Legal Question in Tax Law in Maryland

Re: tax lien

The answer is: It depends. (Don't you just love lawyers?!)

There are really two related questions here: (1) the shelf life of a lien, and (2) the statute of limitations on collection.

For state taxes, the answer depends on the state. You are writing from Maryland, where there is no statute of limitations on the collection of state taxes, and the lien lasts forever.

For most federal taxes, a lien self-releases if not "refiled" by the statutory refiling date, generally ten years from the date of assessment. Similarly, the statute of limitations on collection is ten years from the date of assessment, but this period can be extended in many ways. See the articles on this subject in the articles section of my website at www.bjhaynes.com.