Guidelines for Processing Notice of Federal Tax Lien Documents
A Revocation of Certificate of Release of Federal Tax Lien is filed
with the recording office as part of the
process to reinstate the federal tax lien. Usually a new Notice of Federal Tax Lien is then filed to again to
put the public on notice of the IRS’ claim on the taxpayer’s property.
When a lien release is revoked, the federal tax lien becomes effective as of the date it is reinstated, not
the date when the lien originally arose. Similarly, the Notice of Federal Tax Lien is effective as of the date
when the new notice of lien is filed, not the original filing date.
In some situations, a Notice of Federal Tax Lien may be filed for the same tax liabilities in multiple
recording offices. For example, the taxpayer owns real property in multiple jurisdictions. If the lien is
erroneously released in one location, it effectively extinguishes the lien in all locations. In these situations,
the IRS must file a Revocation of Certificate of Release of Federal Tax Lien in all the locations where a
similar Notice of Federal Tax Lien was filed. Therefore, on occasion a recording office may receive a
Revocation of Certificate of Release of Federal Tax Lien even though its records do not show the lien as
released. When this occurs, the Revocation document must still be processed.
Withdrawal of Notice of Federal Tax Lien
The IRS may withdraw a filed Notice of Federal Tax Lien if certain provisions found in the Internal
Revenue Code are established
The IRS files the Withdrawal of Filed Notice of Federal Tax Lien with the applicable recording office,
provides a copy of the withdrawal certificate to the taxpayer, and, if the taxpayer sends a written request,
sends a copy to any credit reporting agency, financial institution, or other creditor the taxpayer indicates.
Taxpayers may apply for a withdrawal using IRS Form 12277, Application for Withdrawal of Filed Form
668(Y), Notice of Federal Tax Lien.
Withdrawal of Notice of Federal Tax Lien After Release
The IRS may withdraw a Notice of Federal Tax Lien after it has been released if the:
• Notice was filed prematurely or not according to IRS procedures; or
• Withdrawal would be in the best interest of the taxpayer and the government.
The IRS processes the withdrawal after release in the same manner that it does other withdrawals.
Certificate of Discharge of Property from the Federal Tax Lien
The federal tax lien attaches to all the property of the taxpayer. At times it may be appropriate to remove
(or discharge) a specific piece of the property from the effects of the federal tax lien. Most often this
occurs when the taxpayer is transferring ownership of property subject to a Federal tax lien to a third
party purchaser and the interests of the United States are provided for in the transaction.
When certain conditions are met, the IRS can issue a Certificate of Discharge of Property from the
Federal Tax Lien. Each certificate of discharge specifies the property that is being removed from the
effects of the federal tax lien.
It is important to note that a certificate of discharge does not affect the life of the Notice of Federal Tax
Lien. It does not extinguish the tax liability, it does not remove the federal tax lien from other affected
property, nor does it preclude the IRS from determining additional tax or penalties. A certificate of
discharge only removes the specifically described property from the effects of the lien.
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