I watched a documentary one time with tax experts . all of them said there was nothing written in the tax law that says you have to pay. None of them paid taxes in years. However. They are experts and probably a lawyer or in touch with top notch lawyers so I don't know how cool it is for peasants to do it.
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Technically true, but they will lock you up no matter what. The gubnint never follows the law.
Well that's what I'm saying . just like in the housing crisis. Most people didn't know that a bunch of loans got put together to trade on the market. So if they couldnt prove or find all those bundled trades (its impossible) they couldn't take your house. But 95% of ppl didn't understand that.
So the harvest co tinues.
Well plenty of big fish get away with it for various reasons. Small fish, not so much.
Most of the arguments out there for popular consumption hinge on the use of the word "voluntary" everywhere in tax code. The problem with that is in government speak, Volunteer really means "voluntold". Like food stamp and other assistance programs always say all over the form that giving your social security number is "voluntary". However, getting the actual assistance hinges on you voluntarily providing that number.
Better to legally use your maximum exemptions as laud out on the W4 worksheet, and stay on top of how much you have paid vs. how much you owe using the calculator at IRS every few months. As soon as you have filled your obligation, switch to exempt. Or go exempt the first quarter, and just before the quarter end run through the W4 and start paying to avoid any penalty assessments. Then go exempt again when you have paid your share. You should end up with either a very tiny refund (outside of any tax credits you get), or owing a few hundred dollars.
Which you then pay on April 14th.
Also bear in mind that even if you get away with not paying for a long time, it can impact other things. For instance, they can deny a passport if you haven't filed or paid. They can show up and ding you for 7 years of back taxes at the max estimated rates if you just stop filing and list yourself as exempt. They have multiple forms of fuckery they can indulge in if they wish to.
Hubby and I are deliberately downgrading to tax exempt--earning below the tax level for our status-- as of January 1. We live simply anyway, and are moving to a lower cost of living area where we will be able to live comfortably in the 0 tax bracket.