IRS Reverses Court On Unannounced Visits
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced Monday that it will "end most" unannounced visits by agency revenue officers to taxpayers' homes -- a move to address public confusion and enhance safety.
The decision to halt the practice reverses a decades-long policy by the IRS and could have an effect on how the agency carries out its collection of unpaid taxes and unfiled returns.
The change comes "as a common-sense step" according to IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel, who said that the unannounced visits have increased security concerns in recent years with respect to scammers posing as IRS agents.
"We have the tools we need to successfully collect revenue without adding stress with unannounced visits," Werfel said in a statement. "The only losers with this change in policy are scammers posing as the IRS."
The IRS said that instead of unannounced visits, taxpayers will now receive appointment letters from the agency so they can schedule face-to-face meetings at later dates. Unannounced visits will, however, still take place in "rare instances" such as when summoning witnesses, or when seizing assets in danger of being placed beyond the reach of the government.
The National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) has welcomed the change, with its President Tony Reardon saying that the decision "will help protect" IRS workers "whose jobs have only grown more dangerous in recent years because of false, inflammatory rhetoric about the agency and its workforce."
The IRS move has been praised by both the public and watchdog groups, who have long pushed for more transparency from the government agency.
“This move is a necessary step to ensure taxpayers can trust the IRS,” said Taxpayers for Common Sense President Ryan Alexander. “The agency needs to demonstrate its commitment to fairness, while still ensuring that taxpayers pay their taxes.”
Alexander added that such a shift will also help alleviate the fear that some taxpayers may have when faced with an unannounced visit from an IRS revenue officer.
“It’s a good day for taxpayers when the country’s largest agency reverses old practices and moves toward greater transparency and fairness,” he said.