You got an audit letter. Here is the plan.

Find the due date and confirm the letter is real. The IRS audit page says it notifies you by mail and won't start an audit by telephone. A call claiming to be an audit is a scam sign.

1. Identify the letter. A Letter 566 opens an exam. A CP75 audits credits and holds part of a refund.
2. Read the list of items being questioned. The audit covers those items, not your whole life.
3. Collect copies, never originals.
4. Do not call the examiner to "just explain." Let your representative make the first contact.

Not exactly. A CP2000 or CP2501 is a matching notice: income reported to the IRS doesn't match your return. It proposes a change and needs an answer by the date listed, but no examiner reviews your records. Many of these are fixed with one clear written reply. Read it closely, because the proposed change can raise, lower or leave your tax the same. If you agree, sign and return the response form. If you don't, explain why and attach proof, such as a corrected 1099 or a statement showing your cost basis. Blaga can prepare that reply under Form 2848.

Generally three years. The IRS says it can include returns filed within the last three years. If it finds a substantial error, it may add years, but "we usually don't go back more than the last six years." Keep records for the years in question ready, along with the prior year if it carried anything forward. If the audit spreads to other years, the same rights and the same representative apply.

Yes. The IRS lists "a right to representation, by oneself or an authorized representative" among your audit rights. Enrolled Agents have unlimited practice rights, per the IRS enrolled agent page. With Form 2848 signed, Blaga answers the letters, sends documents, and meets the examiner. Audits run by mail or in person, and an in-person audit can be held at a representative's office.

You get a report and a deadline. A Letter 525 with Form 4549 gives 30 days to protest to the IRS Independent Office of Appeals. If it goes further, a CP3219A notice of deficiency opens a 90-day window for U.S. Tax Court, which the IRS can't extend. You have the right to appeal both within the IRS and in court. Mark both dates on a calendar the day the letter arrives. A missed Tax Court date can't be fixed later.

Then it becomes a collection case, with the same options as any other debt. You can ask for penalty relief on accuracy or late-payment penalties where you qualify, then set up an installment agreement. Blaga can carry the case from exam into collection without you starting over.

Only what the letter asks for, organized item by item. If the letter questions car expenses, bring the mileage log and receipts for that year, not your whole file cabinet. Label each group with the line of the return it supports. Make copies and keep the originals. Missing records can often be rebuilt from bank statements, and our catch-up bookkeeping work helps when the books were never kept. Blaga reviews the package before anything is sent.