While there was an expectation of some unpredictability from President Trump’s second term in office, a number of new executive orders are causing concern for our clients—including an IRS hiring freeze.

Among those is an executive order issued on President Trump’s first day in office, which instituted a federal hiring freeze across the executive branch. 

That hiring freeze will have an impact on the Internal Revenue Service, given that it not only prevents the IRS from adding new recruits, but has also resulted in existing job offers being rescinded. 

Following the announcement, the IRS removed job postings on external websites and rescinded job offers for roles commencing after February 8.

Despite the freeze, the IRS has told advocacy groups like the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants it will “re-allocate workers from other areas to help cover filing season processing”.

The IRS then announced in early March it was drafting plans to cut its workforce by almost half—suggesting it would do so through a mixture of layoffs, attrition, and incentivized buyouts.

So what does it mean for our clients?

The Potential Impacts of a Hiring Freeze at Tax Time

Although the IRS says the hiring freeze should have no significant impact on taxpayers, it’s hard to imagine how an absence of frontline workers will speed up any part of the process.

With fewer IRS workers on hand to field phone calls or process returns, Grobstein Teeple is advising clients to be prepared and, wherever possible, file early this tax season.

“Getting your tax returns in early just avoids any potential scheduling issues,” explained Grobstein Teeple’s tax partner, Silva Chamichyan. 

“Given the current uncertainty, it might be worth filing early this year just to make sure your return doesn’t get lost in the pile.” 

With tax season running from January 27 until April 15 this year, the earlier you file, the earlier you’re in line to potentially receive a tax refund.

But there are some other simple tips you can follow to speed up the tax return process, including filing electronically instead of through the mail, as well as opting to receive any refund as a direct deposit straight into your bank account rather than having a check mailed to you.

As always, if you have any questions around filing your taxes, simply get in touch. 

Do You Have Concerns? Give Us a Call

We’re aware that some of President Trump’s new directives are causing a degree of concern among our clients.

Our advice—particularly while there are legal challenges in place—is to not make any hasty decisions over the first few months of the new administration.

We can help formulate a range of strategies to deal with any tax or legal concerns.

If you have any questions about paying tax or anything else within our realm of expertise, simply give us a call at 818.532.1020.