Hope for the best and expect the worst.  You don't know yet, she may be eligible for EIC that would generate refunds for the last three years.  She probably thinks she is the only person in the world with this situation, while we know that there are hundreds of thousands of them.  How to proceed depends on the facts and circumstances of each case, but the common goal of IRS and the tax professional is to get her back into compliance.  Often that means filing the last three years.  Sometimes, only the last year.  Rarely, the last seven years.