A report from the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration published earlier this month gives an unfavorable evaluation of the timeliness and accuracy of IRS responses to taxpayer complaints about math adjustments. The IRS has the authority to adjust taxpayer returns for over 400 math error conditions. These conditions, which can be adjusted by the IRS without performing an audit, include arithmetic errors, missing documentation and missing or incorrect social security numbers, among other things. A taxpayer can accept or reject a math error adjustment once they have received an official IRS Notice informing them that one exists.
The complaint highlighted in the recent TIGTA report is that taxpayers who dispute math adjustments often experience delays in receiving a response form the IRS. Such delays either result in the taxpayer not receiving benefits to which they are entitled or a loss of revenue to the federal government, depending on how the appeal is decided. Since both of these results are negative to one of the parties involved, TIGTA has made recommendations to the IRS to remedy the situation. In response to the TIGTA suggestions, the IRS has agreed to make their responses to taxpayer math error disputes more thorough and accurate. They did not, however, agree to the other TIGTA requests which were to monitor the timeliness of their responses and to prioritize the responses related to earned income.
The most important thing to take away from this is that if you revieve an official notice from the IRS regarding a math error adjustment, you should not ignore it. The professional help of a qualified Certified Public Accountant to evaluate your options in dermining your responce to this notification is often well worth the investment.
Click the “Learn More Link” or Call (949) 596-4143 to have one of our CPA’s provide a Free IRS or State Tax Notice Review and Consultation.