In a recent announcement, the IRS stated that its agents would cease unannounced visits to taxpayers’ residences, barring a few specific situations. This marks an immediate policy adjustment to safeguard IRS employees, who have expressed safety concerns due to potential confrontations with upset taxpayers.
“Reevaluating and modernizing how the IRS operates to better cater to taxpayers and the country is one of our priorities, and implementing this change is a logical move,” said IRS Commissioner Danny Werfel, announcing the modification.
“Altering this age-old practice will bolster faith in our tax administration tasks and enhance overall safety for taxpayers and IRS personnel.”
IRS revenue officers have been making home and business visits for years to recover unpaid taxes and outstanding tax returns.
The IRS declared that these surprise visits would be discontinued and would be replaced with letters sent by mail to arrange meetings.
As reported by The Washington Post, the policy shift will see visitations decline from tens of thousands to merely a few hundred each year.
The National Treasury Employees Union backs this policy change by the IRS.
“NTEU applauds the IRS’s resolution to discontinue unexpected visits by IRS Field Collection employees,” NTEU National President Tony Reardon stated.
“The well-being of IRS staff is crucial and this decision will help safeguard those whose roles have become increasingly hazardous in recent years due to misleading, incendiary rhetoric about the agency and its personnel. We commend Commissioner Werfel’s prompt response following the safety issues raised by NTEU leadership and IRS Field Collection employees who encountered perilous situations jeopardizing their safety.”
In addition to this, the rising number of fraudsters, some masquerading as IRS agents, causing panic among taxpayers has amplified confusion around home visits.
“Unplanned visits resulted in heightened unease among taxpayers already suspicious of potential frauds,” said Werfel. “Simultaneously, the unpredictability surrounding what IRS staff faced when making these home visits caused them stress too. It’s the right decision to stop this now.
“We possess the necessary tools to effectively collect revenue without causing unnecessary tension with unanticipated visits. The only ones disadvantaged by this policy change are fraudsters pretending to be the IRS.”
The IRS disclosed last week that it has retrieved $38 million in tax debts from just 175 high-income taxpayers in the past few months.
