IRS will deny or revoke Passports for tax debt.

For some the only hope of relief from unmanageable federal tax debts may be the statute of limitations on collection. In theory, the IRS has only 10 years from the date of assessment to collect. However, this 10-year limitation has many exceptions, waivers and overlapping extensions such that in all but the simplest of cases computing the correct “collection statute expiration date” is quite difficult.

The IRS can deny and/or revoke passports. This is new ground in tax enforcement for the IRS.  It will make it harder for taxpayers with serious tax problems to flee the country. However, we think Congress was far more concerned with getting a delinquent taxpayer's attention. Here's why: