, D.C., and Virginia and represents taxpayers before each state's tax agency as well as the IRS. That matters because a federal balance often produces a matching state one, and the state deadlines to respond are usually shorter than the federal ones.
Do I have to meet you in person?
No. The practice is fully remote, run from the Alexandria office through secure online meetings, document sharing, and electronic signatures. You can resolve a tax balance without a single in-person appointment. Where a matter requires a court appearance in a jurisdiction where Stephen is licensed, he handles that.
Deal With the Balance Before It Deals With You
Back taxes get more expensive the longer they sit, and the best options tend to close first. If you are ready to hire an attorney for an IRS or state tax balance, schedule a free 30-minute consultation with Stephen. It is a straightforward fit conversation: you describe the situation, he explains how he works, and you decide together whether to move forward.
- Tell Steve about your matter
- Pick a time that works