The Independent Office of Appeals conducts yearly surveys of customer satisfaction. The surveys are conducted online by an independent, third-party market survey vendor. Beginning in November 2021, Appeals offered every taxpayer and representative who has had a case heard in Appeals an opportunity to participate in the online survey. Information about the survey is included with all final closing letters. One of the survey questions asks about the length of the appeal process. This time can vary based on several factors, such as the type of case (workstream), the facts of the case, the complexity of the issues and other legal considerations. We refer to the timeframe between when a case is first received in Appeals from Compliance and the date the case is closed by the Appeals Processing Section as the “non-docketed cycle time.” Fiscal year information on the average non-docketed cycle time for each of Appeals’ workstreams can be found below. The Customer Satisfaction Survey captures your satisfaction regarding: Independence of Appeals Listening to your concerns Application of law to facts in your case Clarity of explanations for adjustments to your tax liability Length of appeals process Professionalism of Appeals Fiscal Year 2022 For Fiscal Year 2022, Appeals Overall Customer Satisfaction was 68 percent satisfied, 5 percent neutral and 27 percent dissatisfied. Highlights of the Fiscal Year 2022 customer satisfaction survey are: Was the Appeals Officer professional – 85 percent (Satisfaction) Whether or not you agree with the decision, did you understand why the Office of Appeals reached the decision it did in your case? – 76 percent (Satisfaction) Did the Appeals Office consider your side of the dispute? – 75 percent (Satisfaction) Did the Appeals Officer explain how they are separate from the rest of the IRS? – 78 percent (Satisfaction) Would you say the time it took the Office of Appeals to work the case was appropriate? – 63 percent (Satisfaction) Appeals Closed Non-Docketed Cycle Time (days) by Workstream – total lapse days from the date the case is received into Appeals from Compliance to the date the Case is closed by the Appeals Processing Section: Appeals Non-Docketed Closed Cycle Time (days) FY 2022 Collection Due Process 421 Offer in Compromise 336 Innocent Spouse 458 Penalty Appeals 234 Coordinated Industry Cases 863 Industry Cases 615 Examination 352 Other 107 Overall 365 Fiscal Year 2021 For Fiscal Year 2021, Appeals Overall Customer Satisfaction was 66 percent satisfied, 15 percent neutral and 19 percent dissatisfied. Highlights of the Fiscal Year 2021 customer satisfaction survey are: Was the Appeals Officer professional – 95 percent (Satisfaction) Whether or not you agree with the decision, did you understand why the Office of Appeals reached the decision it did in your case? – 82 percent (Satisfaction) Did the Appeals Office consider your side of the dispute? – 83 percent (Satisfaction) Did the Appeals Officer explain how they are separate from the rest of the IRS? – 84 percent (Satisfaction) Would you say the time it took the Office of Appeals to work the case was appropriate? – 62 percent (Satisfaction) Appeals Closed Non-Docketed Cycle Time (days) by Workstream – total lapse days from the date the case is received into Appeals from Compliance to the date the Case is closed by the Appeals Processing Section: Appeals Non-Docketed Closed Cycle Time (days) FY 2021 Collection Due Process 442 Offer in Compromise 364 Innocent Spouse 391 Penalty Appeals 208 Coordinated Industry Cases 1,589 Industry Cases 614 Examination 353 Other 130 Overall 372 Fiscal Year 2020 For Fiscal Year 2020, Appeals Overall Customer Satisfaction was 70 percent satisfied, 15 percent neutral and 15 percent dissatisfied. Highlights of the Fiscal Year 2020 customer satisfaction survey are: Appeals Team Cases Conferencing Initiative Results: In FY 2019 and FY 2020, the survey included a subset of questions for cases handled under the Appeals Team Cases Conferencing Initiative, in which some Appeals Team Case Leaders (ATCLs) held Appeals conferences that included representatives from Compliance Examination teams. As the ATCL population is limited, the report merged results from FY 2019 and FY 2020 in order to provide the most meaningful information. The ATCL Survey resulted in a 92% Overall Satisfaction score. Appeals Closed Non-Docketed Cycle Time (days) by Workstream – total lapse days from the date the case is received into Appeals from Compliance to the date the Case is closed by the Appeals Processing Section: Appeals Non-Docketed Closed Cycle Time (days) FY 2020 Collection Due Process 330 Offer in Compromise 315 Innocent Spouse 321 Penalty Appeals 194 Coordinated Industry Cases 866 Industry Cases 483 Examination 301 Other 100 Overall 289 Appeals workstreams (type of case) Collection Due Process (CDP) is a case where a taxpayer requested a hearing with an independent Appeals Settlement Officer in response to a notice of Federal tax lien or notice of intent to levy. The CDP hearing provides the taxpayer an opportunity, early in the collection process, to work with an independent hearing officer to resolve gross assets, gross receipts, operating entities, industries and/or foreign assets. A Coordinated Industry Case (CIC) taxpayer may appeal the findings of an examination conducted by the IRS. An Offer in Compromise (OIC) is an agreement between a taxpayer and the federal government that settles a tax liability for payment of less than the full amount owed. The IRS may reject a taxpayer’s offer, and the taxpayer may request that Appeals review and decide whether the offer should be accepted. An Innocent Spouse (INNSP) case in Appeals is one in which the taxpayer requested and was denied innocent spouse relief by the IRS or when the non-requesting spouse disagrees with IRS determination to grant innocent spouse relief to the spouse requesting relief. An Innocent Spouse is a taxpayer who filed a joint return with a spouse or ex-spouse and may apply for relief of tax, interest and penalties if he/she meets specific requirements. A Penalty Appeals (PENAP) case is one in which the taxpayer requests abatement of a civil penalty that was assessed before the taxpayer was given an opportunity to dispute the penalty. The taxpayer may submit a written request for abatement of the penalty, and if the request is denied, the taxpayer may appeal. A Coordinated Industry Case (CIC) designation may be assigned to a large corporate taxpayer based on factors such as the taxpayer’s gross assets, gross receipts, operating entities, industries and/or foreign assets. A CIC taxpayer may appeal the findings of an examination conducted by the IRS. An Industry Case (IC) is any type of large corporate taxpayer, Large Business & International, case that is not designated as a CIC. An Industry Case taxpayer may appeal the findings of an examination conducted by the IRS. An Examination (EXAM) case in Appeals involves issues in dispute by the taxpayer relating to income tax, employment tax, excise tax, estate tax, gift tax or tax-exempt status. The cases generally involve appeals by individuals or small business of a determination by the IRS. Other category includes cases considered by Appeals involving issues related to Abatement of Interest, Collection Appeals Program, Office of Professional Responsibility, Freedom of Information Act, Trust Fund Recovery Penalty, CDP Timeliness Determination and other miscellaneous penalties.
