How to Make an Offshore Voluntary Disclosure
The Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program is offered to those taxpayers with undisclosed offshore accounts or assets. Please follow the process outlined below. You should refer to How to Make a Domestic Voluntary Disclosure if the undisclosed accounts are domestic in nature.
Pre-Clearance:
Taxpayers or representatives may fax to the IRS Criminal Investigation Lead Development Center at (267) 941-1115 the taxpayers' name, date of birth, social security number and address (if the taxpayer is represented by a tax professional, an executed power of attorney must be included).
IRS Criminal Investigation will then notify taxpayers or their representatives via fax whether or not they have been cleared to make a voluntary disclosure using the Offshore Voluntary Disclosures Letter. Taxpayers or representatives with questions regarding the pre-clearance can call (267) 941-1607 or contact their nearest Criminal Investigation Office.
Note: Pre-clearance does not guarantee a taxpayer acceptance into the Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program.
Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Letter
If the taxpayer chooses to submit a pre-clearance request, after the taxpayer receives a pre-clearance notification, the taxpayer will have 30 days from receipt of the fax notification to complete the Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Letter and attachment (under documents). If the taxpayer chooses to bypass the pre-clearance process, the taxpayer must mail the Offshore Voluntary Disclosures Letter to the following address:
Internal Revenue Service
Criminal Investigation
ATTN: Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Coordinator
Philadelphia Lead Development Center
1-D04-100
2970 Market Street
Philadelphia, PA 19104The IRS will review the offshore Voluntary Disclosures Letters and notify the taxpayer or representative by mail whether the voluntary disclosure has been preliminarily accepted or declined.
Complete Voluntary Disclosure Package
Once the voluntary disclosure has been preliminarily accepted, the taxpayer should send the full voluntary disclosure package to:
Internal Revenue Service
3651 S. I H 35 Stop 4301 AUSC
Austin, TX 78741
ATTN: 2011 Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Initiative
Opt Out Procedure
Taxpayers may request to opt out of the civil settlement structure of the 2009 Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Program or 2011 Offshore Voluntary Disclosure Initiative. For specific information on the opt out process, see questions 51.1 through 51.3 under the 2011 OVDI Frequently Asked Questions and Answers.
Tax administration questions such as Where's My Refund or Where Do I File can be addressed by other IRS offices.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
IRS Criminal Investigation Home Page
