Internal Revenue Service Whistleblower Informants | IRS Whistleblower Attorney
Do You Know of Noncompliant Taxpayers?
The Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) Whistleblower Office compensates individuals who blow the whistle on entities that fail to pay taxes owed to the government. In return for specific whistleblower information leading to the recapturing of tax dollars, the IRS Whistleblower Office may award the whistleblower up to 30 percent of the additional tax, interest and penalties or other amounts it ends up recouping.
The IRS Whistleblower Office focuses its programs on serious offenders on a large scale. The larger the company and the more significant federal tax issue, the more interested the IRS Whistleblower Office enforcement unit would be in investigating. It has a dedicated Informant Claims Program (IRC 7623(a)) and specific Whistleblower Rules (IRC 7623(b)).
What are the Awards for IRS Informants?
The IRS Whistleblower Office has two types of awards contingent on the amount in controversy. If the taxes, penalties, interest and related amounts in dispute are over $2 million or the noncompliant taxpayer’s annual gross income is higher than $200,000, the IRS Whistleblower Office may pay the informant 15 to 30 percent of the amount recaptured from the noncompliant taxpayer. On the other hand, if the amount in dispute is less than $2 million or the individual taxpayer gross income is less than $200,000, the IRS Whistleblower Office may pay the informant up to 15 percent up to $10 million.
A free consultation with our Senior Partner or whistleblower attorney will help you determine if you have a claim and whether our firm would be able to help you collect your whistleblower share.
The following are three of the most relevant and recent events from the IRS Whistleblower Office:
- The Bipartisan Budget Act of 2018 added a new Internal Revenue Code subsection – 7623(c) expanding the definition of proceeds for whistleblower awards. This applies to any open whistleblower claim.
- The Secretary of the Treasury reports to Congress each fiscal year on the use of Internal Revenue Code section 7623. The Whistleblower Office Report to Congress for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2017 was released on January 4, 2018. Reports for prior years are also available here: https://www.irs.gov/compliance/whistleblower-office-annual-reports
- Treasury issued final regulations to implement section 7623 effective on August 12, 2014: The regulations generally apply to claims that are open as of the effective date. Section 301.7623-4, which contains the rules for determining the amount and payment of awards, applies to claims for award under section 7623(b) that are open as of August 12, 2014, and to information submitted after that date. The amount and payment of awards under 7623(a) for information received prior to August 12, 2014 will be paid under the rules described in the Internal Revenue Manual.