What You Need to Know About COVID-19 Changes at the IRS

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In the midst of theCOVID-19 crisis, the IRS announced that it will pare back operations to focus on “mission-critical” functions. In a notice updated on April 1, 2020. “As a federal agency vital to the overall operations of our country, we ask for your personal support, your understanding – and your patience,” said IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig. Here are some major changes to be aware of:

• TheIRS has temporarily suspended almost all face-to-face contact with taxpayers. All Taxpayer Assistance Centers (TACs) are closed and face-to-face service discontinued throughout the country until further notice. For taxpayers with TACappointments, the IRS will attempt to resolve these by phone.
• Automated applications. IRS.gov and many automated applications remain available, including such things as Where’s My Refund, the IRS2Go phone app and online payments and online payment agreements.
• The IRS has temporarily reduced live telephonic assistance. IRS automated phone lines, which handle the majority of taxpayer calls, remain fully operational during this period. Some compliance lines also remain available. IRS.gov is fully operational for taxpayers, and it remains the best source of information.
• Practitioner Priority Service (PPS) – Due to staff limitations the Practitioner Priority Service line is closed until further notice.
• Taxpayer correspondence. While able to receive mail, the IRS will be responding to paper correspondence only to a very limited degree during this period. Taxpayers who mail correspondence to the IRS during this period should expect to wait longer than usual for a response.

The IRS has also outlined changes to additional functions as follows:

• Compliance activity. The IRS is continuing to assess the impact of COVID-19 on a range of compliance activities across the agency.
• Statute of limitations issues. The IRS will continue working cases where a statute of limitation is pending. In some of these situations, the IRS will work with the taxpayer or their representative to obtain an extension of the statute.
• Office of Chief Counsel. The Office of Chief Counsel continues to work to resolve cases in litigation, including those on calendars in various cities through July 3, 2020, that were recently canceled by the U.S. Tax Court. Counsel continues to work on cases in litigation generally and to support and advise the IRS operating divisions on their enforcement and examination activities.
• Independent Office of Appeals. At this time, Appeals employees will continue to work their cases. Although Appeals is not currently holding in-person conferences with taxpayers, conferences may be held over the telephone or by videoconference. To the extent they can, taxpayers are encouraged to promptly respond to any outstanding requests for information for all cases in the Independent Office of Appeals.
• Taxpayer Advocate Service. Currently, TAS remains open to receive phone calls at the local phone numbers but has suspended walk-in services in their offices and their toll-free centralized number is unavailable until further notice. Please visit taxpayeradvocate.irs.gov to locate your local office phone number.
• Tax-exempt Sector Determinations, Rulings and Closing Agreements. The IRS continues to process applications for recognition of tax exemption for exempt organizations, rulings and determinations for employees plans and closing agreements for municipal issuers.

As taxpayers adjust to the economic realities of COVID-19, they should continue to monitor IRS.gov for updates to IRS activities.

Summary

Article Name

What You Need to Know About COVID-19 Changes at the IRS

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The IRS has reduced operations to address mission-critical functions.

Author

Robert Sheen

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The ACA Times

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