The Thrive Business Group “Worry Free” Client Care package will provide notice and audit defense services listed below for your 2023 income tax return.
What Certain Terms Mean:
“Audit” means any IRS or State review, examination, investigation, or verification of the information on your 2023 income tax return.
“Notice” is any IRS or State communication, whether written, by telephone, or electronic, indicating that one of the income tax authorities is questioning an item on your return.
“Acceptance Date”: the date Thrive Business Group receives your payment for your tax preparation and Plan in full. Your acceptance date appears on the membership certificate. Your acceptance date establishes the date from which your “Worry Free” Client Care Package goes into effect.
“Statute of Limitations”: is the term describing the period of time during which the IRS or State can audit your income tax return; for the IRS this is generally three years from the date of filing or the due date (typically four years for States), whichever is later.
The Period of Coverage begins on the Acceptance Date and ends with the expiration of the normal Statute of Limitations.
Refund/Rescission Period is the thirty (30) calendar day period commencing on the date of initial purchase during which you may cancel your Plan for a refund of your purchase price. Thereafter, your plan is irrevocably in force, and has been in force for thirty (30) days, during and after which you are entitled to audit protection services. After the Refund/Rescission Period the amount you paid for your Audit Protection Plan is deemed fully earned by us and is non-refundable.
Items Needed refers to the information that we need from you to be able to represent you in the event you receive a Notice and consists of: i) the IRS or State Notice (all pages); ii) a completed and signed IRS Form 2848 Power of Attorney and/or IRS Form 8821 Tax Information Authorization.
What’s Included in Each Plan:
Basic Plan
- We’ll respond to written additional information notices from the IRS and State tax authority.
Silver Plan
Includes everything in Basic Plan, PLUS:
- We’ll respond to written audit notices from the IRS.
- **We’ll represent and defend you in case of an IRS Income Tax Audit.
Gold Plan
Includes everything in Silver Plan, PLUS:
- We’ll respond to written audit notices from the State tax authorities.
- **We’ll represent and defend you in case of an State Tax Income Tax Audit.
**We’ll waive our hourly Audit fee for up to 10 hours of audit representation. Additional hours will be billed at our regular rate of $400/hour.
This protection becomes effective upon the filing of your 2023 Income Tax Form and generally lasts for 3 years from the date your return was filed.
CONFIDENTIALITY
As a “Worry Free” Client Care Package purchaser, your name, address, and any other personal information will not be disclosed or sold to any persons or firms. Only our Thrive Business Group staff will have access to your tax information.
“WORRY FREE” CLIENT CARE PACKAGE BENEFITS
Our professionals will professionally represent you in an audit of your 2023 income tax return filed for which you purchased a “Worry Free” Client Care Package, subject to you fulfilling your responsibilities as set forth below and the Package Limitations and Exclusions described below.
Notices / Audits: We will:
- Assign a licensed team member to manage your case;
- Develop a strategy with you for responding to the Audit or Notice;
- Handle all communications, in any form, with the IRS or State regarding Your Audit or Notice;
- Negotiate with the IRS or State through the audit or audit manager’s review.
- Settle with the IRS or State when we have your approval to do so;
- Establish an installment agreement with your approval or inform you as to your strategies and procedural options if your Audit results in additional tax, and you do not have the resources to pay the obligation when due.
Your Responsibility:
Upon receipt of any communication from the IRS or State, you are responsible to perform or provide the following:
- Promptly provide your notice (all pages) to Thrive Business Group. Do not contact the IRS or State. To ensure effective service regarding your notice or audit, you must use your assigned team members as your only contact with the IRS or State. If you do not contact us within 15 days of the date of the first notice, additional charges may apply. If you wait too long, you will eliminate our ability to defend your case.
- Provide your signature(s) on the required IRS or State Power of Attorney forms and return to your assigned team members in a timely manner. This will enable your representing team member to communicate with the IRS or State on your behalf. This document may not be altered in any way.
- Provide in a timely manner the information and documentation necessary to substantiate the various items of income and expense in question so that your representing team member can prepare your defense.
- We ask that you comply with the procedure and strategy actions we recommend on your behalf. If you are unable to maintain this commitment, we cannot be responsible for the outcome of your audit and reserve the right to cease providing services where reasonably warranted.
“WORRY FREE” CLIENT CARE PACKAGE LIMITATIONS
Your purchase of a “Worry Free” Client Care Package for the current tax filing period must be made before the date of any IRS or State Notice, specifically; the Notice must be dated after you’ve purchased the a “Worry Free” Client Care Package.
- We do not provide legal assistance, nor represent you in Federal or State Court, or Tax Court.
- We do not provide legal assistance in defending issues of civil or criminal fraud.
- We do not represent you though an audit appeal.
- Preparation or amendment of income tax returns is not included in this package.
- We will not reconcile checkbooks, organize records or do record keeping or bookkeeping.
- We are not responsible for the extra work and costs involved if you report your Notice or Audit late or you do not cooperate by providing documentation in a timely manner which results in the IRS or State agency issuing a Notice of Deficiency or equivalent. If this occurs, we will pass these costs on to you in the form of a late fee.
- We will waive our hourly billing rates for up to 10 hours of audit representation. Additional hours will be billed at our regular rate of $400 per hour.
“WORRY FREE” CLIENT CARE PACKAGE EXCLUSIONS
Certain Audits, income tax return filings and associated issues of Audit will be excluded from the Package:
- Pre-existing conditions — If the date on the Notice is prior to the Date you signed up for coverage.
- Large Businesses — Business entities with gross receipts exceeding $5 million and/or 10 partners/stockholders/beneficiaries/members.
- Ownership interest in other tax entities – If You have an ownership interest in a Corporation, Partnership, LLC, LLP, Trust, Estate, or Tax Shelter that has been contacted for an Audit and that entity is not a Package Member.
- Unfiled, late or delinquent tax filings – An unfiled tax return or tax return filed later than the filing deadline (including timely filed extension) will not be covered.
- Returns in which the Taxpayer had knowledge of additional taxes owed as of the date the Taxpayer enrolled in the program. Returns prepared with information provided with negligence, recklessness, or intentional misrepresentation by the Taxpayer.
- Tax protestors –The “Worry Free” Client Care Package excludes from the benefits of Membership anyone protesting the taxing of income on economic, religious, legal or constitutional grounds, or other frivolous claims.
- Inquiries related to foreign income, foreign assets, or other foreign activities and disclosures.
- IRS Criminal Investigation (CI) – The “Worry Free” Client Care Package excludes from the benefits of Membership anyone currently under investigation by IRS CI. We will cease performing audit protection services on any Audit joined by CI, and will exclude from the benefits of Membership any related Audit or Member until completion of the CI. We will resume providing audit protection services on the Audit, if possible.
- Taxes Other Than Income Tax – Your Audit Protection Plan is limited to the type of income tax return that you signed up for. Payroll tax, sales tax, property tax, gross receipts tax, duty and local tax, estate and gift tax and compliance audits of pension and profit sharing plans are excluded from the Client Care Plan package.
TERMINATIONS OF THE “WORRY FREE” CLIENT CARE PACKAGE AGREEMENT
We reserve the right to terminate this Plan upon the breach of any material provision of this Agreement by the client, in the event that an Audit, Tax Return, Tax Identity Theft matter or issue of Audit meets the criteria of any of the “WORRY FREE CLIENT CARE PACKAGE LIMITATIONS” and/or “WORRY FREE CLIENT CARE PACKAGE EXCLUSIONS” listed above, or in the event that a condition renders the completion of our responsibilities under this Agreement unreasonably difficult to fulfill. Conditions that can render completion of our responsibilities unreasonably difficult include, but are not limited to, your failure to reasonably fulfill your responsibilities per above, failure to cooperate during the course of the Audit process, or repeated use of abusive, inappropriate, or unprofessional language when communicating with us. This Plan shall also be deemed to be terminated if the “Worry Free” Client Care Package fee has not been paid or has been refunded to the client.
RIGHT of RESCISSION (REFUND POLICY)
You have the right to rescind your “Worry Free” Client Care Package for the Refund/Rescission Period. Thereafter, Your Plan fee is non-refundable.
Please review the complete Terms and Conditions for all services online at http://cpabellingham.com/blog/terms-and-conditions. A PDF copy is available upon request.
By paying the fee for the “Worry Free” Client Care Package, you acknowledge your agreement with the terms above including the Terms and Conditions addendum online.