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Fortress Tax Relief

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6.7

Overall Score

LAST UPDATED: December 22nd, 2023

Fortress Tax Relief started in 2003 and is based in Bend, Oregon. The company provides a wide range of tax relief services and solutions. Fortress Tax Relief utilizes a team of licensed tax attorneys. Mentioned in Forbes as one of "The Best Tax Relief Services of December 2023," Fortress Tax Relief was identified as the best company for complex tax issues.

Fortress Tax Relief claims to be the only sizable tax resolution company where every case is handled personally by a licensed attorney who practices back tax resolution exclusively.

The company's attorneys go through rigorous one-on-one training of 500 hours or more with one of the leading tax resolution attorneys in the industry prior to handling cases.

Additionally, Fortress Tax Relief's attorneys have over 60 years of tax resolution experience at Fortress.

While Fortress Tax Relief is a member of the National Association of Tax Resolution Companies, it does not appear to be a member of top professional associations in the industry, including the American Society of Tax Problem Solvers (ASTPS), the National Association of Tax Professionals (NATP), or the National Association of Enrolled Agents (NAEA).

However, clients can be confident that each of Fortress’ team members is a licensed attorney and brings a high-level of tax law expertise to their cases.

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The Good

  • Tax Relief Services
  • Trained Attorneys
  • The Process
  • Money-Back Guarantee

Tax Relief Services

Clients can enjoy a free, no-obligation consultation that allows Fortress to grasp the client's unique tax situation. Fortress Tax Relief works with experienced tax attorneys that can help clients with a variety of tax problems.

The attorneys specialize in tax issues like wage garnishments, levies, seizures, business and personal assets, etc. They can also help protect bank accounts, and accounts receivable.

The company offers multiple tax resolution services, like installment agreements, offers in compromise, penalty abatements, innocent spouse relief, and more.

An installment agreement is a payment plan set up with the IRS or state tax department that allows taxpayers to meet their full tax liability over time with affordable payments.

An offer in compromise is a debt settlement agreement with the IRS. It allows taxpayers to pay the IRS less than their current tax debt if the offer is accepted.

Penalty abatement is trickier to have approved. It removes penalties for unpaid taxes. These penalties include wage garnishments, levies, and liens.

Trained Attorneys

All Fortress Tax Relief's attorneys are highly experienced in the tax industry and come from top-tier law schools. Additionally, the attorneys each go through a rigorous one-on-one training period of 500 hours with a top tax resolution attorney in the industry.

The Process

Potential clients can first take advantage of a free, no-obligation consultation. If they decide to contract with Fortress Tax Relief, they will fill out some easy intake paperwork, and then be assigned to a tax attorney.

The company guarantees that the case will personally be handled from start to finish by an experienced tax attorney. The ability to work directly with a tax attorney is one of the most valuable features of Fortress Tax Relief.

Money-Back Guarantee

If one goes through with the initial attorney consultation and does not feel comfortable, they can back out of all services within 24 hours to receive a full refund.

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The Bad

  • Missing Some Professional Memberships
  • No CPAs or Enrolled Agents

Missing Some Professional Memberships

Even though Fortress Tax Relief does not appear to be a member of top professional associations in the industry, including the American Society of Tax Problem Solvers (ASTPS), the National Association of Tax Professionals (NATP), or the National Association of Enrolled Agents (NAEA).

Fortress Tax Relief does not employ enrolled agents, so the lack of NAEA membership should not be concerning.

Additionally, all attorneys must pass their state’s bar exam before they can practice law. The ability to pass the bar exam demonstrates a lawyer’s legal knowledge.

Fortress Tax Relief is dedicated to having effective lawyers on staff, so it also provides additional training to lawyers on its team. The opportunity to work with a licensed attorney with tax law expertise and get legal advice is an advantage of choosing Fortress' relief services.

No CPAs or Enrolled Agents

Fortress Tax Relief exclusively works with a team of six tax attorneys. The company sees this as a good thing since everyone on the team is extremely qualified and trained. It argues that attorneys usually possess negotiation skills that are superior to accountants.

However, some may be disappointed that there are no CPAs or enrolled agents on staff to help round out the team, especially if they are interested in a broad range of tax services including tax preparation.

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The Bottom Line

Fortress Tax Relief offers a variety of resolution services, and the company utilizes a team of highly trained attorneys. An attorney is assigned to personally handle each client's case from start to finish.

While Fortress Tax Relief does not have all of the professional memberships in the industry, its lawyers are highly trained and qualified. Additionally, the money-back guarantee is only valid for a very short period of time; however, Fortress' pros outweigh the cons. The company is worth exploring, alongside other companies, for tax relief services.

View Best Tax Relief Companies

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Star Rating

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5.0

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137 Reviews

Review Breakdown

5 grade

93%

4 grade

6%

3 grade

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2 grade

0%

1 grade

1%

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Antoinette Florence MI

Excellent Small Business Tax Services: Fortress has had a major impact to the success of my company. I’m deeply impressed and grateful for the firm’s personal and professional help. I was a bit skeptical at first. Both Art/ Joan haven been available at very short notice whenever I had a question about a tax related issue. Their service has been very affordable. I highly recommend this company

1 year ago

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Reply from Fortress Tax Relief

We appreciate you!

Jul. 21st, 2022

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Valerie West Dundee, IL

My experience with Fortress Tax Relief exceeded my expectations. When I began this process, I didn’t know what the outcome would be. My attorney, Jeremy, and his assistants, Jenny and Alyssa, told me they would work hard for a favorable outcome, and it was. They succeeded in getting all the penalties on my debt dropped. When you work with Fortress, not only do you get an attorney on your side, but you get a highly engaging and informative support team through their assistants.

2 years ago

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Reply from Fortress Tax Relief

We're glad to hear that we exceeded your expectation, and thrilled with the results! Thank you for your feedback!

Jan. 4th, 2022

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Masonry@Dayton ,

Working with Fortress Tax Relief has given us a peace of mind we would have certainly lacked otherwise. Our questions are answered promptly and our options explained clearly. Resolving issues with the IRS is certainly a process we would not want to tackle on our own and thankfully we don't have to with Fortress on our side. For us the process is ongoing, hence the four stars. When it is resolved and over we will be so happy five stars would be too little - T

3 years ago

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Reply from Fortress Tax Relief

Thank you for your business and your feedback! The IRS sometimes moves at the speed of a stubborn donkey, and that is an apt description of what they are doing with your case. We have you protected from enforcement, we've confirmed that the IRS has received everything they require for approval, and we will continue to do everything within reason to speed up the process. We hope to receive a "6-star" review from you soon!

Jan. 29th, 2021

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Review Source

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Mary Kate F Simpsonville, SC

Overall, Fortress Tax relief is a reputable and reliable tax relief company that truly helps you pay as little money as possible to the government. Fortress Tax has maintained a great reputation for protection (against things like back levies and enforced collections), affordable plans to pay back debt, and even for their free consultation! They do exactly what a tax relief company should do, and that is to help you navigate through the murky waters of financial tax debt and they do so personally - your case will be handled by a proficient tax attorney. All in all, satisfied with Fortress and my only conceivable drawback is that you have to be over 15000$ in debt in order to use their services.

1 year ago

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Reply from Fortress Tax Relief

Thank you so much for sharing about your positive experience working with our staff. We actually will consider accepting cases with liabilities of less than $15,000 on a case-by-case basis. Often, our fee on a case below $15,000 would be better spent by paying down the liability, and we do not accept fees for cases where we don't think our services are worth our fee. We did accept a case a while back where the liability was only $8,000. However, without our work, that client would have lost his business.

May. 23rd, 2022

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Dennis Chavours Chicago, IL

I’ve tried another tax relief agency before coming to fortress and Joan quick has been by far a better helper and more knowledgeable than any of the people I have come across in this process. I would have no problem in recommending her and fortress to anyone and please feel free to have anyone call me regarding their services. Dennis Chavours

1 year ago

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Dee C New York, NY

Fortress Financial was super helpful in dealing with my tax issue. They are fairly easy to communicate with, and are adept at keeping the consumer calm.

4 years ago

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Reply from Fortress Tax Relief

Thank you for your feedback, Dee. We're so glad we were able to help!

Nov. 19th, 2019

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Kim Gorski Houston, TX

They really explore your options and the staff is very professional

2 years ago

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Reply from Fortress Tax Relief

We're glad to hear you were pleased with our staff!

Oct. 28th, 2021

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Deb Harris Wilson, NC

It was an easy experience because of their expertise .

4 years ago

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Reply from Fortress Tax Relief

Thank you Deb, it was a pleasure to be of service to you.

Dec. 4th, 2019