SECTION 10. HOW ARE

REQUESTS HANDLED?

Taxpayer notified .01 Regardless of whether the taxpayer or the Service initiates the request for technical advice, the district or appeals office: (1) will notify the taxpayer that technical advice is being requested; and (2) at or before the time the request is submitted to the national office, will give to the taxpayer a copy of the arguments that were provided to the national office in support of the Service’s position.

If the examining officer or appeals officer initiates the request for technical advice, he or she will give to the taxpayer a copy of the statement of the pertinent facts and the issues proposed for submission to the national office.

This section 10.01 does not apply to a technical advice memorandum described in section 10.07 of this revenue procedure.

Conference offered .02 When notifying the taxpayer that technical advice is being requested, the examining officer or appeals officer will also tell the taxpayer about the right to a conference in the national office if an adverse decision is indicated and will ask the taxpayer whether such a conference is desired.

If the taxpayer disagrees .03 If the examining officer or appeals officer initiates the request for technical advice, with the Service’s the taxpayer has 10 calendar days after receiving the statement of facts and specific issues statement of facts to submit to that officer a written statement specifying any disagreement on the facts and issues. A taxpayer who needs more than 10 calendar days must justify in writing the request for an extension of time. The extension is subject to the approval of the chief, examination division, or the chief, appeals office.

After receiving the taxpayer’s statement of the areas of disagreement, every effort should be made to reach an agreement on the facts and the specific points at issue before the matter is referred to the national office. If an agreement cannot be reached, the district or appeals office will notify the taxpayer in writing. Within 10 calendar days after receiving the written notice, the taxpayer may submit a statement of the taxpayer’s understanding of the facts and the specific points at issue. A taxpayer who needs more than 10 calendar days to prepare the statement of understanding must justify in writing the request for an extension of time. The extension is subject to the approval of the chief, examination division, or the chief, appeals office. Both the statements of the taxpayer and the district or appeals office will be forwarded to the national office with the request for technical advice.

When the district director or the chief, appeals office, and the taxpayer cannot agree on the material facts and the request for technical advice does not involve the issue of whether a letter ruling should be modified or revoked, the national office, at its discretion, may refuse to provide technical advice. If the national office chooses to issue technical advice, the national office will base its advice on the facts provided by the district or appeals office.

If a request for technical advice involves the issue of whether a letter ruling should be modified or revoked, the national office will issue technical advice.

If the Service disagrees with .04 If the taxpayer initiates the request for technical advice and the taxpayer’s statethe taxpayer’s statement ment of the facts and issues is not wholly acceptable to the district or appeals office, the of facts Service will notify the taxpayer in writing of the areas of disagreement. The taxpayer has 10 calendar days after receiving the written notice to reply to it. A taxpayer who needs more than 10 calendar days must justify in writing the request for an extension of time. The extension is subject to the approval of the chief, examination division, or the chief, appeals office.

If an agreement cannot be reached, both the statements of the taxpayer and the district or appeals office will be forwarded to the national office with the request for technical advice. When the disagreement involves material facts essential to the preliminary assessment of the case, the district director or the chief, appeals office, may refuse to refer a taxpayer initiated request for technical advice to the national office.

Sec. 10.04

1998–1 I.R.B. 85 January 5, 1998

If the district director or the chief, appeals office, submits a case involving a disagreement of the material facts, the national office, at its discretion, may refuse to provide technical advice. If the national office chooses to issue technical advice, the national office will base its advice on the facts provided by the district or appeals office.

If the taxpayer has not .05 When the district or appeals office initiates the request for technical advice, the taxsubmitted the required payer has 10 calendar days after receiving the statement of facts and issues to be subdeletions statement mitted to the national office to provide the deletions statement required under § 6110(c). See section 9.02 of this revenue procedure. If the taxpayer does not submit the deletions statement, the district director or the chief, appeals office, will tell the taxpayer that the statement is required.

When the taxpayer initiates the request for technical advice and does not submit a deletions statement with the request, the district director or the chief, appeals office, will ask the taxpayer to submit the statement. If the district director or the chief, appeals office, does not receive the deletions statement within 10 calendar days after asking the taxpayer for it, the district director or the chief, appeals office, may decline to submit the request for technical advice.

However, if the district director or the chief, appeals office, decides to request technical advice, whether initiated by the district or appeals office or by the taxpayer, in a case in which the taxpayer has not submitted the deletions statement, the national office will make those deletions that the Commissioner of Internal Revenue determines are required by § 6110(c).

Section 6104 of the .06 The requirements for submitting statements and other materials or proposed Internal Revenue Code deletions in technical advice memorandums before public inspection is allowed do not to (Applications for exemption apply to requests for any documents to the extent that § 6104 applies. and letter rulings issued to certain exempt organizations open to public inspection)

Criminal or civil fraud cases .07 The provisions of this section (about referring issues upon the taxpayer’s request, telling the taxpayer about the referral of issues, giving the taxpayer a copy of the arguments submitted, submitting proposed deletions, and granting conferences in the national office) do not apply to a technical advice memorandum described in § 6110(g)(5)(A) that involves a matter that is the subject of or is otherwise closely related to a criminal or civil fraud investigation, or a jeopardy or termination assessment.

In these cases, a copy of the technical advice memorandum is given to the taxpayer after all proceedings in the investigations or assessments are complete, but before the Commissioner mails the notice of intention to disclose the technical advice memorandum under § 6110(f)(1). The taxpayer may then provide the statement of proposed deletions to the national office.