SERVICE 04

Audit Representation

An Enrolled Agent stands in your place — reviewing the notice, handling the correspondence, and dealing with the examiner directly, from first letter to resolution.

Contact usCall (307) 555-0100

A letter from a tax authority is alarming out of proportion to what it usually turns out to be. Most are routine and resolve with a documented response. The ones that don't are exactly the situations where you want someone credentialed speaking on your behalf rather than speaking for yourself.

WHAT'S INCLUDED

The work, in detail.

Every engagement is scoped to what you actually need. Here is the full range this service covers.

01

Notice review & triage

The first job is establishing what the notice actually is, because they vary enormously in seriousness. Many are automated matching letters that resolve with a single documented response. We'll tell you which kind you're holding, usually the same day.

  • Identifying the notice type and what it genuinely requires
  • The real deadline, and what happens if it passes
  • Whether the position stated is correct — often it isn't
  • A plain-language explanation of your realistic exposure
  • A recommended response before anything is sent
02

Full representation

With authorization on file, we deal with the examiner directly. You do not attend, you do not take the calls, and you do not answer questions on the spot without preparation. Everything routes through us.

  • Authorization filed so correspondence comes to us, not you
  • All examiner communication handled on your behalf
  • Information requests answered — scoped, not open-ended
  • Attending examination meetings in your place
  • Keeping the scope of the examination contained
03

Documentation & records

Examinations are won or lost on documentation. We work out what genuinely supports each position under review, assemble it in a form the examiner can follow, and identify gaps early — while there's still time to address them.

  • Determining what actually substantiates each position
  • Assembling records into a coherent, indexed response
  • Reconstructing documentation where originals are missing
  • Identifying weak positions before the examiner does
  • Written explanations to accompany the records
04

Resolution & payment arrangements

Where an amount is genuinely owed, the question becomes how it gets resolved. There are more options than most people realize, and the right one depends on your circumstances rather than the size of the balance.

  • Negotiating the proposed adjustment where it's wrong
  • Installment arrangements matched to what you can actually pay
  • Reviewing whether penalty relief is available in your circumstances
  • Interest and penalty calculations checked independently
  • Confirmation in writing once the matter is closed
05

Appeals

If an examination concludes somewhere unreasonable, it isn't the end of the process. Appeals is a separate function with its own standards, and cases do change there.

  • Assessing honestly whether appeal is worth pursuing
  • Preparing the written protest and supporting argument
  • Representation through the appeals conference
  • Evaluating any settlement offered against your alternatives
  • Advising when accepting the result is the better outcome
06

Preventing the next one

Once a matter closes we look at what triggered it. Sometimes it was genuinely random. Often it was a reporting pattern or a documentation habit that can be changed.

  • Identifying what prompted the examination where possible
  • Correcting reporting practices going forward
  • Establishing recordkeeping that would withstand review
  • Reviewing other open years for the same exposure
  • Amending prior returns where it's advisable

WHO IT'S FOR

Built around real situations.

Anyone who's received a notice

Bring it in before you respond. The first response shapes everything that follows, and it's much easier to start well than to correct course later.

Businesses under examination

Entity examinations that reach into owner returns, payroll treatment, or the classification of workers.

People with unfiled years

Returns that were never filed, sometimes going back some way. Coming forward voluntarily is nearly always better than being found.

Clients of other preparers

You don't need to have filed with us. We take representation work for returns prepared elsewhere, including returns we'd have prepared differently.

HOW IT WORKS

Simple to start, thorough throughout.

  1. STEP 01

    Send us the notice

    Same-day review wherever possible. We'll tell you what it is, what it means, and what the actual deadline is.

  2. STEP 02

    Authorization on file

    You sign the authorization, and from that point the correspondence and the calls come to us instead of you.

  3. STEP 03

    Build the response

    We assemble documentation, prepare the written position, and handle every exchange with the examiner.

  4. STEP 04

    Resolve and close

    Through to written confirmation the matter is closed — then a look at what caused it, so it doesn't recur.

QUESTIONS

About audit representation.

Probably not. Most letters are automated notices — a document that didn't match, a calculation question, a missing form — and they resolve with one documented response. A genuine examination looks different and says so. Send it over and we'll tell you which you have.

ALSO FROM US

The rest of the practice.

Ready to talk about audit representation?

Tell us what you're dealing with and we'll tell you what it takes to sort out — with a clear quote before any work starts.

Contact usBook an appointment