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Keep in mind that backlog of unopened IRS correspondence? The company is taking one other step in the direction of providing taxpayers a substitute for including to the pile: taxpayers who obtain particular notices requiring them to ship info to the IRS now have the option of submitting their documentation on-line by way of IRS.gov.
Backlog
How dangerous is the backlog? According to the National Taxpayer Advocate, the IRS had 29 million tax returns and correspondence on the finish of the final submitting season. Weeks earlier than the beginning of the present tax season—as of Dec. 9, 2022—the IRS nonetheless had about 5.1 million items of taxpayer correspondence and Accounts Administration instances (excluding amended returns) in addition to 2.6 million paper tax returns and an extra 1.5 million amended returns to course of.
The consequence? Annoyed taxpayers. The IRS believes that this new course of may change that.
Beforehand, taxpayers and their tax professionals had a handful of choices for responding to IRS notices—cellphone calls, letters, or faxes. (Sure, the IRS nonetheless makes use of faxes, however not e mail, for correspondence.)
Relevant Notices
Now, the IRS will enable taxpayers and tax professionals to add paperwork electronically. Initially, the net correspondence characteristic might be accessible to taxpayers who obtain considered one of 9 IRS notices:
- CP04, referring to fight zone standing.
- CP05A, info request associated to a refund.
- CP06 and CP06A, referring to the Premium Tax Credit score.
- CP08, referring to the Youngster Tax Credit score.
- CP09, referring to claiming the Earned Revenue Tax Credit score.
- CP75, referring to the EITC.
- CP75a, referring to the EITC.
- CP75d, referring to the EITC and different credit.
Taxpayers who obtain these notices can reply securely to IRS on-line, even when they do not have an IRS On-line Account.
How You’ll Know
In case your discover is on the checklist, the IRS will embrace language in your mailing that claims, “Ship us your paperwork utilizing the Documentation Add Instrument inside 30 days from the date of this discover.” The discover will embrace a hyperlink and distinctive entry code.
You’ll be able to open the hyperlink in any browser and enter your distinctive code, identify, and Social Safety, Particular person Taxpayer Identification, or Worker Identification quantity. Then, you may securely add scans, photographs, or digital copies of paperwork—a most of 15MB per file, as much as 40 information. You may obtain a affirmation that the IRS obtained your paperwork.
As soon as the paperwork are uploaded, the IRS consultant who’s working your case will be capable of reply to you.
Impression
The IRS estimates that greater than 500,000 taxpayers obtain these notices annually.
“This functionality is one other step ahead by the IRS to assist taxpayers and enhance service,” said IRS Performing Commissioner Doug O’Donnell. “This supplies quick advantages to taxpayers, who’ve almost immediate affirmation that paperwork have been obtained by the IRS. In flip, this can dramatically pace up the decision of points by eradicating a time-consuming step within the course of. This implies folks can have their points resolved a lot sooner, together with getting refunds to affected taxpayers sooner.”
Future Providers
The IRS plans to broaden this system to incorporate different notices. As well as, the IRS will provide the chance to make use of digital correspondence on numerous different taxpayer interactions. Throughout reside interactions comparable to cellphone calls with taxpayers, IRS workers will be capable of grant add entry by offering the hyperlink and distinctive entry code—making it simpler and sooner to reply.