What’s your favorite Halloween movie? Hocus Pocus? Poltergeist? The Nightmare Before Christmas? From the merely themed to the spooky, all the way to the downright horrifying, we gravitate towards a wide range of horrifying stories to send chills up our spines. But it doesn’t matter how much we love a good scare. The last place we want to end up is in the middle of a tax horror story.

Much how plenty of different types of Halloween movies exist, so do the types of tax horror story you can end up in. And unlike a slasher film, the worst outcomes of your tax horror story may linger with you for months and years to come. Sadly, some never quite get out of their tax horror story—and their lives remain changed forever.

We thought we’d shed some light on these tax horror stories to help you avoid them in the future. So we’ll walk you through a few tax horror stories, as well as how you can avoid them this Halloween.

3 Tax Horror Story Examples to Avoid

1. The Dreaded Tax Audit

Possibly the scariest IRS figure of them all: The tax agent. And they bring nothing short of a true horrifying tax situation. An IRS audit strikes fear into the hearts of nearly every taxpayer, which makes avoiding an audit one of the primary fears during the tax filing process.

Unfortunately, simply avoiding a tax audit doesn’t quite do the trick. Avoiding the dreaded tax audit requires effort. Fortunately, you can all but ensure you never face a tax agent (or receive a notice of audit) with some careful work.

Double and triple checking your work will help you avoid a tax audit. Additionally, avoiding paper filing (which increases your likelihood of an audit) and enlisting an expert tax preparer will help you minimize the risk of a tax audit.

2. The Terrible Tax Levy

Haunted houses make for good stories. But the haunting idea of losing a house makes for a much more terrible tale for taxpayers. Tax levies lay at the end of the road of tax debt, and for many, present a worst-case scenario when dealing with the IRS.

A tax levy doesn’t have to become the outcome of your tax debt scenario. Simply by negotiating a payment plan and working with the IRS can avoid this outcome. While repayment plans aren’t always forgiving, you may be able to reduce your tax burden with an expert tax team who can negotiate with the IRS on your behalf.

3. The Unexpected Tax Bill

An unexpected, sinister guest serves as a common horror trope in TV and movies. But just as sinister is the unexpected tax bill, which can wreck havoc on your finances and credit long after it shows up on your doorstep.

Unexpected tax bills can present them when you haven’t paid close attention to your finances or income when it comes time to file. By not filing—or by incorrectly reporting on your tax return—you run the risk of inviting an unexpected tax bill into your life.

Avoid this outcome by carefully tracking your income and tax documents throughout the year. It can help to hire a CPA or tax specialist to help you navigate the process.

Don’t Star in a Tax Horror Story

You don’t need to be a final girl to end up in a horror story. Indeed, some of the scariest tales we’ve ever seen have involved the IRS.

Fortunately, with some careful planning, you can avoid starring in a tax horror story. And a happy ending is right around the corner.

Avoid a tax horror story of your own, and get back on track with the IRS today. Send us a message via our free live chat to get started.