Have you ever received a notice in the mail from the IRS? If so, you are not alone. According to the 2009 Taxpayer Advocate Report, the IRS sends out between 120 and 130 million notices via mail each year. That’s over 10M per month! Some letters are simple in nature, like math errors or requests for additional documentation, while others can be downright scary (notices of intent to lien, levy, or seize personal assets). IRS letters have been known to invoke feelings of panic and anxiety in recipients. And very few people understand how to interpret and respond appropriately. But now there is a free web application, IRS Notice Advisor, that cuts through IRS speak and explains tax notices in plain terms that the average citizen can understand.
IRS Notice Advisor was developed by New River Innovation, Inc. as a self help tool for their groundbreaking website www.easyIRS.com . It is a free and easy application that interprets IRS letters based on the codes printed in the top right hand corner. easyIRS has compiled a database with thousands of IRS notice codes. When someone types a code into the Notice Advisor, it instantaneously serves up an explanation of the letter with details that include:
- Letter name
- Urgency
- Why did you receive this letter?
- What does this letter mean?
- Which section of the IRS sent this notice?
- What should you do?
Jim Buttonow, co-founder of New River Innovation and a 19 year IRS veteran, describes the Notice Advisor as “a completely free service that is designed to educate people about appropriate ways to respond to any IRS letter.” Mr. Buttonow says “we hope people will use this as a research tool before they respond directly to the IRS. It only takes a few seconds to run, but it can save people untold hours of trying to navigate the IRS all by themselves.”
The beta version of IRS Notice Advisor is currently available online at www.easyIRS.com. New River Innovation plans to routinely update the tool as IRS procedures and letter codes change.