Face-to-Face Meetings with Noncompliant Taxpayers
Published on by Andy Bertke, Faith Gerhardstein, in Tax Services
Many people receive IRS notices in the mail, which can be frustrating when trying to resolve the issue since “snail mail” takes forever. Also, let’s not mention the hours spent on hold when trying to discuss the matter with an agent over the phone. Trying to resolve the tax issue can take months or even years in some cases, which sometimes leads to the taxpayer getting “tax notice resolution fatigue.” Over time, the process is just too irritating, and the last known notice you received is filed in some corner of the home or office.
If you are in this situation and have an outstanding IRS notice that has been dragging on and on, don’t be surprised if an IRS agent shows up at your door. The IRS has recently announced that if you are in this situation, you may receive a face-to-face meeting with an IRS agent.
The IRS meetings can be routinely conducted and can be unannounced, leaving it to seem skeptical to taxpayers. In order to provide protection against fraud, the IRS is trying to make people aware of what to expect when they have an interaction with an agent. A visit will occur after multiple contacts have been made, therefore the taxpayer should be aware of the tax issue at hand.
When an IRS agent shows up for a meeting, they will always provide two forms of identification, which the taxpayer will have the right to view both credentials. The second item to note is that an agent is not there to demand payment, they are simply there to inform you about tax notices. Now if the agent does ask for payment depending on the how severe the situation is, they will provide multiple payment options for your convenience to resolve the issue.
As tax practitioners, we have priority access to IRS agents which allows us to resolve the tax matter more efficiently and with a clear understanding of the situation at hand. In any case, it is important to accurately and quickly address notices from the IRS. If there is an amount due, interest and penalties will accrue over time.
Contact Us
If you have any questions regarding this announcement, or would like to see if we can help with a tax matter, contact us here and the Barnes Dennig tax team will be ready to assist you and review your situation. A member of our tax team can be reached via phone at (513) 241-8313.
