As reported by the Journal of Accountancy as of October 1, 2013:

IRS OPERATIONS ONGOING

• Processing tax returns submitted with payments.
• Processing all e-filed returns.
• Filing deadlines remain as required by law.  Thus, individual returns must be filed by 10/15/13 and third quarter payroll tax returns must be filed by 10/31/13.
• Preparation of systems and form for the 2013 return season.
• IRS.gov website remains open but with a skeleton maintenance staff on duty.
• Operations needed to protect pending bankruptcy, lien and seizure cases and to prevent running of any statute of limitations.
• Criminal enforcement and undercover operations.
• Federal courts are to remain open for about 10 business days with no automatic postponement of scheduled hearings.
• Most of the Taxpayer Advocate personnel are laid off.

IRS OPERATIONS CLOSED:

• All taxpayer services such as responding to correspondence or phone inquiries.
• Processing paper returns submitted without payment or requesting refunds
  • Thus, tax refunds will not be issued during the shutdown.
  • About 86,000 IRS workers will be laid off without pay (unless congress later agrees to pay them retroactively).  Thus, matters postponed would include the likes of:
    • Thus, schedule appeals conferences.
    • Levies not yet implemented unless collection statute of limitations would run
    • Issuance of Statutory Notices of Deficiency unless statute of limitations is about to run.
    • Audit appointments with Revenue Agents.
    • Summons appearances before Revenue Officers.
• 45 Taxpayer Advocate employees are still working to assist taxpayers.

TAX COURT CLOSED

The Tax Court has announced its closure during the government shut-down.  Administrative deadlines will be extended by the number of days that court operations are closed.  Statutory deadlines, however, will remain in effect.  Thus, if a statutory notice has already been issued before the government shut down, the taxpayer must still file a petition within the 90 day statutory period found in IRS Sec. 6213(a).

Taxpayers submitting petitions to the court during the closure must use U.S. mail or approved private express delivery services as hand delivered documents will not be accepted.

Robert S. Steinberg, Esquire