The IRS announced Wednesday that it will “step up efforts to visit” high-income taxpayers this tax season who failed to file prior-year tax returns. The announcement is a new focus for the agency, with additional sources deployed to engage with delinquent nonfilers.
Paul Mamo, the director of collection operations in the small business/self-employed division, said in prepared comments that “these visits focusing on high-income taxpayers will be taking place across the country.”
The visits are primarily aimed at informing these taxpayers of their tax filing and paying obligations and bringing them into compliance. It is unclear if these visits would be equal to audits, but they will be face-to-face for taxpayers earning over $100,000 annually who did not properly file a tax return with the IRS in prior tax years. There will be about 800 visits in the first two months, with thousands expected throughout the year. Revenue officers will be visiting non-filers who have been contacted multiple times before, focusing on the most egregious cases first. These visits could occur in the taxpayer’s home, according to the IRS.
“Taxpayers having delinquent filing or payment obligations should consult a competent tax advisor before waiting to be contacted by an IRS revenue officer,” Mamo said.
The IRS has a history of focusing on poorer taxpayers who claim credits or deductions rather than wealthier taxpayers. ProPublica reported in May that millionaires in 2018 were roughly 80% less likely to be audited than they were in 2011. Meanwhile, taxpayers claiming the earned income tax credit, which is limited to incomes below $55,000, were audited more than their wealthier counterparts.
The IRS announcement comes on the heels of IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig telling Congress last April that he wanted his agency to focus on auditing wealthier taxpayers.
