NTA Blog: The IRS’s Continued Refusal to Exclude Already Open TAS Cases From the Passport Certification Program Violates Taxpayer Rights

Subscribe to the NTA’s Blog and receive updates on the latest blog posts from National Taxpayer Advocate Nina E. Olson. Additional blogs from the National Taxpayer Advocate can be found at www.taxpayeradvocate.irs.gov/blog. In January, I wrote my third blog about the IRS’s new program to certify the seriously delinquent tax debts of taxpayers for the purposes of passport denial, l...

NTA Blog: One Year Later, The IRS Has Not Adjusted Its Private Debt Collection Initiative To Minimize Harm To Vulnerable Taxpayers

Subscribe to the NTA’s Blog and receive updates on the latest blog posts from National Taxpayer Advocate Nina E. Olson. Additional blogs from the National Taxpayer Advocate can be found at www.taxpayeradvocate.irs.gov/blog. Since the IRS implemented the private debt collection (PDC) initiative last year, I have been concerned that taxpayers whose debts are assigned to private collection...

IRS Announces Webinar on the 2019 Low Income Taxpayer Clinic (LITC) Grant Application Process

The IRS announced today that the Low Income Taxpayer Clinic Program Office will host two webinars on Tuesday, June 5, 2018, and Tuesday, June 12, 2018. The webinars are to provide potential applicants with information about the application requirements and process. The intended audience for this webinar include applicant’s proposing to open or expand the work of existing: Clinical progra...

NTA Blog: The Flood That Didn’t Materialize When the IRS Removed the Two-Year Period for Requesting Equitable Innocent Spouse Relief and Granted Relief More Frequently

Subscribe to the NTA’s Blog and receive updates on the latest blog posts from National Taxpayer Advocate Nina E. Olson. Additional blogs from the National Taxpayer Advocate can be found at www.taxpayeradvocate.irs.gov/blog. Innocent spouse relief, which has been available under IRC § 6015 since 1998 (and was available prior to that, in a more limited way, under IRC § 6015(e)),...

Success Story: TAS Advocates for Taxpayer Facing Economic Burden

Every year, the Taxpayer Advocate Service (TAS) helps thousands of people with tax problems. This story is only one of many examples of how TAS helps resolve taxpayer’s tax issues. All personal details are removed to protect the taxpayer’s privacy. A taxpayer under audit requested TAS assistance because his tax refund was being held and he needed the money to make an urgent auto rep...

Practitioner’s ideas wanted in the 2018 Tax Forum focus groups

Each year the IRS sponsors the Nationwide Tax Forums, a three-day series of tax education and networking conferences for tax professionals in cities around the country. These events feature the latest information from the IRS, news about tax law changes, the chance to meet with software vendors and the opportunity to attend nearly 50 seminars presented by IRS employees and members of profession...

IRS Accepting Applications for 2019 Low Income (LITC) Taxpayer Clinic grants

The IRS has announced the application period for Low Income Taxpayer Clinic (LITC) grants for calendar year 2019 is now open and will run through June 27, 2018. A listing of the 2018 LITC grant recipients is available on IRS.gov. The mission of LITCs is to ensure the fairness and integrity of the tax system for taxpayers who are low income or speak English as a second language: By providing p...

Tax Scholars and Officials Gather for the 3rd International Conference on Taxpayer Rights in The Netherlands

  National Taxpayer Advocate Nina E. Olson convened the 3rd International Conference on Taxpayer Rights in Amsterdam, the Netherlands on May 3 and 4. Hosted by the International Bureau on Fiscal Documentation (IBFD), the conference connected government officials, scholars, and practitioners from around the world to explore how taxpayer rights globally serve as the foundation for effective...

NTA Blog: A Problem of the IRS’s Own Making - Automatic Revocations of 1023-EZ Exempt Organizations

Subscribe to the NTA’s Blog and receive updates on the latest blog posts from National Taxpayer Advocate Nina E. Olson. Additional blogs from the National Taxpayer Advocate can be found at www.taxpayeradvocate.irs.gov/blog. The IRS introduced Form 1023-EZ, Streamlined Application for Recognition of Exemption Under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, in July 2014. IRS record...

NTA Blog: Taxpayer Advocate Service Survey Confirms Need to Maintain and Enhance a Robust Omni-Channel Taxpayer Service Strategy

Subscribe to the NTA’s Blog and receive updates on the latest blog posts from National Taxpayer Advocate Nina E. Olson. Additional blogs from the National Taxpayer Advocate can be found at www.taxpayeradvocate.irs.gov/blog. In my most recent Annual Report to Congress, I published a study in support of the Service Priorities Project (SPP), a joint effort between Taxpayer Advocate Service...