Tax
Sep. 3, 2025
IRS 100% payroll tax penalties carry personal liability
Failing to promptly remit withheld payroll taxes is one of the most dangerous mistakes a business can make -- triggering personal liability for "responsible persons," severe IRS penalties and aggressive collection actions that can even shut the company down.
Robert W. Wood
Managing Partner
Wood LLP
333 Sacramento St
San Francisco , California 94111-3601
Phone: (415) 834-0113
Fax: (415) 789-4540
Email: wood@WoodLLP.com
Univ of Chicago Law School
Wood is a tax lawyer at Wood LLP, and often advises lawyers and litigants about tax issues.
Paying employment taxes is inevitable if you have employees. You withhold taxes from employee pay and then send the money to the IRS. The taxes are withheld from wages and are supposed to be promptly paid to the government. After all, this is trust fund money that belongs to the government, and no matter how good a reason the employer has for using the money for something else, the IRS is strict. If you are in business, it is not unusual to h...
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