Complete Home & Office Legal Guide/Complete Home and Office Legal Guide (Chestnut) (1993).ISO/stat/guide/taxright.asc

Text File | 1993-08-25 | 18KB | 392 lines

/* Taxpayers have rights too! And here they are. This is a
revolutionary document! Enjoy learning your rights.*/

                    YOUR RIGHTS AS A TAXPAYER

As a taxpayer, you have the right to be treated fairly,
professionally, promptly, and courteously by Internal Revenue
Service employees.  Our goal at the IRS is to make sure that your
rights are protected, so that you will have the highest
confidence in the integrity, efficiency, and fairness of our tax
system.  To ensure that you always receive such treatment, you
should know about the many rights you have at each step of the
tax process.

Free Information and Help in Preparing Returns

You have the right to information and help in complying with  the
tax laws.  In addition to the basic instructions we provide with
the tax forms, we make available a great deal of other
information.

Taxpayer publications.  We publish over 100 free taxpayer
information publications on various subjects.  One of these,
Publication 910, Guide to Free Tax Services, is a catalog of the
free services we offer.  You can order these publications and any
tax forms or instructions you need by calling us toll-free at 1-
800-424-FORM (3676).

Other assistance.  We also provide walk-in tax help at many IRS
offices, and recorded telephone information on many topics
(through our Tele-Tax system).  The telephone numbers for Tele-
Tax, and the topics covered, are in the tax forms instructions.
We make many of our materials available in Braille (at regional
libraries for the handicapped) and in Spanish.  We provide
assistance for the hearing impaired via special telephone
equipment.

We have produced informational videotapes that you can borrow.
In addition, you may want to attend our educational programs for
specific groups of taxpayers, such as farmers and those with
small businesses.  In cooperation with local volunteers, we offer
free tax return preparation assistance to low-income and elderly
taxpayers through Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) and Tax
Counseling for the Elderly (TCE) Programs.  You can get
information on these programs by calling the toll-free telephone
number for your area listed at the end of this publication.

Copies of tax returns.  If you need a copy of your tax return for
an earlier year, you can get one by filling out Form 4506,
Request for Copy of Tax Form, and paying a small fee.

However, you often only need certain information, such as the
amount of your reported income, the number of your exemptions,
and the tax shown on the return.  You can get this information
free if you write or visit an IRS office, or call the toll-free
number for your area listed at the end of this publication.

If you have trouble clearing up any tax matter with the IRS
through normal channels, you can get special help from our
Problem Resolution Office, as explained later.

Privacy and Confidentiality

You have the right to have your personal and financial
information kept confidential.  You also have the right to know
why we are asking you for information, exactly how any
information you give will be used, and what might happen if you
do not give the information.

Information sharing.  Under the law, we may share your tax
information with State tax agencies with which we have
information exchange agreements, the Department of Justice and
other federal agencies under strict legal guidelines, and certain
foreign governments under tax treaty provisions.

Courtesy and Consideration

You are entitled to courteous and considerate treatment from IRS
employees at all times.  If you ever feel that you are not being
treated with fairness, courtesy, and consideration by an IRS
employee, you should tell the employee's supervisor.

Payment of Only the Required Tax

You have the right to plan your business and personal finances in
such a way that you will pay the least tax that is due under the
law.  You are liable only for the correct amount of tax.  Our
purpose is to apply the law consistently and fairly to all
taxpayers.

Fairness if Your Return is Examined

Most taxpayers' returns are accepted as filed. But if your return
is selected for examination, it does not suggest that you are
dishonest. The examination may or may not result in more tax.
Your case may be closed without change. Or, you may receive a
refund.

Arranging the examination.  Many examinations are handled
entirely by mail.  For information on this, get Publication 1383,
The Correspondence Process (Income Tax Accounts), available free
by calling 1-800-424-FORM (3676).  If we notify you that your
examination is to be conducted through a face-to-face interview,
you have the right to ask that the examination take place at a
reasonable time and place that is convenient for both you and the
IRS.  If the time or place suggested by the IRS is not
convenient, the examiner will try to work out something more
suitable.  However, in any case, the IRS makes the final
determination of how, when and where the examination will take
place.

Representation.  Throughout the examination, you may represent
yourself, have someone else accompany you, or, with proper
written authorization, have someone represent you in your
absence.

Recordings.  You may make a sound recording of the examination if
you wish, provided you let the examiner know in advance so that
he or she can do the same.

/* That's a very good idea! */

Repeat examinations.  We try to avoid repeat examinations of the
same items, but this sometimes happens.  If we examined your tax
return for the same items in either of the 2 previous years and
proposed no change to your tax liability, please contact us as
soon as possible so that we can see if we should discontinue the
repeat examination.

Explanation of changes.  If we propose any changes to your
return, we will explain the reasons for the changes.  It is
important that you understand the reasons for any proposed
change.  You should not hesitate to ask about anything that is
unclear to you.

Interest.  You must pay interest on additional tax that you owe.
The interest is figured from the due date of the return.  But if
our error caused a delay in your case, and this was grossly
unfair, you may be entitled to a reduction in the interest.  Only
delays caused by procedural or mechanical acts that do not
involve the exercise of judgment or discretion qualify.  If you
think we caused such a delay, please discuss it with the examiner
and file a claim.

Business taxpayers.  If you are in an individual business, the
rights covered in this publication generally apply to you.  If
you are a member of a partnership or a shareholder in a small
business corporation, special rules (which may be different from
those described here) may apply to the examination of your
partnership or corporation items.  The examination of partnership
items is discussed in Publication 556, Examination of Returns,
Appeal Rights, and Claims for Refund.  The rules for regular
corporations are covered in Publication 542, Tax Information on
Corporations.  The rules for S corporations are described in
Publication 589, Tax Information on S Corporations.  You can get
these publications free by calling us at 1-800-424-FORM (3676).

An Appeal of the Examination Findings

If you do not agree with the examiner's report, you may meet with
the examiner's supervisor to discuss your case further.  If you
still don't agree with the examiner's findings, you have the
right to appeal them.  The examiner will explain your appeal
rights and will give you a copy of Publication 5, Appeal Rights
and Preparation of Protests for Unagreed Cases.  This publication
explains your appeal rights in detail and tells you exactly what
to do if you want to appeal.  You can get it by calling us
tollfree at 1-800-424-FORM (3676).

/* Be sure that if you want to file an appeal that you do it at
the proper time. There are time limits, and a good appe