In a memo to field collection employees, the Director of Field Collection for the IRS's Small Business/Self-Employed Division has said that, due to COVID-19, Field Collection will continue to maximize telework and remote contact between employees and taxpayers for the vast majority of its cases. Face-to-face public contact/field activities will only occur in exceptional cases.
The COVID-19 pandemic, beginning March 2020, significantly affected Field Collection (FC) employees’ ability to conduct face to face investigative and enforcement activities with the public. Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, Field Collection and IRS have emphasized employee safety as our number-one priority, and that will continue to be the case when the People First Initiative expires on July 15, 2020.
Effective July 16, 2020 and until further notice, Field Collection will continue to maximize telework and remote contact between employees and taxpayers for the vast majority of our cases.
Field Collection employees may be permitted to conduct essential face-to-face public contact/field activities, on a voluntary basis, only when necessary and appropriate, and only with Territory Manager concurrence.
These limited face-to-face public contact/field activities may include making field contacts to view assets, serve summons, take necessary and appropriate investigative and/or enforcement actions, and conduct interviews with taxpayers, their designated representatives, and/or third parties at their homes or business locations (if there are no alternate locations where these activities can be performed), and will only be authorized when:
- There are no effective alternatives to face-to-face contact, and the failure to act poses a risk of permanent loss to the government, such as the expiration of a statute, assets being placed permanently beyond government reach, or the continuing pyramiding of employment tax liabilities or
- The taxpayer or representative has requested face-to-face contact and the RO and manager agree that field contact would advance the progress of the case.
In all instances, we will consider the personal facts and circumstances relative to each individual employee including factors such as risk status and personal safety concerns relative to the proposed face-to-face public contact/field activities.
Employees must conduct all face-to-face public contact/field activities with caution and extreme sensitivity to the taxpayer’s personal circumstances, and how the taxpayer has been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Employees must apply good judgment in determining when public contact and/or enforcement action is appropriate and should use Soft Contact procedures to determine the impact of the national emergency on the taxpayer. The IRM provides employees with the necessary authorities and discretion to appropriately handle unusual situations and hardship issues.
In all instances of public contact, employees are expected to wear masks or other face coverings, practice social distancing, and adhere to CDC guidelines (handwashing, etc.) to guard against possible exposure to or spread of COVID-19.
Where possible, employees should consider conducting the meeting with the taxpayer in an IRS facility (such as, Taxpayer Assistant Centers) equipped with plexi-glass barriers.
Field Collection employees and managers should use this document, along with the attached checklist, and other COVID-19 related federal, state, and local guidance on health and safety, travel, restrictions on state/local business resumption status, and most importantly, knowledge as to the appropriateness of face-to-face public contact/field activities given local circumstances, when considering and approving face-to-face public contact/field activities.
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Background. As part of the IRS's Field Collection group, revenue officers (RO) are IRS civil enforcement employees who work cases that involve an amount owed by a taxpayer or a delinquent tax return. (IRM 5.1.20, Field Collecting Procedures, Collection Inventory (11/2/2016); IRS website "How To Know it's Really the IRS Calling or Knocking on Your Door: Collection")
In cases where a taxpayer may have been affected by a disaster, the IRS can use "soft contact" procedures to contact the taxpayer about a tax debt. A soft contact entails approaching the taxpayer with caution and extreme sensitivity to their personal circumstances. Stress and fatigue are factors to consider even in instances where the taxpayer did not experience any personal, monetary, or physical damage from the disaster. (IRM 5.1.12.2.7 (8/5/2014))
Due to COVID-19, the IRS has stopped field revenue officer enforcement actions, such as liens and levies. Revenue officers will continue to pursue high-income non-filers and perform "other similar activities" where necessary. See IRS provides updates on compliance, exam activities through July 15 (05/15/2020).
Limit on Field Collection activities to continue. The July 10, 2020 memo says that, until further notice, Field Collection will continue to maximize telework and remote contact between employees and taxpayers for the vast majority of its cases. Face-to-face public contact/field activities will only occur in exceptional cases, as described below. They will not be routine or regularly occurring activities.
Field Collection employees may be permitted to conduct essential face-to-face public contact/field activities on a voluntary basis, only when necessary and appropriate, and only with manager concurrence.
These limited face-to-face public contact/field activities may include making field contacts to view assets, serve summons, take necessary and appropriate investigative and/or enforcement actions, and conduct interviews with taxpayers, their designated representatives, and/or third parties at their homes or business locations (if there are no alternate locations where these activities can be performed), and will only be authorized when:
• There are no effective alternatives to face-to-face contact, and the failure to act poses a risk of permanent loss to the government, such as the expiration of a statute, assets being placed permanently beyond government reach, or the continuing pyramiding of employment tax liabilities; or
• The taxpayer or representative has requested face-to-face contact and the RO and manager agree that field contact would advance the progress of the case.
The memo stresses that ROs must conduct all face-to-face public contact/field activities with caution and extreme sensitivity to the taxpayer's personal circumstances and how the taxpayer has been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. ROs must apply good judgment in determining when public contact and/or enforcement action is appropriate and should use Soft Contact procedures to determine the impact of the national emergency on the taxpayer.
The memo notes that the Internal Revenue Manual provides ROs with the necessary authorities and discretion to appropriately handle unusual situations and hardship issues.
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