Can I receive a tax refund if I am currently making tax payments on prior years?

Q) Can I receive a tax refund if I am currently making tax payments on prior years?

A) According to the IRS: No.  As a condition of your installment agreement, any refund due to you in a future year will be applied against the amount that you owe.

• The IRS will automatically apply the refund to the taxes owed.
• You must continue making your installment agreement payments as scheduled and in full, because your refund is not applied toward your regular monthly payment; therefore any payments due under the installment agreement must still be made in full.
• Regardless of whether you are participating in an installment agreement or other payment arrangement with the IRS, you may not get all of your refund if you owe certain past-due amounts, such as federal tax, state tax, a student loan, or child support. For more information on these non-IRS refund offsets, you can contact the Bureau of Fiscal Service (BFS) at a toll-free number 800-304-3107.