Appeals Officer

at  US Internal Revenue Service

QUALIFICATIONS

Federal experience is not required. The experience may have been gained in the public sector, private sector or Volunteer Service. One year of experience refers to full-time work; part-timework is considered on a prorated basis. To ensure full credit for your work experience, please indicate dates of employment by month/year, and indicate number of hours worked per week, on your resume.
You must meet the following requirements by the closing date of this announcement:
SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: GS-07: You must have one year of specialized experience at a level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to the GS-05 grade level in the Federal service. Specialized experience for this position includes: Experience with business practices, basic accounting principles, and Federal tax laws and regulations to analyze tax issues and use fact-finding techniques. Experience with oral and written communications to prepare documents, review statements and schedules to explain options to taxpayers/representatives and resolve tax issues. Experience in organizing workload and identifying priorities to timely resolve cases.
OR
One year of graduate education in a related field of study such as: business administration, finance, accounting, auditing, taxation, law or other related fields.
OR
Superior Academic Achievement may be met by having a Bachelor’s degree, with one of the following: A GPA of 2.95 or higher on a 4.0 scale for all completed undergraduate courses or those completed in the last 2 years of study, or a GPA of 3.45 or higher on a 4.0 scale for all courses in the major field of study or those courses in the major completed in the last 2 years of study, or rank in the upper one third of the class in the college, university, or major subdivision, or membership in a national honor society recognized by the Association of College Honor Societies. NOTE: Superior Academic Achievement is credited only if you have completed all the requirements for a bachelor’s degree which included or was supplemented by at least 15 semester/23 quarter hours in accounting plus an additional 9 semester/14 quarter hours from among the following fields: finance, economics, business law, tax law, or money and banking.
OR
Combination of qualifying graduate education and experience equal to that described above.
SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: GS-09: You must have one year of specialized experience at a level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to the GS-7 grade level in the Federal service. Specialized experience for this position includes: Experience with business practices, basic accounting principles, and Federal tax laws and regulations to analyze tax records and use fact-finding techniques. Analyze and review various types of tax returns to determine tax liability of individual tax payers, businesses, or corporations. Experience interpreting and applying Internal Revenue Code and related regulations and procedures to conduct comprehensive analytical examinations. Experience with oral and written communications to prepare closing statements, correspondence to taxpayers, exhibits and schedules to explain options to taxpayers/representatives and resolve tax issues. Experience in planning and organizing workload to efficiently complete assignments with changing priorities.
OR
Master’s or equivalent graduate degree or two years of progressively higher level education leading to a graduate degree in business administration, accounting, auditing, finance, taxation, law (such as J.D.) or other related fields.
OR
LL.B. or J.D. if related.
OR
Combination of qualifying graduate education and experience equal to the amount required
For more information on qualifications please refer to OPM’s Qualifications Standards.

EDUCATION

For positions with an education requirement, or if you are qualifying for this position by substituting education or training for experience, submit a copy of your transcripts or equivalent. An official transcript will be required if you are selected.
A college or university degree generally must be from an accredited (or pre-accredited) college or university recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. For a list of schools which meet these criteria, please refer to Department of Education Accreditation page.
FOREIGN EDUCATION: Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the requirements. You must show proof the education credentials have been deemed to be at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. education program. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence when applying. Click here (Section 3, Explanation of Terms) or here for Foreign Education Credentialing instructions.

The following are the duties of this position at the full working level.

• Reviews routine cases for statutes, development of the issues, completeness of supporting documents, transcripts, work papers and correctness of the government’s position. Obtains the necessary documents and information from internal and external sources to resolve standard issues and close docketed and non- docketed cases. Conducts legal research to determine and apply the law to the facts presented.
• Contacts taxpayers, representatives, and others to gather and analyze information, explain the government’s position, pertinent statutes, judicial decisions and precedents, present and explain proposed resolution and expeditiously secure the taxpayer’s consent.
• Conducts Appeals conferences and negotiations in a dignified and orderly manner with displayed impartiality. Resolves issues on the basis of facts developed, applicable law and regulations. Advises taxpayers and their representatives of the correct treatment of taxable income and their reporting requirements for prospective application.
• Explains payment options to the taxpayers to resolve tax liabilities. Determines balances due on account and arranges for payment of taxes including installment agreements.
• Prepares audit statements, exhibits, schedules, and other appropriate documents to reflect issue disposition and effect case closure