First-Time Penalty Abatement (FTA)

Full Definition

First-Time Penalty Abatement (FTA) is an administrative waiver the IRS provides to taxpayers who have a clean compliance history. To qualify, you must have filed all required returns, have no penalties in the prior three years, and have paid (or arranged to pay) any taxes due. FTA can remove failure-to-file penalties, failure-to-pay penalties, and failure-to-deposit penalties. You can request FTA by phone or in writing, and the associated interest on abated penalties is also removed.