We don’t always talk about professional tax software. Today is about your clients.
Would your client know what to do if he/she received a letter from the IRS? Either way, this is helpful information for you to share with them.
Initial concern: Is this letter authentic or is this a scam? When in doubt, you can call the IRS taxpayer assistance. They will be able to look into your tax file and see if a letter has been sent to you. They will be able to confirm whether the letter is authentic by those means, and if they don’t have records of it, then it is not genuine.
If you have problems getting ahold of someone at the IRS to speak with, try this.
The IRS includes a form number on each letter that they send out. Once you locate this, you can go to the IRS website and use the search box to look up the form. If the form is not recognized, your letter could be a fake. However, if it is recognized, you will be able to get more information on data that the IRS needs from you in order to proceed.
We highly recommend that you take authentic or questionable letters to the tax professional that completed the taxes for you. There is a possibility that you could incur additional charges if the issue is something pertaining to information you didn’t divulge. If the tax preparer made an error, they should not charge you for this service.
Promptly responding to these letters is very important. The letter should include a deadline to respond. If it does not, a good rule of thumb is to reply within 30 days. Sometimes the letters will give you option of having a hearing. If this is the case, you should say yes. It is very hard to get in touch with an actual person at the IRS, so this could be your one shot at telling your side of the story.
Only provide information that is requested in the letter. In cases like these it is easy to get carried away and provide more information than necessary. If you do this, there is a very good chance that they will dig deeper and try to find additional issues.
Based on the situation your tax preparer may be able to represent you in your case if they have completed the annual filing season program. Don’t hesitate to give them a call and ask. While you are at it, go ahead and set up your appointment for next year’s tax return.
