With all the changes at the IRS, how likely are you to be audited? It’s unclear

No one wants to be audited by the IRS. And, in fact, very few US taxpayers have been in recent years.

No one wants to be audited by the IRS. And, in fact, very few US taxpayers have been in recent years. Less than 1% of all returns filed between 2013 and 2021 had been audited as of the end of fiscal year 2023, according to IRS data. More specifically, only 0.44% of individual returns and 0.74% of corporate ones. That’s partly because the agency for many years did not have a consistent level of resources — financial, human or technological — to do more. The IRS had been in the process of beefing up its enforcement efforts in the past two years thanks to funding from the Inflation Reduction Act, but a substantial amount of that funding has since been clawed back by Congress. An audit — also known as an examination — is when the IRS asks for more information regarding what you put on your return for a given tax year. That information will then be used to validate the accuracy of the refund you claimed or the taxes you paid. If you end up owing more but fail to pay it on time — with or without an audit — you will get a collections notice. Audit rates will differ depending on factors common to select groups of filers, such as income level, credits claimed or if you own a business. For instance, of the individual returns filed between 2013 and 2021, the IRS reported that it examined 8.7% of those filed by people who reported “total positive income of $10 million or more.”