Ten Things to Know about the Taxpayer Advocate Service

 

Notice: Historical Content


This is an archival or historical document and may not reflect current law, policies or procedures.

IRS Tax Tip 2014-24, March 3, 2014

  1. The Taxpayer Advocate Service (TAS) is an independent organization within the IRS and is your voice at the IRS.
     
  2. We help taxpayers whose problems are causing financial difficulty. This includes businesses as well as individuals.
     
  3. You may be eligible for our help if you’ve tried to resolve your tax problem through normal IRS channels and have gotten nowhere, or you believe an IRS procedure just isn't working as it should.
     
  4. As a taxpayer, you have rights that the IRS must respect. We’ll help you understand those rights and ensure that they’re protected in any contacts with the IRS.
     
  5. If you qualify for our help, you’ll be assigned to one advocate who will be with you at every turn. And our service is always free.
     
  6. We have at least one local taxpayer advocate office in every state, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. You can call your advocate, whose number is in your local directory, in Publication 1546 PDF, Taxpayer Advocate Service -- Your Voice at the IRS, and on our website at /advocate. You can also call us toll-free at 1-877-777-4778.
     
  7. Our tax toolkit at www.TaxpayerAdvocate.irs.gov has basic tax information, details about tax credits (for individuals and businesses), and lots more.
     
  8. TAS also handles large-scale or systemic problems that affect many taxpayers. If you know of one of these broader issues, please report it to us at /sams.
     
  9. You can get updates at:
  10. TAS is here to help you because when you’re dealing with a tax problem, the worst thing you can do is nothing at all!


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