"Because FAQs aren't subject to thorough review, Treasury and the IRS may later decide some of them are wrong and change them. That is reasonable. But what about taxpayers who followed an FAQ and now find that: [1] the IRS is taking the opposite position on audit; [2] the IRS is imposing a penalty on the taxpayer for taking the position the FAQ had advised; and [3] the taxpayer can't locate the original FAQ because the IRS has changed it and removed the initial FAQ from its website? ... To protect the rights of taxpayers who follow FAQs, [the Taxpayer Advocate Service makes] the following recommendations: [1] The IRS should continue to use FAQs to provide timely guidance to taxpayers where appropriate.... [2] The IRS should include the versions and dates of each FAQ on its website or create an archive of obsolete or modified FAQs, including applicable dates, so that taxpayers can locate an FAQ that was in effect at the time they filed their returns."

[BenefitsLink note: Pages on the IRS website (and other government sites) are regularly archived by the Wayback Machine; prior versions of FAQs and other documents generally can be found there. The Wayback Machine is maintained by Internet Archive, a 501(c)(3) organization unaffiliated with any government entity.]  MORE >>