The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has agreed to outsource its tax debt collection efforts. In an effort to help cut down on expenses, the federal agency has arranged to use the services of contractors to contact and extract payment from taxpayers.
The move may result in some unease amongst taxpayers, as it likely should. The decision to outsource these efforts is expected to result in increased scam efforts by the unscrupulous who attempt to take advantage of a confusing situation to extract funds from honest individuals.
Taxpayers can take steps to protect themselves against such efforts, the first and most important of which being to have some basic information about the process.
To this end, three specific things to know about this upcoming process include:
- Four contractors are in use. The IRS stated in a recent newsroom release that only four contracting companies are scheduled for use in this collection effort. Those companies include the CBE Group, Conserve, Performant and Pioneer.
- The Fair Debt Collections Practices Act applies. This means that the collection efforts must be made while maintaining the rights provided by this law. Examples include guidelines that the collector is not allowed to curse or threaten imprisonment if the taxpayer refuses to pay the caller.
- Payment is not immediate. Although the collection agencies are expected to gather payments from the taxpayers, the payments are not immediate, over the phone payments. Instead, the taxpayer is expected to make the payments on the IRS.gov website.
This information can help avoid confusion when dealing with the IRS. However, it is important to know that frustration and confusion when dealing with this federal agency is not uncommon. It is wise for anyone that is attempting to deal with allegations of tax controversies to seek legal counsel. An experienced tax litigator can review the situation and advocate for your interests, better ensuring your rights are protected.
