Update on my review Optima Tax Relief they did get back to me we're going to try work things out with Optima Tax Relief. I appreciate them getting in touch with me with this matter. Thank you Jessica Jacksons for handle my concerns. I am posting 3 star to see if things work out with them. read more

Optima tax relief is a fraud!!! My wife and I were in need of help concerning our taxes due to our accumulated tax debt so we contacted Optima. We paid them 700 a month for 10 months ($7000). We started this process in 2023 it is now 2026. We now owe the IRS over $100,000 because they did absolutely nothing but mislead us. After receiving letters in reference to Levies against our wages and a lien on our house my wife contacted the IRS just to find out that they saw absolutely nothing from Optima on our behalf which made it look as though we were negligent on our behalf and just didn't pay our taxes when Optima Tax Relief neglected and fraudulently took our money and did nothing with the information that my wife supplied them with!!! We asked for our $7000 to be refunded back to us.. they offered 2,000 back while we are yet still facing Liens and levies in the very near future. The reps there are now giving us the run around promising us phone meetings to negotiate a refund such as today 6/29/26 at 2pm to no avail. My wife sent an email to confirm the meeting after there was no call from Optima. We are now being ignored by this fraudulent company. My wife notified BBB and we are now moving to litigation in the very near future as well as alerting the media to inform them and others of their predatory practices. DO NOT USE THIS COMPANY!!! CUSTOMER SERVICE IS VERY DISRESPECTFUL, INCONSISTENT, DECEPTIVE and NON SYMPATHETIC WITH THEIR CLIENTS!!! The radio advertisements are leading and FALSE!!! read more

Again... I didn't look on Yelp before hiring this company and now we're paying the price. They'll take $500 to get started. What that means is, they will get power of attorney and then contact the IRS to find out how much you owe. Something anyone can do. The next step is they will call you after several weeks- giving you the feeling that they really did do an investigation when they didn't. Fear tactics plain and simple. The next phase is giving you a line of BS about how your account is in collections and you have 3 days to act. Then they will charge you $4,400.00 to set up a payment plan with the IRS. If you don't act, they cut off all communication with you and drop you like a hot potato and won't even return phone calls. I contacted a well-known tax preparer with the initials H and R and they did everything Optima Tax Relief did, plus a lot more- even negotiated a settlement with the IRS in under 2 hours for $179. Looking at the other 1-star reviews, I think I'll file a complaint with the BBB as well. read more

On May 17, 2023, I paid Optima Tax Relief an $8,290 retainer to resolve a tax matter. Per our Client Services Agreement, they were contractually obligated to file a Power of Attorney (Form 2848) and negotiate directly with the IRS. To date, the IRS has absolutely zero record of Optima ever filing a POA or performing any external work on my behalf. When I confronted them about taking thousands of dollars for internal paperwork that yielded zero real-world tax resolution, their Executive Review Board Specialist, Alejandro Casasola, admitted the lack of performance by offering a partial "courtesy" refund. They are currently retaining my unearned funds in a blatant breach of contract. Since uncovering their non-performance, I have filed formal complaints with the California Attorney General and the IRS Office of Professional Responsibility (Form 14157), and I am currently executing binding arbitration against them. Do not trust this company with your money. read more

After my very negative posting on yelp on June 30, I received on July 2, an email from Tom S at optima advising to call the phone number he provided to obtain a person to work with me to resolve my issues. I did call the number, spoke with a lady who advised I would be contacted by a case manager to resolve my issues. She took my number and email and told me I would be contacted shortley. That was on July 2. Today is July 14, 12 days and still no call from Optima case manager. Another example of the horrible trestment a client receives after they get your money read more

I paid $3,000 and didn't get what I was told at the beginning of the process. They took my money and set me up on a payment plan with the IRS for the full amount plus interest. The IRS told me after the fact that I could have done the same thing for free read more

SCAMMERS! DO NOT LET THEM B.S. you that they will reduce anything. THEY ARE JUST GETTING YOU TO PAY FOR ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!!!!!! CALL THE IRS directly! $495 to investigate is robbery. When you can get it free!!!!! Once they get your $, they will not communicate, call you back or tell you what you paid for!!!!! I would give them a zero Read my BBB complaint. read more

Canned boiler room sales pitch. Hard press to get upfront ridiculous fees. The reviews here and stories on Reddit stopped me from my suspected results. Friendly though. read more

Beware of automated billing traps. I signed up and cancelled my services on the exact same day (June 29). Despite my immediate cancellation, they processed an unauthorized $495 charge on my card anyway. I had to file a formal dispute with Capital One to get my money back. Even worse, their systems completely ignored my cancellation--they are still sending me automated alerts claiming they are "working my case" and offering a resolution for a contract I terminated on day one. Utterly dishonest business practices. read more

This company is HORRIBLE.. Please don't waste your money..I am a current client..It has been 5 years and nothing has been done except, asking for more paperwork and more paperwork. They waste so much time that they need update paperwork.. They keep calling you with their dumb automated systems and text you, over and over again.. So annoying!!! I signed up with another company and in less than 2 months. I have already sent in my OIC in and now I am just waiting for the settlement from the IRS. All they do is waste your time and your stress level raises. They tell you, "they are working on it and will call you back", but nothing happens. They make the situation with the IRS worse not better.. read more

I had a great experience with Optima Tax Relief. Everyone is different and usually your experience is a reflection of your situation. Mine wasn't perfect but also not a tangled knot. I was lucky enough to work with a guy named Pedro Cornejo. He was cool. He was easy to work with and explains things in a simple format. I don't deal with taxes and their lingo, so this wasn't my best forte, but he was able to navigate me thru the process. It was fun and really simple. I appreciate his work a lot. Hopefully they get to see when customers write these. I referred a few guys from my sales team to use him as well. They have harder situations but i have a feeling it will be smooth sailing. Thank you Optima! And most importantly thank you Pedro and go Doyers! Hopefully i didn't ask too many questions along the way. read more

I called Optima in Jan 2023 and paid $90 for an "evaluation" to be completed by Optima tax experts. Based on that evaluation, Optima informed me that I should qualify for relief from the IRS. I signed an agreement with Optima to pay them $6K, with the understanding that #1. Optima would complete my 2022 Income Tax Return, and #2. Optima (according to their initial $90 evaluation) would be able to obtain tax relief based on my data and the amount owed. I called time & time again-waiting for 24 to 48 hours for someone to call me back - checking when my tax return would be done. Despite having all requested tax documentation, they filed an extension and didn't complete my 2022 Return until Oct 2023. Of course, they had the $6K by that time. My 2022 Return done by the Optima "tax experts" stated that I owed $38K. By the time I was able to pay that amount, it had increased to $41K with penalties and interest. I was afraid and sold my Bitcoin for $50K to pay the IRS. In 2024 I met a tax professional who was suspicious of Optima based on the experiences of other clients. This tax professional filed an amended return which showed that I had paid $16K MORE than what was owed for my 2022 return. She filed that amended return and I received $19K back from the IRS. Optima has refused to even respond to my requests for reimbursement other than to offer me $899.95 (how cheap!). Optima is a complete scam! They do not have "tax experts," they employ "scam experts" that file erroneous income tax returns! Buyer.. BEWARE!! I have called Optima repeatedly. They say 'the board' will only allow a refund of $1500, when they have cost me tens of thousands!! Also, they have tried to tell the BBB that the complaint is resolved.. when it certainly is not. DO NOT use Optima! read more

I'm so embarrassed to admit I got scammed by this company. As many others, I owe a large amount in back taxes and was made many promises upon calling them. I have unresolved debt from 2017 that honestly I believe could be incorrect. I made so little money that year and the IRS says I owe $10K+. I asked my H&R Block professional in 2024 who could help me understand and resolve this large tax bill and he recommended Optima. Fast forward a year, I have paid Optima over $5,000 and we are supposedly in the "resolution phase." Getting hold of the Optima is harder than getting hold of the IRS themselves. If you finally get through to a person they'll give you one story, but then if you get a follow up email (and that's a BIG if) the next steps or numbers will have nothing to do with what you've talked about on the phone. My favorite is when they call you, you answer and they ask, "how can we help you today?" Um I don't know yet, you called me? Honestly, we should have a support group for everyone who has been scammed by them just to swap horror stories. I guess that's what the class action lawsuit is for. Attached are two emails 2 weeks apart (one year into my case). The first email is asking me to chose a payment plan. I replied with my choice and never heard back. I called two weeks later and someone told me, "Ah yes your payment plan, I'll send you an email summarizing next steps." The second email has a whole new payment plan that we never discussed. My favorite part of that second email is that the instructions for the next steps is to go to IRS.gov and follow the free and simple steps to set up a payment plan (which by the way, are always an option). If I call they claim they have done various things for me but if I log onto IRS.gov I'm still in jeopardy of lien and the amounts I owe have only gone up. It's really a shame this company is allowed to exist. Despite being a hard working college educated mom, I was desperate and they preyed upon my fear and scammed me. If only I had just given the IRS the money I would be closer to having this nightmare be over. When will this joke of a company be taken down? read more

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I hired Optima Tax Relief in January of 2026. I submitted each article of information through the customer portal every single time I had a new piece of information including my tax returns and each and every IRS communication. I never spoke to the same agent or even case manager from one phone call to the next, there never seemed to be total information sharing through the network which took any confidence I had away in a matter of a few months. On June 2, 2026, I was notified that the IRS placed a levy on my bank account and I sent the letter through the client portal as I always had, during the next 21 days as outlined in the letter, after 21 days the IRS would execute the Levy. I communicated at least every other day during that period, in which I spoke to a different "agent" each time. I was told we are waiting for a settlement approval, waiting for a settlement proposal, and in one Friday afternoon I was told that a settlement was pending as well as a settlement was rejected. On June 23, 2026, the IRS executed the levy and emptied $35,000 dollars from my personal bank accounts. For the next 2 weeks I was told that I would get that money back. On July 8 this year I cancelled my contract with Optima, and through a phone call to the IRS learned an agent at Optima told the IRS I chose not to reverse the levy and use those monies to lower my tax debt, which is absolutely against my stated wishes for the prior three weeks of communication with Optima. OPTIMA IS A TOTAL AND UTTER FAILURE AND SCAM, THEY MADE MY WORST NIGHTMARE BECOME REALITY!!!!!!!!!! On July 8, after one phone call from myself, I reached a settlement with the IRS. RUN AS FAR AS POSSIBLE AWAY FROM OPTIMA TAX RELIEF, DO NOT BELIEVE THE GOOD REVIEWS, THE MORE I INVESTIGATE, THE MORE I FIND OUT WHAT A FAILURE AND TOTAL SCAM THEY ARE. read more

Never for any reasons use this company for anything. They are 100% a fraudulent company claiming to reduce your tax debts. You will end up owing more to the IRS, as well as having a few thousand dollars removed from your wallet for this California based scam center to "help". Things that you can trust more than optima tax relief's team of scam artists. Somali daycare centers, a fart after consuming an entire bottle of magnesium citrate, an email from an African prince that needs a check cashed... a stripper that says she loves you, o Rolex purchase on the streets of china, fiat's reliability, a politicians word...so that said, if you choose to roll the dice on this scam it's your money and you've been warned/informed on who you're about to get "help" from with your taxes. read more

My experience has been so bad I at one point thought it was a scam. Never have been able to reach the original person we spoke to to start the service and never would return my call. The service itself is extremely long and communication is poor. The number when they do call you comes back as spam so my phone does not ring. My taxes are still not completed and they say they have filed an extension but no copy of said extension has been shown, so who really knows. I am so frustrated of this whole process. read more

Please do yourself a favor and hire a tax attorney.This company has done nothing for my tax situation after 3 years. They dont have a relationship or fast track to IRS, they continually delay tax preparation year after year ultimately delaying any resolution. The IRS is now sending levy and lien letters. I CANNOT GET IN CONTACT WITH ANYONE TO DISCUSS A REFUND ... A FULL ONE which is fair at this point because i am doing my own work on the phone waiting on hold for hours trying to get a hold of a human at the IRS. OPTIMA is a scam that preys on the poor and uniformed. We struggled to give them $7000 to help our tax situation and they have been non responsive with a resolution. There needs to be a class action lawsuit against this company. soon i will have to go to the media regarding optima's practices because this is absolutely insane. My and my family's stability and well being are on the line and they couldn't care less. AVOID THEM AT ALL COST! read more

I had made a review couldn't edit it but I'm satisfied with optima tax relief we came to a settlement.

Paid 4k to get them to take my case & setup something with the IRS, they dropped my case after several months & did nothing, not one thing, never got in touch with me or anything & stole my money. These people should be in jail. read more

I was told the $495 was for an "inspection" and that they would come up with a resolution plan based on the findings. This "inspection" was simply reading the forms I uploaded. The "resolution plan" was the same bullet points of the same generic "plan" that they laid out before I paid them, not an actual plan. They wait to schedule the follow-up consultation until after the "15-day money back policy" expires, then give you no new information until you pay them more. They would not actually proceed with any real resolution until I paid them thousands of dollars despite telling me otherwise. The cost to move forward was more expensive than the tax debt payments themselves. Theft and deception seem to be part of the business model. Do not waste your time or money! read more

Absolutely terrible company!! We paid over 11k of 16k over a 1 year ago just to find out we incurred additional penalties and interest and no action from them to negotiate a payment plan. We called and talk to them and asked them what is happening, they said they are working with IRS. We called the IRS and no one has talked to IRS from optima at all!!!My wife and I then called iRS and negotiated ourselves, 10 minutes call. Done. We want a full refund... I'd give them minus stars if I could.... read more

The legal team did reach out to resolve the issue by issuing me a refund. They also were able to close the account out.

BEWARE OF THIS COMPANY! I owed about 9K in back taxes I wanted to get resolved quickly. The person I spoke to when signing up said they'd put me to the front of the line. After getting the process started, I was notified it could take up to eight months. Very disappointing. From the get-go, I let Optima know numerous times my uncle would let me borrow the money to pay my taxes, but they said don't worry about it, we're working on a settlement for you. So I continued the process thinking they were working on my behalf. From time to time I would get a phone call or notification to contact their office. I would call in and no one would be available on team 225. It was very frustrating to not hear back from them for days sometimes. So I resorted to contact only by email. After about six months into the process, they said they had a payment plan available for me. I asked about the settlement and they said this is the way it works. We set you up on payments, then will negotiate a settlement after a few payments are made. In that same conversation I asked if I could file my taxes. Would they be protected or should I wait? They said to go ahead and file my taxes now that I'm on a payment plan and my tax return would be protected. I get a notice from the IRS saying they have deducted the amount of my tax return out of my back taxes owed. Optima was completely wrong to tell me this information. Today I called because they asked me to contact them. They said they weren't able to reach a settlement and my payment plan is all they could do. I paid $2841.00 Optima to put me on a payment plan when I could've paid the entire $9000 off. With the taxes owed I am now almost $12,000 in debt. NO SETTLEMENT, only $190 a month payment plan. Now I'm more in debt because of Optima. I will not use a service again and I will be their worst advertisement. I had two friends I was going to recommend that owe back taxes but not anymore. read more

Scam. My shady accountant recommended them. Boy am I sorry. Contacted a tax attorney I will be working with now. Don't waste your time and money with these crooks. Promised to get my taxes "reduced or even forgiven". They did nothing, I now owe more than before. Most dishonest business I've ever dealt with. I never understand why these places aren't investigated. read more

Optima Tax Relief talks a good talk to get their $600 retainer. After telling us that it would be somewhere in the range of $3-6,000 to settle our case, they came back with a cost of more than $11,000. We said, "No thanks" and did not move forward with their services. After reading these other reviews, I think we made the right decision. This company is a SCAM!! read more

Title: A Costly Mistake - Poor Communication, No Results I regret ever contacting Optima Tax Relief. Lured in by their polished radio ads, I signed up in March 2024 to resolve a significant tax issue. Due to the complexity of my case, they quoted over $15,000, which I agreed to pay via a monthly plan of $1,200. From there, it was a frustrating and disappointing experience. While Optima had no problem collecting my payments--over $14,000 to date--they failed to provide any meaningful updates on my case. I was never assigned a dedicated case manager, and despite a few occasional document requests (which gave the illusion that progress was being made), I received no real communication or status updates. Fast forward to today: I still have no idea what's been done on my case, if anything. Out of frustration and concern, I finally canceled my last payment. Only then did Optima respond--by placing my case on hold. When I tried calling, I was routed to what appears to be an offshore call center, where no one could assist me because of a so-called "payment issue." Let me be clear: I acknowledge my original mistake with the IRS, but my bigger mistake was trusting Optima. Their lack of transparency, accountability, and basic communication is shocking--especially given the amount of money I paid. Do not make the same mistake I did. Avoid this company at all costs. I'm now left with a lighter bank account, no clear resolution, and more stress than when I started. read more

This place is horrible. I keep getting no response or all I keep getting is we lost your fax you sent in. I keep getting different associates calling me to ask for documents that have been handled moons ago. They are not doing $8000.00 worth of work, I am actually doing the running around, faxing, the faxes they keep saying isn't there etc. Now I am working on my own payment arrangement because they have done nothing. Optima Tax Relief should be ashamed of themselves, they are running a scam here with people already financially in trouble. I will be pursuing this matter further as I see there are class action lawsuits coming against them and I will be front and center. I don't think I should get a complete refund but anything that has to do with the state side, I want my money back as they have not done what was told would be done. I keep being told my "case manager" is unavailable or not in, etc. meanwhile interest is stacking up on top of what I owe. What will happen though is the "call center employee" will run down everything by talking over me and with a disrespectful tone but when it comes to addressing my issues, all of a sudden, no one is available to talk to. Interesting indeed. I have also found out that I was lied to by a gentleman named Ryan, when I first went with them, he is not anymore than customer service, I know this because that is what I do. Ryan was supposed to be in charge of my account, now I haven't heard from him since the first week of service. I also found out no tax attorneys or tax specialists are with the company. This is not the company I was told about or signed on for to help me out of this bind my idiot ex husband put me in. These people are evil, please just send your money to the tax debt and work with them yourselves. It will save time, money and much heartache. read more

I think I actually owe more now than when I started working with them. If you owe a lot in taxes , probably better off on your own. They can prolong the misery until you're to old to pay the IRS back .. read more

Optima Tax ripped us off. They make it sound like they'll save you from the IRS, but all they really do is overcharge for something you could do yourself--or with a local tax person. They charged us $7,232. Said they'd help with both federal and state. Lie. After they got our money: "We only deal with federal." Then they passed us around from one rep to another, taking 72+ hours to even return a call. Their final "help"? They said the IRS would settle for $800/month. So we called the IRS ourselves--and got a plan for $600/month. $232/month less. On our own. Even the IRS agent said people constantly complain about Optima. Don't be fooled by their ads. Total scam. read more

Anybody that charges money upfront is a scam Optimal tax relief took $3200 and wrote me a letter back that they could not help I demanded my money back then they asked for another $600 that they will try something different. This took up to five years ???? interest and a penalty accrued. They made my situation worse. Run away from this company You guys can actually go on the IRS website there is a free company that will help you tax advocates They will negotiate with the IRS for you read more

Optima dragged the process on for two years. In the end they contracted me and advised the had reached a settlement. The original amount owed for inpaid taxes was $150,000. The settlement amount was $300,000. I found out I had been incurring intrest the whole two years. I actually had to ask the Optima representative if she worked for the IRS. They did nothing for me I couldn't have done myself. Scam! read more

Want to charge over $9,000 to help me come up with a payment plan. Hahaha crazy. No wonder they keep pushing for good reviews when you first reach out... because they know they will not get the good review later. They kept asking for a good review from me and I told them they haven't done anything for me yet, so I am not leaving a review. now I see why they wanted a review, to counter the bad one's they get later when you realize they are only taking advantage of you. Ill pass. Thank God I read the reviews when things did not sound right. read more

They never stop calling. Not when you ask them to stop. Not ever. They keep switching their phone numbers and they spam with text messages as well. STOP read more

They did issue a small refund and closed my case. If they had issued a much larger refund, I would change the rating read more

They asked me for 7000.00 the first time around, I fell ill and I couldn't continue for a while, now they want another 4000.00. I shouldn't have gotten involved with them. It's sort of like stopping school and paying student loans with no degree. Really dissatisfied, broke and dissapionted. read more

They did nothing for me but cash the check of 5k that was requested up front to start the process. SCAM

BIG SCAMMERS , BE AWARE IT ALL START WITH NICE PEOPLE SCARING FROM IRS , once you sign in AND PAY ( YOU ARE IN their TRAP ) I will come back later and explain in details ) Just lost 14 k on top what I owe to IRS I GOT FOOLED WITH nice Customer service in the beginning , they make me call every day and all I get is crab and will call you back SAVE YOUR MONEY , work with IRS TO RESOLVE YOUR TAX , reach out for me to help you with my experience to save time and money and frustration read more

Horrible communication and never got to talk to the same person twice even after they told me that it was there direct line. The guy I signed up with was very convincing and i signed up and paid them there down payment fee. When I had a question a couple of days later I called his direct line and it rang for over two hours. I just kept my phone in my top pocket and was forced to listen to the horrible music while i waited. to no avail he never picked up. We finally got a scheduled pay back amount and dollar amount to pay back each month. I was paying back more when i could each month to put this behind me. When i had my taxes done for 2025 I was expecting a cerin amount due back. When the refund was deposited into my account what I owed was taken to satisfy my IRS debt and in addition the IRS cashed my check for my March payment. I called Optima again 9th or 10th different person and had to explain AGAIN what the situation was. They told me that they can't help me and to call the IRS read more

(WARNING STAY AWAY) (SCAM WARNING) Wish I would have looked at the reviews before handing over my money. STAY AWAY FROM THIS COMPANY THEY WILL ROB YOU BLIND. I signed up 20 days ago and they said that they have a 15 day return policy (LOL) that is why they wait 20 days to call. So when you are unhappy with their performance you cant get your money back. All they do for the $495 is pull your transcripts and call the collections dept for the IRS....... thats it! You can actually go to the IRS website and pull the transcripts yourself for FREE. This is a trick then they lock you in BC you can't get your money back at day 20(Bait and Switch) then the real bills starts climbing up from there (BEWARE). I am grateful that I canceled early enough but feel bad for others. This company is ripping off and take complete advantage of the American people one American at a time. I am sad to say this company is why we are suffering as a nation PLEASE STAY AWAY (WARNING) I filed a BBB report and I suggest everyone do so if you have not submitted one yet. This kind of trickery craft needs to be stopped. (WARNING STAY AWAY) (SCAM WARNING) read more

RUN! PLEASE DON'T GET SCAMMED LIKE I DID! I owed $10K+ to the IRS and heard commercials saying Optima Tax Relief could help. They charged me $2,700 and said they'd begin their "investigation". The reality is they could see VERY early on exactly what I owed to the IRS, how much I earned, and my other financial obligations. Instead of being open and honest and simply saying "We can't help you," they gladly took my $2,700, conducted a 7+-month "investigation", and went many months at a time with no updates. After a seemingly endless "investigation," they began the "resolution" phase, which lasted many more months. Mind you, I was already on an installment plan with the IRS that I'd negotiated myself. OTR contacted me last week nearly a full year after I retained them to advise: 1) they were unable to save me even $1. There would be ZERO savings; and 2) the best installment agreement they could secure is the one I already negotiated myself. In summary: Optima Tax Relief took my money, conducted a lengthy "investigation" with little to no communication, failed to save me ANY money on my tax liability, and then said the installment agreement I previously negotiated is better than anything they could offer me. How, in good conscience, these people take hard-earned money from individuals they CANNOT HELP is beyond me. DON'T ASSUME YOUR EXPERIENCE WILL BE DIFFERENT THAN THE HUNDREDS OF ONE-STAR REVIEWS ONLINE! read more