The New Jersey Society of Enrolled Agents Advises Consumers About IRS Notices

Sept. 18, 2009 - PRLog -- Trenton, NJ - Each year the IRS matches tax returns filed by taxpayers, with the documents issued by payers. Among these forms are W-2’s, 1099’s, interest statements from banks, and dividend statements from investments.

This matching process is performed about 18 months after the due date of the return (April 15th), so the IRS is now performing this matching on 2007 tax returns.

If the tax return does not match the documents, the taxpayer is sent a notice; if the match shows that the taxpayer appears to owe more tax, a bill is sent.

“The IRS computers send out these letters and they may not have all the facts. They may not be able to accurately match the document to the return or may have received incorrect information from payers,” said Robert Ryan, EA, and NJSEA Communications Chair.

The New Jersey Society of Enrolled Agents (NJSEA) recommends that individuals not ignore these notices. The IRS rarely forgets and the issue will not simply go away.

“If you receive a bill from the IRS, be very certain that you understand the bill and that you actually owe the money,” advised Martin Stein, EA, and President of NJSEA. “If you don’t completely understand a notice or a bill, contact a tax professional.  It will save a lot of time, money and frustration,” continued Mr. Stein.

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NJSEA is the professional society representing Enrolled Agents (EAs) practicing in NJ. An Enrolled Agent is a person who has earned the privilege of practicing before the Internal Revenue Service. NJSEA members are licensed by the U.S. Department of the Treasury to represent taxpayers before all administrative levels of the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), including examination, collection and appeals functions.
While the Enrolled Agent license was created in 1884, today’s EAs are the only tax professionals tested by IRS on their knowledge of tax law and regulations. The 40,000 EAs nationwide provide tax preparation, representation, tax planning and other financial services to millions of individual and business taxpayers. EAs adhere to a code of ethics and professional conduct and are required by IRS to take Continuing Professional Education. Like attorneys and Certified Public Accountants, Enrolled Agents are governed by Treasury Circular 230 in their practice before the IRS.