Duties

WHAT ARE THE APPEALS (AP), LARGE BUSINESS AND INTERNATIONAL (LB&I), SMALL BUSINESS SELF-EMPLOYED (SB/SE) AND TAX EXEMPT AND GOVERNMENT ENTITIES (TE/GE) DIVISIONS?

A description of the business units can be found at: https://www.jobs.irs.gov/about/who/business-divisions

The following are the duties of this position at the full working level. If this vacancy includes more than one grade and you are selected at a lower grade level, you will have the opportunity to learn to perform these duties and receive training to help you grow in this position.

• Individually, or as a team member, plans and conducts examinations using extensive and specialized knowledge of accounting techniques, practices, and investigative audit techniques to examine and resolve various tax issues of individuals and business organizations that may include extensive subsidiaries with operations of national and/or international scope.
• Evaluate the priority issues identified as part of the central classification process and provide feedback regarding issues throughout the examination process. Based on the feedback discussions, adjusts the scope of the examination by expanding or contracting the issues. May serve as a member of a classification team responsible for the identification of priority issues for examination.
• Works in partnership with the Senior Revenue Agent in developing significant tax compliance issues, by collaborating with appropriate practice areas, examiners, Counsel, Appeals, and other specialists to leverage and expand complex issue expertise and ensure consistent application and interpretation of tax law.
• Conducts independent examinations and related investigations of the most complex income tax returns filed by individuals, small businesses, organizations, and other entities. May include those with diversified activities, multiple partners, and operations of national scope. Assignments require an integrated analysis of intricate and complex accounting systems, business activities, and financing.
• Conducts examinations of complex individual and business taxpayers involved in activities or transactions designed or structured to hide or conceal income such as offshore activities, multiple related entities, and other means using a wide range of financial and other investigative skills.
• Conducts package audits to determine that other required returns such as information, excise, or specialty returns are filed and conducts concurrent examinations of these and other returns when warranted. Recognizes the need for specialists and makes appropriate referrals.
• Conducts independent examinations of the largest and most complex exempt organizations including private foundations, cooperatives, and relevant business entities. May also make quasi-legal determinations an as need basis concerning the entitlement of the largest and most complex exempt organization to initial or continued exempt status with respect to taxes.
• Determines the most effective avenue for investigation and review of operations, which normally requires adapting audit and investigative procedures to unique and special situations. Cases involve issues which are without precedent or subject to conflicting precedents.
• Prepares the audit plan and acts as team leader in examinations of exempt organizations requiring team audit approach. Exercises alertness in detecting subtle indications of fraud during the course of examination.
• Either as a team member or in support of a Team Case Leader works the most complex and complicated accounting, auditing, computational and procedural issues within Appeals. Deals with corporate taxpayer representatives to resolve issues such as complex depreciation, investment tax credit, restricted interest, net rate interest, future interests, adjustments to capital structure, valuation and cost analysis, and change of the accounting methods.
• Reviews and analyzes Revenue Agent, Appeals Officer, and Counsel Attorney instructions, reports, case files and support statements, and interprets tax law court decisions, and legal opinions to determine and prepare accurate computations for the most demanding and complex Appeals cases. Cases may involve precedent setting determinations and invariably demand considerable judgment and knowledge in order to interpret case documents and apply the tax law.
• Prepares statutory Notices of Deficiency for the most complex un-agreed cases. This necessitates the detailed analysis of case materials prepared by the Revenue Agents and Appeals Officers, the review and application of the Internal Revenue Code, regulations and court rulings, and the provision of all pertinent computations and written explanations to state the tax adjustments and their basis. Notices as formal legal instruments must accurately and comprehensively state each adjustment so that the taxpayer may prepare allegations of error while permitting the government all possible defenses.