Chicago's economy generates income in structures that create federal and Illinois state tax problems at an unusually high rate. Traders and market makers at the CME Group, CBOE, and Chicago Board of Trade earn variable income tied to market conditions that swings from year to year, making it genuinely difficult to estimate quarterly payments correctly, and a strong trading year can produce a combined IRS and Illinois Department of Revenue bill that catches even experienced professionals short. Financial advisors, asset managers, and analysts at Northern Trust, Morningstar, and the city's private equity and hedge fund firms receive performance fees and year-end bonuses that vary substantially and are frequently underpaid at the time of withholding. United Airlines pilots and crew based at O'Hare carry per diem payments and domicile complications that make the federal return more complex than a standard W-2. The manufacturing workers at Kraft Heinz, Conagra, and the city's food processing and industrial plants earn overtime and shift differentials that push annual income above what was withheld. Rideshare drivers, delivery workers, and gig economy earners across Chicago owe both federal self-employment tax and Illinois income tax on every dollar they earn with nothing automatically held back. And across the city's large immigrant entrepreneurial communities, from Pilsen and Little Village to Devon Avenue and Chinatown, small-business owners carry a dual tax obligation that often goes unmanaged until a notice arrives. Anthem Tax Services resolves IRS and Illinois state tax debt for Chicago residents and businesses. We focus entirely on IRS tax debt relief, and you can learn about the firm before you take any step.

Get a Free Consultation

Taking On Tax Debt in Chicago

A federal or state tax balance that goes unaddressed compounds on itself. Interest accumulates on the original amount and penalties pile on top, and the IRS and Illinois Department of Revenue work through escalating warnings until they move against wages and bank accounts. Anthem intercepts that progression. We file our authorized representation, diverting every agency contact to our office, and then analyze your specific income and obligations to put together a resolution your real finances can sustain, with one licensed professional overseeing the case from start to finish.

Signals That the IRS or Illinois DOR Is Moving Against You

Both the IRS and the Illinois Department of Revenue issue a clear series of notices before they take enforcement action. If any of these is happening, act now.

• IRS notices have arrived in escalating order, from a CP14 through a CP503 and CP504 to a final LT11, each one moving the federal debt closer to the agency's authority to seize wages and accounts.
• Your employer was served with a wage levy by the IRS or Illinois DOR and a portion of every paycheck is now withheld automatically.
• A bank levy struck your account and froze it, with a limited window before those funds are transferred to the taxing authority.
• Federal or Illinois state taxes have gone unpaid for more than a year and the compounding total rises every month.
• Returns for one or more years at the federal or state level were never filed, closing off most relief programs.
• A federal tax lien has been recorded against Chicago property you own, attaching that claim to your title in the public record.

What Neither Agency Will Volunteer

The IRS notice you received shows a balance and a deadline. It does not mention the federal law mechanisms that allow you to reduce that balance, pause collection while your finances recover, or settle the debt for far less than the stated amount. The IRS is not required to explain those options. They exist in the tax code and the agency's own procedures. Identifying which one fits your situation and making the most persuasive case for it is the work we do, at both the federal and Illinois state level.

Chicago Clients We Help

The IRS and Illinois state tax situations we handle in Chicago come directly from the city's economy. Among our recent clients:

• CME Group, CBOE, and Board of Trade traders and market makers whose variable income tied to market conditions makes quarterly estimated tax payment genuinely difficult to calibrate.
• Financial advisors, portfolio managers, and analysts at Northern Trust, Morningstar, Citadel, and the city's private equity firms who receive performance fees and year-end bonuses that swing substantially.
• United Airlines pilots, flight attendants, and crew based at O'Hare International Airport with per diem payments, domicile rules, and multi-state income that complicate the return.
• Manufacturing and food processing workers at Kraft Heinz, Conagra, and other large Chicago plants whose overtime and shift differentials leave withholding short at year-end.
• Rideshare drivers, delivery couriers, and gig economy workers who owe both federal self-employment tax and Illinois income tax on earnings with no withholding.
• Small-business owners in Pilsen, Little Village, Devon Avenue, Chinatown, Bridgeport, and other immigrant communities who manage a dual federal and state filing obligation on business income.
• Construction subcontractors and union trades workers who take private jobs on the side and carry 1099 income alongside their W-2.

How Anthem Resolves Tax Problems

Filing Every Missing Return

No resolution at the federal or state level begins while required returns are outstanding. We request your income transcripts from the IRS, reconstruct the records that no longer exist, and file accurate returns for each year you missed, generally the last six the IRS expects before treating an account as current. Filing correctly tends to cut the balance on its own, because the returns the IRS prepared omitted every deduction and credit that was yours. Our unfiled returns service covers both federal and state filings.

Pressing Pause With Currently Not Collectible Status

When covering the IRS would leave you without enough for housing and basic necessities, the agency may place your account in Currently Not Collectible status and pull back from enforcement. Levies and garnishments are released and the balance is held until your situation changes. For a Chicago trader in a losing stretch, a restaurant owner in a slow season, or anyone absorbing a significant financial shock, this protection provides real relief. The debt remains, but the IRS steps back. Find out if Currently Not Collectible status is available.

Restructuring the Debt Into Monthly Payments

When full payment is not an option, an installment agreement converts the balance into monthly amounts the IRS accepts in place of a lump sum. We drive the monthly figure down from the agency's opening position to one your actual cash flow can carry, and structuring it on direct debit keeps Fresh Start lien withdrawal available. For a finance professional with income that swings with the market or a small-business owner with committed monthly expenses, this is often the steadiest path. Consider an installment agreement.

Settling the Debt: Offer in Compromise

A qualifying taxpayer may be able to close a federal balance through an Offer in Compromise for far less than the full amount owed. The IRS reviews your income against your allowable living costs, accounts for your asset equity, and arrives at the ceiling of what it could realistically collect from you. Applications with documentation gaps are returned without action, so the quality of the submission determines the outcome. Anthem has settled significant balances for a fraction of the original figure. Determine whether an Offer in Compromise fits your situation.

Ending a Levy or Garnishment the Same Day

An IRS wage levy or frozen bank account demands an immediate answer. Once you retain us, we register authorization with the IRS, reach the agency directly, and press for a release while the long-term plan gets built in parallel. A bank levy holds funds for 21 days before transferring them, so reaching us the day the levy lands gives us the most room to act. We work to remove a wage garnishment and lift an IRS levy.

What IRS and State Tax Help Costs in Chicago

No Charge for the Opening Consultation

The first meeting is free. A licensed specialist reviews your balance, determines how far the IRS and Illinois DOR have advanced in their collection sequences, and tells you directly which resolution options are genuinely available. You learn the likely cost and approach before spending anything. No one applies pressure to proceed.

A Flat Fee You Know Before We Start

One flat fee is agreed to before work begins and stays fixed no matter how long the case runs or how complex it becomes. Nothing is ever billed by the hour. When paying in full at once is not workable, we set up installment payments. Access to serious tax resolution help should not require a large upfront payment.

The Fee Against What You Keep

The fee makes sense only against what it saves. When a $95,000 combined balance is reduced to roughly $11,000, or about $28,000 in penalties is eliminated through abatement, the fee is small against the difference. At the consultation we run your own numbers so the comparison is concrete before you decide.

A Money-Back Guarantee on Every Case

A guarantee backs every engagement. If your balance does not decrease and your repayment terms are not improved, the fee comes back. Bookkeeping and tax preparation services and the minimum deposit fall outside the guarantee. We stand behind it because the results across thousands of resolved cases have earned it.

Chicago Neighborhoods and ZIP Codes We Cover

Tax situations shift across Chicago by neighborhood and occupation, and we handle cases from every part of the city.

• The Loop and River North: The financial and corporate core, where traders, asset managers, attorneys, and corporate executives deal with variable income, performance fees, and equity compensation that create the city's most complex federal and state returns.
• Wicker Park, Bucktown, and Logan Square: The creative and tech professional corridor, where designers, developers, and freelancers blend W-2 and 1099 income in ways that leave Illinois state tax chronically underpaid.
• Pilsen, Little Village, and Bridgeport: Dense immigrant and working-class communities on the South and Southwest sides, where small-business owners carry dual federal and Illinois state obligations that fall behind when revenue is uneven.
• Hyde Park and the South Side: A mix of University of Chicago academics, healthcare professionals, and longtime residents, where fellowship stipends, consulting income, and multiple employer situations are common.
• Devon Avenue, Chinatown, and the Northwest Side: The city's most diverse immigrant business corridors, where restaurant owners, importers, and service firms manage self-employment income and state tax obligations simultaneously.

Find Your Chicago ZIP Code Page

We maintain a dedicated page for every Chicago ZIP code with guidance tailored to that neighborhood. Our coverage extends across Cook County and the surrounding suburbs, including Evanston, Oak Park, Cicero, Berwyn, and Skokie. Select your ZIP below to get started.

Fully Remote, No Office Visit Required

Working with Anthem from Chicago requires no trip to an office at any stage. The entire case runs by phone, email, and encrypted file transfers from our Woodland Hills office. A commodities trader in the Loop and a restaurant owner in Pilsen both receive the same level of experienced professional handling, and neither has to give up a workday to get it. We deal with the IRS and the Illinois DOR while you stay focused on everything else.

Audit Defense for Chicago Taxpayers

Complex income structures, self-employment earnings, and business deductions make Chicago taxpayers more likely than most to draw scrutiny from the IRS or the Illinois Department of Revenue. If an audit notice has arrived, you have the right to professional representation before you respond to anything. Invoking that right before the first exchange changes the dynamic. Anthem handles federal and state audits for Chicago taxpayers from the opening notice through to the final ruling.

What the Audit Process Looks Like

An examiner may challenge particular deductions, request documentation of trading gains or business income, or ask you to verify figures from a prior year or two. Most audits proceed through written correspondence and close without any in-person meeting. We manage the letters, organize your records, and communicate with the examiner directly, keeping the scope narrow and pushing toward a fast resolution.

Your Rights at Both Levels

Federal law gives you the right to professional representation, a clear explanation of every record request, and the right to appeal any finding you believe is wrong. The Taxpayer Bill of Rights sets these protections out at the federal level, and the Illinois Department of Revenue provides parallel protections for state tax matters. We enforce both sets of rights throughout the audit so you do not give up more than the law requires.

Why Chicago Clients Work With Anthem

Tens of Thousands Helped, Millions Recovered

Anthem has helped more than 50,000 people nationwide resolve IRS back-tax problems, trimming millions from those combined balances. The outcomes are documented: Jeffrey Grolig came out over $90,000 ahead, Logan brought a $25,000 balance down to $100, and Dr. Jorge Partida kept more than $25,000. Mindy settled tens of thousands for under a thousand, and Michel Khlaif saved substantially on a $35,000 balance. See more client outcomes.

Credentials That Reflect the Work

Your file is handled by a licensed professional with real qualifications. Billy Fauller III is an Enrolled Agent, a Certified Tax Resolution Specialist, and an NTPI Fellow who spent eight years inside IRS collections as a Revenue Officer. Anna Phan and Ken Bruns are both licensed tax attorneys with prior experience in government institutions. Melissa Northrup holds a Licensed Enrolled Agent credential and more than twenty years in practice. Meet the full team.

A Former IRS Collector on Your Side of the Table

Billy Fauller III spent eight years as an IRS Revenue Officer pursuing overdue federal accounts from the inside, not studying the process from a textbook. That time gave him firsthand knowledge of how the agency constructs its collection positions, what moves it toward enforcement, and where the real room to negotiate exists. Every resolution Anthem builds for Chicago clients draws on that direct experience.

Tax Lien Help for Chicago Property Owners

A federal tax lien on Chicago property locks the IRS's legal claim to your title in the public record. From that point, selling, refinancing, or using the property as collateral all become more difficult. In a Chicago real estate market where values range from modest bungalows to multi-million-dollar condominiums, a lien creates real financial obstacles. Several avenues exist to address it.

Getting the Lien Fully Withdrawn

Under Fresh Start, the IRS can withdraw a lien entirely once a qualifying direct debit installment plan is in place and current. That withdrawal removes the public Notice of Federal Tax Lien from the record completely, a materially better result than a release that marks the account closed while keeping the filing visible. We handle the plan and the withdrawal filing.

What the Lien Does to Your Financial Position

Credit bureaus dropped tax liens from their scoring years ago, but the filing stays in the public record. Lenders, title officers, and escrow companies search those records before any real estate transaction proceeds, and a lien that surfaces can halt the deal regardless of your credit score. Clearing it restores financial flexibility no score improvement alone can deliver.

Selling or Refinancing While the Lien Is Active

When a sale or refinance must close before the underlying balance is settled, the IRS provides a discharge that removes the lien from one specific property so the closing can proceed, and a subordination that places a refinancing lender ahead of the IRS in the repayment sequence. We prepare both filings and coordinate the timing with the IRS so the lien does not delay your transaction.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do you handle both federal IRS debt and Illinois state tax debt?

Yes. Chicago taxpayers frequently owe both the IRS and the Illinois Department of Revenue, and the two agencies operate on separate collection timelines. Resolving the federal balance does nothing to address the state balance. We work on both simultaneously so neither continues to grow while the other is being settled.

Do you serve the surrounding Cook County suburbs?

Yes. Our coverage extends across Cook County and the broader Chicago metro, including Evanston, Oak Park, Cicero, Berwyn, and Skokie. Since everything runs remotely, your specific address within the region makes no practical difference to the service you receive.

I have unfiled returns at both the federal and Illinois state level. Can you help?

Yes. We handle the federal filing gap by obtaining transcripts, reconstructing the missing records, and filing accurate returns. Illinois state filings are handled alongside the federal ones so both agencies have current returns on file and both resolution processes can move forward at the same time.

Is the process handled entirely without meeting in person?

Yes. Every stage of the case runs by phone, email, and encrypted file transfers, with no office visit required at any point. Chicago clients receive the same quality of professional handling they would get in person, delivered entirely at a distance.

What does it cost?

A flat fee, disclosed in full at the free consultation before you commit to anything. Installments are available if paying at once is not workable. The money-back guarantee applies if the balance does not decrease and the payment terms are not improved, with the exception of bookkeeping, tax preparation services, and the minimum deposit.

How quickly can a garnishment or levy be lifted?

We act the same day you retain us. Once our authorization is on file with the IRS, we contact the agency and push for a release while the resolution takes shape. A bank levy holds funds for 21 days before the transfer, so the day the levy arrives is the day to call.

Start Your Free Chicago Tax Consultation

Every month without resolution, the IRS and Illinois DOR add to the balance and move enforcement closer. Trading income taxes, unfiled small-business returns, an active wage garnishment, a lien on your Chicago property: whatever the specifics, Anthem can build a federal and state resolution grounded in your real income. A free consultation, at no cost and no commitment, is where it starts. A licensed professional will go through your situation and tell you plainly what is achievable. Call (888) 548-0478 and let our team take both agencies off your hands.

Call (888) 548-0478 | Mon-Fri, 9 AM to 5 PM | info@anthemtaxservices.com