General information about making a FOIA request

NOTE:  Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Tax Division has adjusted its normal operations to balance the need of completing its mission as effectively and efficiently as possible while also adhering to the recommended social distancing for the safety of our staff.  As a result, you may experience a delay in receiving an initial acknowledgment as well as a substantive response to your FOIA request.  We will be able to acknowledge requests made electronically more quickly than by mail.  You may reach out to our FOIA Requester Service Center and FOIA Public Liaison if you have any questions about your request.  The Tax Division apologizes for this inconvenience and appreciates your understanding and patience.

1. Under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) (5 U.S.C. 552) and Department of Justice regulations, any person may request Tax Division records.
2. All FOIA requests must be made in writing, signed, and mailed to the above address. Alternatively, all requests made pursuant to items 2 and 3 may be electronically sent to TaxDiv.FOIAPA@usdoj.gov. All attachments to e-mail requests must be attached as pdf files.
   
3. Individuals requesting records about themselves must verify their identity before the Tax Division will process the request. One verification method is to complete DOJ Form 361 (Certificate of Identity) and attach it to the request. Please click here to download DOJ Form 361.
4. For more information about making FOIA requests, please refer to the DOJ Reference Guide, a comprehensive guide to the FOIA that serves as a handbook for obtaining information from the Department of Justice and to 28 C.F.R. 16.3 (“Requirements for Making Requests”).

Information about making a FOIA request to the Tax Division

1. FOIA does not require agencies either to create records or to provide narrative responses to inquiries that do not request records. Therefore, requests should seek only existing Tax Division records that do not fall under a specific disclosure exemption (e.g., classified national security matters, personal privacy material, investigative files, trade secrets, privileged information, etc.). See 5 U.S.C. 552(b).
2. To understand the types of records the Tax Division maintains, please see the Component Description above. Individuals seeking records primarily maintained by the Internal Revenue Service, like Forms 1040 or other IRS forms filed with the Service, should submit their FOIA requests in writing to the Internal Revenue Service. See www.irs.gov/foia. The Tax Division does not: (1) process FOIA requests on behalf of the Service, (2) handle general or specific inquiries pertaining to identity theft pertaining to tax returns. See, http://www.irs.gov/Individuals/Identity-Protection for information about identity theft inquiries.

Information Obtained From Justice Department