NATP Advocates for Immediate IRS Action

Part of being the top association for tax professionals in the country means advocating for our members. NATP recently sent a letter, along with other professional organizations AICPA, NAEA, NSTP and NSA, urging the IRS to take immediate action to reduce unnecessary burdens during this upcoming tax filing season.

Requested actions include:
• Discontinuing automated compliance actions until the IRS is prepared to devote the necessary resources for a proper and timely resolution of the matter
• Aligning requests for account holds with the time it takes the IRS to process any penalty abatement requests
• Offering a reasonable cause penalty waver, similar to the procedures of first time abate (FTA) administrative waiver, without affecting the taxpayers’ eligibility for FTA in future tax years
• Providing taxpayers with targeted relief from both the underpayment of estimated tax penalty and the late payment penalty for the 2020 and 2021 tax year

The IRS has an unprecedented number of unprocessed returns in comparison to years before the pandemic. This resulted in numerous mistargeted notices, liens and levies. Additionally, we know the IRS is only answering 9% of all calls and only 3% of calls regarding individual income tax returns. Though we appreciate the IRS recognizes this situation is frustrating for all, reasonable actions have not yet been taken.