Internal Revenue Service

Internal Revenue Agent (Employment Tax Specialist)

Internal Revenue Service$80K — $95K *
Legal & Accounting
Less than 5 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • Certified Public Accountant (CPA) certification or a bachelor's degree in accounting with specified credits.
  • Bachelor's degree in a field other than accounting or a combination of education and experience totaling 4 years.
  • One year of specialized experience equivalent to GS-12 in accounting or auditing.
  • Knowledge of professional accounting principles for analyzing federal tax impact.
  • Experience with employment tax law and complex business operations.

Responsibilities

  • Conducts pre-audit analysis and formulates plans for audits.
  • Performs employment tax examinations on large, complex business entities.
  • Utilizes advanced auditing techniques to examine extensive financial records.
  • Researches tax law guidelines to resolve examination questions.
  • Prepares reports detailing tax liability changes and negotiates with taxpayers.

Benefits

  • Comprehensive benefits package for federal employees.
  • Access to a range of benefits designed for employee satisfaction and reward.
  • Formal development plans may provide pay retention where applicable.
  • Eligibility for benefits varies based on employment type.
Full Job Description
Summary

  • Position(s) are to be filled in following area(s):
    • SBSE EXAM - Examination Deputy Operations - Specialty Exam - Employment Tax


REVIEW THE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION BELOW FOR FURTHER DETAILS

Duties

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The following are the duties of this position at the full working level. If this vacancy includes more than one grade and you are selected at a lower grade level, you will have the opportunity to learn to perform these duties and receive training to help you grow in this position.

  • Conducts pre-audit analysis of assigned cases, researching any available background materials, and formulates a plan for the audit.
  • Performs employment tax examinations of very large and complex business entities with extensive operations often conducted through subsidiaries or other related operating components. Examinations are conducted both independently and as the employment tax expert on an audit team in the examination of a controlled large case. The incumbent specializes in the areas of Income Tax Withholding, Federal Insurance Contribution Act, Federal Unemployment Tax Act and Railroad Retirement Tax Act.
  • Utilizes advanced investigative, interviewing, fact-finding and auditing techniques in the examination of voluminous books and records and complex accounting systems to determine if the tax has been accurately reported.
  • Researches available guidelines and reference material to resolve questions of tax law that may arise during the course of the examination. Since issues are typically without precedent or the subject of conflicting precedents, this research is of necessity intensive and precise.
  • Prepares a written report and informs the taxpayer or representative of any changes to tax liability, explaining reasons for the adjustment. Negotiates to reach agreement with the taxpayer and explains appeal procedures as necessary.


STANDARD POSITION DESCRIPTIONS (SPD): PD90841

Visit the IRS SPD Library to access the position descriptions.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • Probationary Period - A person who is required to go through a probationary period and then is transferred, promoted, demoted, or reassigned before he or she completes such period is required to complete the remainder of the probationary period in the new position.
  • Government Credit Card - Obtain and use a Government-issued charge card for business-related travel.


ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS SHOWN IN QUALIFICATIONS SECTION

Qualifications

Federal experience is not required. Experience may have been gained in the public sector, private sector or through 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/day/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.

BASIC REQUIREMENTS All GRADES (ALSO MEETS GRADE 5 QUALIFICATIONS):

A Certificate as a Certified Public Accountant (CPA) or a bachelor's or higher degree in accounting that included at least 30 semester hours in accounting or 24 semester hours in accounting and an additional 6 semester hours in related subjects such as business law, economics, statistical/quantitative methods, computerized accounting or financial systems, financial management, or finance.

OR

A bachelor's or higher degree in a field other than accounting or a combination of education and experience equivalent to 4 years that included at least 30 semester hours in accounting or 24 semester hours in accounting and 6 semester hours in related subjects as described above.

AND

SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE:

In addition to meeting the basic requirement, you must have 1 year of specialized experience at a level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to the GS-12 grade level in the Federal service. Qualifying experience must have been in progressively responsible and diversified professional accounting or auditing work that required:

  • 1) knowledge of and skill in applying professional accounting principles, theory, and practices to analyze and interpret accounting books, records, or systems specifically to determine their effect on Federal tax liabilities and their adequacy for recording transactions affecting tax liabilities.
  • 2) skill in interpreting and applying Federal tax law for individuals, business, and/or exempt organizations, partnerships, and corporations; 3) knowledge of business and trade practices to develop tax issues based on analysis and evaluation of overall business operations and financial condition.
  • 4) knowledge of corporate financial transactions and financial management principles and practices, and
  • 5) skill in interacting effectively with a broad range of individuals and in negotiating with specialists in accounting, legal, tax, and other similar business-related professions.


In addition to the above your specialized experience for this position must include:

Applying tax laws, regulations, precedents and policies relating to employment taxes in order to perform employment tax examinations

Applying professional auditing and accounting experience to business organizations that contain several related entities or subdivisions,

Applying varied systems of accounting to perform examinations.

AND

You must also meet the following requirement(s):

  • TIME AFTER COMPETITIVE APPOINTMENT (TACA): By the closing date (or if this is an open continuous announcement, by the cut-off date) specified in this job announcement, current civilian employees must have completed at least 90 days of federal civilian service since their latest non-temporary appointment from a competitive referral certificate, known as time after competitive appointment. For this requirement, a competitive appointment is one where you applied to and were appointed from an announcement open to "All US Citizens"
  • TIME IN GRADE (TIG): For positions above the GS-05,applicants must meet applicable time-in-grade requirements to be considered eligible. One year (52 weeks) at the next lower grade level is required to meet the time-in-grade requirements for the grade you are applying for. For positions at the GS-05, you cannot advance to the GS-05 if you have held a GS-02 in the past 52 weeks. There is no TIG restriction for GS-02, 03 or 04 positions.


For more information on qualifications please refer to OPM's Qualifications Standards.

Education

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.

We recommend choosing an evaluator from a member organization of one of the following national associations of credential evaluation services: National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) or Association of International Credentials Evaluators (AICE).

Additional information

  • Consider each location carefully when applying. If you are selected for a location, that location will become your official post of duty.
  • In the event that a building is closed due to rent management, new hires may be placed in a local commuting location.
  • Additional jobs may be filled from this announcement or any other source to fill these vacancies.
  • Alternative work schedule, staggered work hours may be available.
  • Salary: General Schedule (GS) Locality Pay tables may be found under Salaries & Wages.
  • Formal Development Plan - If this position is covered by a formal development plan, pay retention will be offered where applicable based on law and regulation.


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Benefits

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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

As a current employee, you know the great benefits we offer. Should you have any questions about benefits, please contact the Employee Resource Center (ERC)

Review our benefits

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.

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