The agency will rely on letters except for service of summonses and subpoenas, and enforcement activities. Image: Richard Stephen/Shutterstock.com
By: FEDweek StaffThe IRS is generally ending the practice of having revenue officers make unannounced visits to taxpayers, largely out of concern for their safety.
Unannounced visits to homes and businesses “will end except in a few unique circumstances and will be replaced with mailed letters to schedule meetings,” it said. The exceptions will include service of summonses and subpoenas, and enforcement activities involving seizure of assets, it said.
The IRS said that “there have been increased security concerns in recent years on multiple fronts. The growth in scam artists bombarding taxpayers has increased confusion about home visits by IRS revenue officers. Sometimes scam artists appear at the door posing as IRS agents, creating confusion for not just the taxpayers living there but local law-enforcement.”
“For IRS revenue officers, these unannounced visits to homes and businesses presented risks. Revenue officers routinely faced hazards and uncertainty making unannounced visits to attempt to resolve delinquent tax matters,” it said.
The NTEU union, which represents most of the IRS workforce, praised the change, saying “Unfortunately, the hostile rhetoric and false claims about IRS employees have made their work more dangerous in recent years . . . It is outrageous that our nation’s civil servants have to live in fear just because they chose a career in public service.”
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