IRS Simplifies Taxpayer Correspondence

January 25, 2010 | Subscribe to our RSS Feed

The IRS has released nine redesigned notices intended to be clearer and more effective and efficient at communicating IRS information.

In July of 2009, the IRS developed a committee to review IRS correspondence.  Among the finding was that IRS notices can be unnecessarily confusing. Previously, communication was designed under a decentralized and fragmented approach, creating confusion and inefficiency.

Currently, the IRS uses 1,000 different notices, and sends out approximately 200 million notices annually.  The new system has created 9 standard notices, designed to reduce the potential for confusion and improve taxpayers’ ability to resolve problems quickly.  They feature a consistent design: a plain-language explanation of the nature of the correspondence and a clear statement of what action the taxpayer must take.

The Nine Redesigned Notices are:

• Additional Child Tax Credit
• Undelivered Refund Notice
• Unable to Direct Deposit
• Potential Exemption from AMT
• Forms 940/941 May Not be Required
• Confirmation of Tax-Exempt Status Required
• Insufficient Funds on Direct Debit Installment Agreement
• Taxpayer Not Liable to File Form 720
• Strategic Roadmap for Taxpayer Correspondence Credit Elect Change.

The creation of the Office of Taxpayer Correspondence will continue to oversee improvements to correspondence.

Submitted by Sam Cohen

Questions:

sam.cohen@glassjacobson.com