The Treasury Department has called for 46,000 IRS employees to return to work before tax season begins on January 28th. Most of those employees will be unpaid until the shutdown ends. The IRS will be working with 57% of their usual staff while dealing with the backlog created by 25 days of shutdown and recent changes to the tax code.The IRS has announced that tax refunds will be processed as usual even if the shutdown continues and that they will be opening call sites and answering taxpayer questions. The IRS is accepting payments and taxpayers must continue to meet deadlines for filings and payments.
The same amount of work that needs to be done during a tax season will need to be completed by a reduced workforce until the shutdown ends. Though the IRS is optimistic, you may want to be prepared for slower service during the upcoming tax season.