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Identifying Communication Barriers between Tax Practitioners and IRS Agents

Improving communication between tax practitioners and IRS agents requires identification of specific barriers that impede effective communication. This study extends prior research on communication barriers to the tax practitioner-IRS agent relationship. Survey responses of 98 experienced national and international tax practitioners revealed that the barriers perceived to be the most serious relate to behavioral and personality concerns, personal conditions, inflexible thinking, physical concerns, technical competence, and closed-minded attitudes. Although these perceptions generally were invariant to gender and age, some differences were observed by the level of work experience of the respondents. The results of this study may be used by the IRS to develop outreach and education programs consistent with Compliance 2000, a philosophy of tax administration that aims to improve communication channels between the practitioner community and IRS agents. In addition, practitioners may use the results to devise ways to deal with communication problems during interactions with the IRS.