Settling a Tax Court Case with an Offer in Compromise

Generally the IRS must assess tax on the applicable tax year(s) before it will consider an OIC covering that period. In most instances, a taxpayer who petitions Tax Court based on a statutory notice of deficiency to challenge the alleged liability must either reach a settlement with the IRS or go to trial to determine the amount of liability owed. The Tax Court would then issue a decision approving the settlement or, if the case has gone to trial, a decision as to the correct amount of tax and penalties owed. The IRS would subsequently assess tax, penalties (if applicable), and interest based on the decision of the Tax Court. Once the liability has been assessed, the taxpayer could submit an OIC for doubt as to collectability or effective tax administration to try to settle the debt for less than he or she owes.

A Service OIC operates similarly to the OICs described above with one distinct difference: the taxpayer with a pending Tax Court case (hereafter, the “petitioner”) could submit an OIC to cover the alleged liability even though the IRS has not yet assessed the tax against him or her. A provision in the Internal Revenue Manual, effective July 25, 2012, provides authority for Service OICs. See IRM § 35.8.6.2.1.

The starting point for the petitioner who wishes to submit a Service OIC would be to contact IRS Counsel’s office to obtain its consent to filing a Service OIC.  IRM § 35.8.6.2.1(2). Counsel’s office must agree to follow certain procedures set forth in the IRM provision in order for the OIC to be a “Service OIC.” Therefore, as a practical matter, Counsel’s office could prevent the petitioner from filing a Service OIC if it refuses to follow these procedures. Id. However, assuming Counsel’s office agrees to follow the IRM procedures and allow the petitioner to file a Service OIC, the Counsel attorney assigned to the case would have to follow the procedures set forth in IRM § 35.8.6.2.1. If the case is with IRS Appeals when the petitioner requests permission to submit a Service OIC, then the Appeals Office would need to close the case and transfer it to Counsel’s office, as only Counsel’s office is authorized to follow the procedures related to Service OICs. See IRM § 35.8.6.2.1(2).

If Counsel’s office agrees to allow the petitioner to file a Service OIC, the petitioner would prepare the OIC and send it directly to Counsel’s office.  The OIC would be either an OIC for doubt as to collectability or effective tax administration, and would use the Forms 656 and 433-A(OIC) for an individual offer or 433-B(OIC) for a business offer. Counsel’s office would then send the Service OIC to the appropriate Centralized OIC unit of the IRS, where it would be processed and reviewed like any other OIC for doubt as to collectability or effective tax administration. An offer examiner or specialist would be assigned to determine the petitioner’s Reasonable Collection Potential (“RCP”) based on his or her assets and future income. The examiner may also determine that special circumstances warrant a departure from the petitioner’s RCP in the case of an effective tax administration offer. Because it typically takes the IRS at least six months to review an OIC and the petitioner’s case may be docketed for calendar call during this time, it may be necessary to file one or more motions to continue the Tax Court case generally. Counsel will likely assent to such a motion. Counsel’s office may also request that the IRS conduct an expedited review of the OIC.

The IRM provisions on Service OICs state that Counsel’s office “should” obtain from the petitioner a stipulation agreeing to the “full amount of deficiencies and penalties.” IRM § 35.8.6.2.1(3). The “full amount of deficiencies and penalties” would be either the amount alleged on the statutory notice of deficiency or a lesser amount agreed to by the parties. The Service OIC provision in the IRM gives the petitioner the choice to authorize Counsel to (1) file the stipulation with the Tax Court, or (2) hold the signed stipulation in escrow at Counsel’s office.  See IRM § 35.8.6.2.1(3). Under the first option – filing the stipulation with the Tax Court – the petitioner would be bound by the amount agreed to in the stipulation if the OIC were not accepted. Under the second option – holding the stipulation in escrow at Counsel’s office – the petitioner could request that Counsel’s office destroy or return the stipulation to the petitioner in the event that the IRS rejects the petitioner’s OIC.

Although the IRM states that Service OICs may be submitted “[i]f a settlement is reached in a docketed Tax Court case,” as a practical matter, nothing would prevent the petitioner whose stipulation was destroyed or returned from going forward and presenting new evidence to reach an agreement as to a lesser amount or try the case on its merits. While there may be some exceptions, holding the stipulation in escrow appears the more favorable option because it gives the petitioner more flexibility if the IRS rejects the OIC.

The Service OIC should be used to compromise all the petitioner’s outstanding balances and may include tax years not covered by the pending Tax Court litigation. For example, a petitioner may have assessed balances for 2011 and 2012 and may be in Tax Court for years 2013 and 2014 where balances have not yet been assessed. If the petitioner filed an OIC for doubt as to collectability, it could cover 2011 and 2012, as well as the unassessed balances for 2013 and 2014. The petitioner would want to work with Counsel’s office to ensure that the offer is treated as a Service OIC insofar as it applies to 2013 and 2014.

If the IRS accepts the Service OIC and assuming the stipulation is held in escrow, IRS Counsel would file the stipulation with the Tax Court upon learning that the Service OIC has been accepted. The amount agreed to in the stipulation would be assessed against the petitioner, but the Service OIC will relieve the petitioner of some if not most of the liability and penalties. If the IRS rejects the Service OIC, then the petitioner has the right to appeal the rejection to the IRS Appeals Office. If the Appeals Office upholds the OIC rejection, then the petitioner does not have the right to challenge the rejection as part of her Tax Court case, but may still pursue the merits of her case in Tax Court and may continue to work with Counsel to reach a settlement or take the case to trial.

The question arises of when and why it makes sense to file a Service OIC. In my experience a Service OIC can be useful in certain situations, but should be used sparingly. A Service OIC is appropriate where the petitioner could likely prove she does not owe the entire amount alleged by the IRS, but because of either complicated legal issues or substantiation problems, proving this would be cumbersome for the petitioner and the amount the petitioner would rightfully owe still exceeds what she can pay. A Service OIC should not be used in a case where the petitioner is reasonably confident that she can present evidence to reduce her liability to zero or some nominal amount by working with Appeals, Counsel’s office, or by taking a case to trial.

To illustrate when a Service OIC may be useful, assume that the IRS’s statutory notice of deficiency asserts that the petitioner was prohibited from taking a loss deduction because it exceeded her basis in an LLC. The petitioner agrees that the loss deduction did in fact exceed her basis, but is not sure to what extent because the LLC did not keep good records. At a minimum, the resulting liability would be more than she could pay. To determine the correct value for basis, and thus liability, the petitioner would need to go back and reconcile multiple years of LLC records. She does not have the time or skill to do this, and cannot afford to hire someone. The petitioner may wish to bypass this exercise and submit a Service OIC based on her RCP. Counsel’s office may agree to this to avoid protracted negotiations with the petitioner and/or a trial. Counsel’s office would likely require that petitioner sign a stipulation as to the amount alleged on the statutory notice of deficiency, and petitioner should insist that Counsel hold this stipulation in escrow. If the IRS accepts the Service OIC, then the petitioner could be relieved of a significant amount of liability and penalties.

In speaking with attorneys at Counsel’s office about Service OICs, I have learned that they can create administrative challenges because additional work is required to prepare the stipulation, and Counsel’s office must also monitor the case to ensure the IRS correctly assesses the tax, penalties and interest if and when the Service OIC is accepted. Therefore, I would hesitate to ask Counsel’s office to entertain Service OICs on a routine basis. The vast majority of time, it makes sense for petitioners to settle their cases and then proceed with an OIC once assessment has taken place. However, in certain situations, a Service OIC can be a win-win for both Counsel’s office and petitioners. Counsel’s office “wins” because the petitioner will stipulate to an amount of deficiencies and penalties owed while avoiding a trial and the Tax Court’s order will reflect the stipulated amount. The petitioner “wins” because although she is technically liable for the amount to which she stipulates, she can be relieved of some or most of this liability if the offer is accepted and she meets the terms and conditions thereof.