IRS Bank Levy Release
You have 21 days from the levy date before the bank sends your money to the IRS.
A bank levy freezes the funds in your account on the date the levy is served to the bank. Unlike a wage levy, it is a one-time snapshot — it captures whatever is in the account at that moment. The bank holds the money for 21 days before sending it to the IRS. That 21-day window is your opportunity to act.
Why 21 Days Matters
The 21-day holding period exists under IRC §6332(c) specifically to give you time to resolve the issue. Once the bank sends the funds, getting them back is dramatically harder. If you wake up to a frozen bank account, you are already on the clock.
How to Get the Levy Released
The same release grounds apply as any levy under IRC §6343. Economic hardship is the most common basis — if the levy leaves you unable to pay basic living expenses like rent, utilities, and food, the IRS should release it. Entering into an installment agreement or submitting an Offer in Compromise will also trigger a release.
Filing a Collection Due Process hearing request within the 30-day window from the Final Notice stops future levies but will not automatically reverse a levy already served to the bank. You need direct action — calling the IRS or having your representative call — to get the existing levy released.
Preventing the Next One
A bank levy is a symptom. The underlying problem is an unresolved tax debt. Releasing the levy without addressing the balance just means another levy next month. The real fix is getting into a collection alternative — an installment agreement, CNC status, or an OIC. We handle bank levy releases and long-term resolution.
Tax attorney Darrin Mish has spent 32 years getting taxpayers out of IRS trouble. Free consultation — no obligation.
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