During an audit, if the IRS finds no reasonable indication that you have unreported income, it won’t seek intrusive and extraneous information about your lifestyle. That may not make you less nervous about being audited, but it should reassure you that you have a right to privacy that the IRS is legally bound to respect.
In 1988, Congress passed the Taxpayer Bill of Rights, a law that was expanded in 1996. The legislation is aimed at providing protections to taxpayers during IRS audits, collections, appeals and complaints. Additionally, the legislation specifies how the IRS must handle appeals and liens that result from challenges initiated by taxpayers.
As a taxpayer, you have the right to expect that:
- Any IRS inquiry, examination or enforcement action will comply with the law and be no more intrusive than necessary.
- The IRS will respect all due process rights, including search and seizure protections, and will provide, where applicable, a due process collection hearing.
- If you agree to settle exactly what you owe in tax debt, you will not need to submit further financial documentation.
- The IRS will not seize such personal items as schoolbooks, clothing or undelivered mail.
- The IRS also will not seize your personal residence without first getting court approval. The agency must show that there is no reasonable alternative for collecting the tax debt.
In 2015, the IRS adopted a more formal TBOR, which summarizes taxpayers’ rights in 10 categories. Under this legislation, you have the right to:
- Be informed
- Receive quality service
- Pay no more than the correct amount of tax
- Challenge the IRS’s position and be heard
- Appeal an IRS decision in an independent forum
- Have finality
- Be treated with confidentiality
- Retain representation
- Have a fair and just tax system
The TBOR gathers various rights already in the U.S. tax code and presents them in one accessible document that encompasses many concepts. The initiative came from the agency’s independent national taxpayer advocate, Nina Olson, who believed that the IRS needed to make taxpayer rights clearer. The TBOR is a reaffirmation that you, a taxpayer, have rights during any interaction with the IRS.
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