Richmond IRS Appeals Attorney | Whiteford Tax Defense

An IRS appeal can be the next step when a Richmond contractor disagrees with an audit result. The IRS Independent Office of Appeals also hears disputes over a penalty the IRS refused to waive, or a lien filed against property in the Richmond area. Whiteford Tax Defense handles these appeals at our Richmond office, from the first written protest through the conference with Appeals.

Whatever the dispute, start with the date on your IRS letter: most appeal deadlines run 30 days from it.

Audits of Richmond contractors and small businesses

An examiner disallows a Richmond contractor's home-office deduction. A small business owner is told that some income went unreported. Either one may believe the examiner misread the records. If that is you, correct the record during the IRS audit, while the examiner still has your case.

Timing matters because new information raised for the first time at Appeals is generally sent back to the examining office. That extra step is likely to slow your case down.

Fast Track Settlement before the audit closes

Either of those taxpayers can also ask to bring Appeals in before the audit ends, through Fast Track Settlement. It is open to small business and self-employed taxpayers in a field or office audit, meaning one held in person rather than by mail. You can apply once the issues are fully developed and the examiner's group manager cannot resolve them. You and the examiner apply together, on Form 14017.

An Appeals officer trained in mediation then works with you and the examiner. The officer may suggest terms, but neither side has to accept them. The goal is to finish within 60 days after the application is accepted. If Fast Track does not settle the case, a regular appeal is still open to you.

Time limits and the case file

Appeals also needs time left on the clock. The IRS has a limited time to assess a tax, which means to record it formally as owed. Appeals generally takes a protested audit only if at least 365 days of that time remain when the file arrives. So if your Richmond audit has run long, the examiner will ask you to sign a consent extending that time, usually Form 872, before sending your protest to Appeals.

Once a conference is set, you may also be able to see the IRS case file first. Individuals and smaller businesses under the Taxpayer First Act's income and gross-receipts limits can ask for the nonprivileged parts of the file on the disputed issues. That does not include documents you gave the IRS.

Appeals must provide those parts at least 10 days before the conference. If you choose to meet sooner, it must provide them by the conference itself. For the owner told that income went unreported, this is a chance to study the file behind that change ahead of time.

Federal tax liens on Richmond-area property

When the IRS files a notice of federal tax lien, it alerts your creditors that the government has a legal right to your property. Section 6323(f) of the Internal Revenue Code lets each state name the office where the notice is filed. For real estate, the notice goes where the property sits. For other property, it goes where you live, which for a corporation or partnership means its principal executive office.

Around Richmond, that office is the circuit court clerk for the city or county. That could be the clerk for the City of Richmond, or for Henrico, Chesterfield or Hanover County. For other property of a corporation or partnership headquartered in Virginia, the notice goes to the clerk of the State Corporation Commission.

After a first lien filing for a tax period, the IRS must tell you within five business days. You then have 30 days after that five-day period ends to ask for a collection due process hearing before Appeals. If Appeals decides against you, you have 30 days from its decision to petition the Tax Court and ask for Richmond as the place of trial.

The Collection Appeals Program is another way to challenge a lien or a levy, which is a legal seizure of your property. It is generally faster, but no court can review its decisions.

Rejected offers and payment plans

A rejected offer or payment plan has its own short appeal window. If the IRS rejects your offer in compromise, you can appeal within 30 days on Form 13711. If it rejects a request for an installment agreement, you appeal through the Collection Appeals Program by the 30th day after the rejection letter.

A notice that the IRS plans to end an agreement you already have starts a separate 30-day window. The IRS generally cannot levy during any of these 30-day windows, or while an appeal filed within one is pending.

The appeal process in brief

The IRS has one level of appeal: the Independent Office of Appeals, which is separate from the office that made the decision. Appeals can look again at whether the IRS got the facts or the law wrong. IRS administrative appeals covers how to start one, by small case request or formal written protest. If Appeals cannot settle an audit dispute, the next step is usually the Tax Court.

Not every IRS letter can be appealed. The IRS says in its letter when a decision carries appeal rights, and a routine bill does not. An appeal also will not help if you agree with the tax but cannot pay it. For that, look at ways to pay or settle a tax debt.

Common matters we handle

Audit appeals for Richmond individuals and businesses, including disallowed deductions and income the IRS says went unreported
Challenges to federal tax liens and notices of intent to levy for Richmond taxpayers
Formal written protests and small case requests before the IRS Independent Office of Appeals
Penalty abatement appeals based on reasonable cause, such as a missed deadline during a hardship
Disputes over the amount owed because of miscalculated interest or misapplied payments
State tax appeals before the Virginia Department of Taxation and the Virginia Tax Commissioner

A note on admissions Federal tax matters are handled nationwide, including IRS examinations, appeals, collection, and Tax Court litigation. Virginia state and local tax matters are handled together with Whiteford attorneys admitted in Virginia, or with co-counsel where a matter requires it.

Why taxpayers choose Whiteford

Local to Richmond and familiar with the Virginia Department of Taxation and the Virginia Tax Commissioner
Practical experience with both federal IRS appeals and Virginia state tax disputes under one roof
Representation at every stage, from the first protest letter through the appeals conference and, if needed, U.S. Tax Court

Frequently Asked Questions

Does my Richmond business have to pay the audit adjustment before Appeals hears the case?

Not for income tax changes proposed in an audit. Federal law generally bars the IRS from assessing or levying the tax until it mails a notice of deficiency. It must then wait until the time to petition the U.S. Tax Court has run out, or a Tax Court decision is final. So any bill comes after the audit or appeal ends. Interest still runs from the return's original due date. An advance payment or a section 6603 deposit stops interest on the amount it covers once the IRS receives it.

The audit of my Richmond business covers several years. Can we use a small case request?

It depends on each year's amount and on the type of business. A small case request works only if the proposed tax and penalties come to $25,000 or less for every tax period in the dispute. If even one period is over that, all of them need a formal written protest. Partnerships, S corporations, exempt organizations and employee plans always need the formal protest. You can make a small case request on Form 12203, Request for Appeals Review. The protest takes more work and is signed under penalty of perjury.

I missed the deadline on my 30-day letter, and a notice of deficiency has arrived. Is it too late for Appeals?

Usually not, but you reach Appeals through the Tax Court. What counts now is the deadline for a Tax Court petition. For a notice mailed to a Richmond address, it runs 90 days from the notice's date. Talking with the examiner or Appeals does not extend it. Once you file a timely petition, a case that has not been through Appeals will normally get a chance to settle there before trial. If it does not settle, you can ask for trial in Richmond, a Tax Court place of trial.

Can my attorney go to the Appeals conference without me, and where would it take place?

Yes. Appeals conferences are informal, and most take place by phone. Others happen by video, in writing or in person. An attorney, certified public accountant or enrolled agent can take part without you once the IRS has a properly completed power of attorney, such as Form 2848. Appeals holds in-person meetings at a place reasonably convenient for both sides. If the office handling a Richmond case cannot host one, it offers video. If you still prefer to meet, it can move the case to an office that can.

I filed late because of a family emergency, and the IRS would not waive the penalty. Can I appeal?

Yes. Follow the protest instructions in the denial letter to take it to the Independent Office of Appeals. The IRS says reasonable cause may include the death, serious illness or unavoidable absence of an immediate family member. If a penalty is reduced or removed, the IRS automatically reduces or removes the interest on it. Interest on the tax itself is different. The IRS may reduce it when an IRS employee's unreasonable error or delay caused it, and you can appeal a refusal to do that too.

Can I appeal a decision by the Virginia Department of Taxation?

Yes. Along with IRS appeals, we represent taxpayers before the Virginia Department of Taxation and the Virginia Tax Commissioner. As with the IRS, a state appeal is time-sensitive, and it helps to have careful records and a well-supported written protest.

What is the deadline to file an IRS appeal?

Usually 30 days, and the IRS letter itself states the deadline. The count starts on the date printed on the letter, not the day it reaches you. A letter proposing a trust fund recovery penalty gives you 60 days instead. These deadlines are strict, so act as soon as a notice you disagree with arrives.

IRS appeals representation in Richmond