The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) recently estimated that the “tax gap” – the difference between taxes owed to the government and actually paid – totaled nearly $600 billion in 2019 and could rise to about $7 trillion over the course of the next decade. As part of its efforts to narrow this gap, or at least to keep it from growing, the IRS relies on whistleblowers to bring tax evasion to its attention. If you have information about a taxpayer that has evaded a tax obligation, you may be entitled to a reward from the IRS Whistleblower Office. Since 2007, the IRS Whistleblower Program has paid awards to whistleblowers totaling more than $1 billion and has led to the successful collection of more than $6 billion from noncompliant taxpayers.
Under the IRS Whistleblower Program, a whistleblower may be entitled to an award of between 15% and 30% of the amount collected by the government if he or she provides information that leads to the recovery of at least $2 million in underpaid taxes, interest and penalties. If the recovery is smaller, the maximum award is 15% of the recovery.
Importantly, the IRS promises to protect the identity of whistleblowers to the fullest extent permitted by the law.
At Jeff Newman Law, we have handled a significant number of tax fraud whistleblower matters, including a pending matter involving a transfer pricing scheme related to off-shore tax fraud. If you are aware of tax fraud exceeding $2 million and wish to speak with a whistleblower lawyer, contact our office for a free and confidential consultation to see if your information falls within the IRS Whistleblower Program.
