Taxes that normally may be discharged must usually be paid as a secured debt to the extent that they are secured by a validly perfected IRS lien, regardless of whether the property is exempt from bankruptcy. This means that once the automatic stay protection of the Bankruptcy Court ends, the IRS can still collect taxes secured by a properly filed tax lien through the bankruptcy.

If the IRS has a valid tax lien, the debtor is usually required to pay the amount of equity in the secured property through a Chapter 13 bankruptcy. In Chapter 7 bankruptcy, the debtor usually will have to pay the secured taxes even after the bankruptcy closes because the secured portion of the taxes is not discharged. Taxes in bankruptcy are a complicated area. Consult a knowledgeable bankruptcy attorney for help in determining the impact of an IRS lien on you.