Recognizing When You Should Retain a Tax Professional to Represent You in an IRS Investigation

Last updated 10 months ago

According to the IRS Declaration of Taxpayer Rights, taxpayers may hire income tax professionals who are registered and enrolled with the IRS to represent them in matters such as audits or investigations. An experienced enrolled agent can explain how a return was prepared, how income was determined, and how tax was calculated using available deductions and credits. The following factors should be considered in deciding when to hire a federally authorized tax professional to represent you in an IRS investigation:

You have complicated tax issues:

The more complicated your tax issues, the more difficult they will be to explain in an audit or other investigation. This is particularly true if you are not knowledgeable in tax matters and used a tax preparer instead of preparing your own return. In such cases, an authorized tax professional who understands complex tax matters can usually do a better job of representing you in an IRS civil investigation or audit.

You aren’t ready for your audit:

In the event of an audit, you will have just 30 days to collect all of your documentation and present your case. If you can’t get ready by then and it appears that work or other commitments may prevent you from concentrating on your tax issues, you may wish to file for a postponement in order to look for an authorized tax professional to represent you. Typically, the IRS allows as many as two 30-day postponements.

You owe less than $10,000 in back taxes:

Unless you owe $10,000 in back taxes or more, hiring a tax attorney or Certified Public Accountant may be unnecessary. An experienced tax planner and Enrolled Agent who is familiar with your tax history and returns may be able to produce an acceptable resolution of your tax issues with the IRS at a lower cost.

If you’ve received a notice of audit or tax delinquency notice from the IRS and live in the San Diego area, hire an experienced tax professional to represent your interests. Contact The San Diego Tax Pro at (888) 690-9245 for a consultation.

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(1) nothing contained in this website was intended or written to be used, can be used by any taxpayer, or may be relied upon or used by any taxpayer for the purposes of avoiding penalties that may be imposed on the taxpayer under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended; (2) any written statement contained on this website related to any federal tax transaction or matter may not be used by any person to support the promotion or marketing or to recommend any federal tax transaction or matter; and (3) any taxpayer should seek advice based on the taxpayer's particular circumstances from an independent tax advisor with respect to any federal tax transaction or matter contained in this website. No one, without our express written permission, may use any part of this website in promoting, marketing or recommending an arrangement relating to any federal tax matter to one or more taxpayers.