Can the IRS garnish my wages or levy my bank account?

Yes — after assessment, a demand for payment, and a Final Notice of Intent to Levy giving 30 days to request a collection due process hearing (26 U.S.C. § 6330), the IRS can levy wages and bank accounts under 26 U.S.C. § 6331. Requesting the hearing on time pauses the levy while alternatives are considered.

Levy is the IRS's seizure power (26 U.S.C. § 6331), and it arrives by sequence, not surprise: assessment, notice and demand, then a Final Notice of Intent to Levy that opens a 30-day window to request a collection due process hearing (26 U.S.C. § 6330). A timely request stops levy action while the hearing considers alternatives — installment agreement, offer in compromise, or currently-not-collectible status for genuine hardship — and preserves Tax Court review of the determination. Miss the window, and the mechanics begin. A wage levy is continuous, reaching each paycheck until released and leaving the worker only a modest exempt amount; a bank levy freezes whatever is in the account that day, and the bank holds the funds 21 days before remitting — a window to seek release. Levies must be released in defined circumstances, including economic hardship (26 U.S.C. § 6343). California's Franchise Tax Board runs a parallel system of earnings withholding orders and orders to withhold with its own notice rules.

Authority: 26 U.S.C. § 6331