A decade ago, about one out of every 90 Americans had to be worried about getting audited by the IRS. But nowadays, only about one out of every 220 people need to be worried about it.
With this in mind, you might not ever have to deal with being audited by the IRS. But even still, you should be at least a little bit familiar with what to do if you ever find yourself getting audited by an agent from the IRS.
More specifically, you should be aware of the fact that you’re going to need to have a professional by your side providing you with the auditing services you need. They should be able to make what is going to be a stressful process slightly easier on you.
Today, we’re going to discuss why you should obtain professional services if you ever find yourself in a position where you’re being audited by the IRS. Take a look at some of the reasons why you’ll want a pro in your corner below.
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Helps You Understand What Getting Audited by the IRS Means
If the IRS ever contacts you and lets you know that you’re going to be audited, it can be a very scary experience. People have heard such terrible things about getting audited by the IRS, so they’re often stressed out before their audit even begins.
There is going to be some stress associated with getting audited by the IRS. But you can make at least a little bit of this stress go away by working with a professional who can break down the IRS auditing process for you.
They’ll be able to explain some of the reasons the IRS will audit a person. It’ll make you feel slightly better about why you’re being audited by the IRS in the first place.
Allows You to Gather the Necessary Information for an IRS Audit
Getting audited by the IRS doesn’t necessarily mean that you did something wrong while filing your taxes. It usually just means that the IRS wants to gather some more info so that they’re able to make sense of your tax returns.
In some instances, figuring out which info the IRS wants will be easy. They might need you to send them a paystub or something else to prove your income.
But in other cases, you might not be sure exactly what you should send the IRS when they request info from you. A professional that offers these services can lend a hand with this portion of an audit.
Creates a Buffer Between You and Your IRS Auditor
When you have an IRS agent contacting you every other day and asking you for additional info, it’s a big part of what makes getting audited by the IRS so stressful. You’re going to feel anxious every single time that an IRS agent reaches out to you.
When you have a professional working on your behalf, you can set up a buffer between you and an IRS auditor. This buffer will make getting audited by the IRS way less stressful than it would be otherwise.
You won’t have to worry every single time that your phone rings or you get a new email. It’ll typically just be the professional that you hired providing you with a quick update on what’s going on.
Keeps You in Constant Contact With Your IRS Auditor
When you’re getting audited by the IRS, the absolute last thing that you want to do is ghost the IRS agent who is handling your case. If you go missing for a few days or, worse, a few weeks, the IRS might start to take more action against you.
It’s important for you to respond to your IRS agent in a timely fashion to avoid any additional penalties. It’s yet another way in which hiring a professional can help you.
The company that you bring on board to assist you with your audit will make sure that they stay in contact with your IRS auditor at all times. They won’t let more than a few hours go by without them responding to a request from your IRS auditor.
This will make sure that the IRS doesn’t suspect that you might be trying to duck and dodge them. They’ll know that the professional you hired is simply gathering more information if they ever don’t hear back from them right away.
Provides You With a Place to Conduct Your IRS Audit
If you attempt to take the DIY approach to an IRS audit, an IRS auditor might invite you to come to their office for it. Or they might tell you that they’re going to need to come to your home or place of business to conduct your IRS audit.
Either way, this isn’t going to be an ideal situation for you! Going to an IRS auditor’s office or having them come to your home or business will cause more stress.
You’ll be better off conducting your audit in the offices of the company that you hire to handle your IRS audit for you. You’ll feel so much more comfortable when you’re on neutral ground.
It’s bad enough getting audited by the IRS. You don’t want to make things any worse by having to hold an audit in a place that is going to leave you feeling on edge the entire time.
Sets You Up With What You’ll Need to Make Your IRS Auditor Happy
The faster that you’re able to provide an IRS auditor with the information that they need from you, the faster your IRS audit will be over. It’s why you should come prepared for your IRS audit from the start.
If you’re missing certain documents that you’ll need for an IRS audit, it can cause your audit to drag on and on (and on!) for hours or even days on end. A professional will make sure this doesn’t happen by setting you up with everything you’ll need to hand over to your IRS auditor.
You might not be able to figure out which documents you’ll need to bring to an IRS audit. You might also struggle to put these documents in the right order so that you can find them. A professional will help you get over each of these hurdles with ease.
Ensures Your IRS Audit Doesn’t Expand Into New Areas
It’s not uncommon at all for people to experience social anxiety to some degree when they’re getting audited by the IRS. Because of this, people will tend to talk more than they usually do when speaking with their IRS auditor.
This might not hurt you too much if you stick to speaking in generalities when talking to your IRS auditor. But there are some people who will say too much and put an IRS auditor in a position where they have no choice but to expand an audit into new areas of a person’s tax returns.
If you’re concerned about the possibility of you saying too much while you’re being audited by the IRS, having a professional on your side will help. They’ll do most of the talking for you and will stop you from saying anything that might lead to an expansion of your IRS audit.
Prevents You From Treating Your IRS Auditor Poorly
While getting audited by the IRS, some people get so upset that they take it out on their IRS auditor. All of the frustrations associated with being audited bubble up and lead to them lashing out at an IRS auditor.
It’s worth reminding you that IRS auditors are government employees. As a result, you need to be very careful about what you say to them and how you treat them. One false move could lead to you facing serious legal trouble.
You might still get frustrated with an IRS auditor, even when you have a professional working on your audit for you. But there is a reduced chance of you taking out any frustrations that you feel on them.
You’ll be able to behave better when you’re in the presence of both an IRS auditor and someone who you have hired to represent you during your audit. You won’t need to be as worried about losing your cool and snapping on your IRS agent.
Stops You From Devoting Too Much Time to an IRS Audit
Every IRS audit is going to take a different amount of time to play out. Some audits are over and done with in just days, while other audits can drag out for many months. It depends on how complex your specific case is.
But it’s not out of the ordinary for audits to take at least a few weeks in most cases. This is going to force you to spend your fair share of time working your way through an audit if you decide to do it on your own.
You can cut down on how much time you have to spend getting audited by the IRS by enlisting the services of a tax professional. They might not be able to bring your audit to an end overnight. But they should be able to keep your audit moving along so that it doesn’t take forever to be finished.
In the meantime, you’ll be able to focus on everything else that you have going on in your life. You’ll appreciate the fact that your tax professional will be taking care of everything for you and allowing you to skip over this portion of the process.
Lets You Know How to Avoid Future IRS Audits
After getting audited by the IRS once, you’re going to want to try to steer clear of being audited ever again. You won’t want to have to make your way through the auditing process for a second time.
The good news is that the odds are definitely going to be in your favor when it comes to you avoiding future audits. Since there is a less than 1% chance of you getting audited once, the chances of you getting audited twice are slim to none.
But with that being said, it’s not impossible for you to get audited by the IRS more than once. If they spot any red flags in your future tax returns, they won’t hesitate to bring you back in for another audit.
A tax professional can speak with you about the steps you can take to avoid future IRS audits. They’ll tell you what some of the red flags that the IRS looks for are. They’ll also recommend you take a different approach to doing your taxes from now on.
And if you take all of their advice and still somehow manage to get audited again by the IRS? They’ll be willing to get right back in your corner to help you fight back. It’ll be nice knowing that you have someone you can trust when the IRS comes calling.
Getting Audited by the IRS? Get the Help You Need Now!
Getting audited by the IRS isn’t going to be fun by any stretch of the imagination. Many people list an IRS audit as one of the worst things that they’ve ever had to go through.
But you can make the most of a bad situation by bringing a trusted tax professional on board to help you. They’ll deliver the services that you need to stop an IRS audit from taking a devastating toll on your life. They’ll also push for your audit to come to a close quickly so that it’s not able to take over your life.
Would you like to get more tax-related tips and tricks? Find them by poking around on the rest of our blog and reading through our informative articles.
