Treasury Regulation section 301.6502-1 provides regulatory detail for collection after assessment. It should be read with the statute and the separate Code provisions that suspend the collection period during identified proceedings.
What the authority does
The regulation addresses collection by levy or proceeding in court within the statutory period, collection after commencement of a timely proceeding, and rules related to installment agreements and expiration of the collection period.
Why it matters in a tax controversy
The account should be converted into a timeline rather than reduced to a single transcript date. Each assessment, pending offer, bankruptcy, CDP case, installment-agreement event, court action, and other potential suspension must be dated and legally classified.
What it does not answer by itself
The regulation is not a substitute for the statutes that create each suspension and does not make every account-code date accurate. Source documents and the legal effect of events must be verified.
Research and case checkpoints
- Calculate each assessment's ordinary expiration date separately.
- Identify and source every added day rather than accepting an unexplained extension.
- Review any judgment, suit, waiver, or agreement affecting collection.
- Use the verified time remaining when comparing collection alternatives.
Primary and official sources
Currency note: Check the current text, amendment history, effective date, and the version governing the tax period or agency action before relying on this summary.