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Tax Administration: Sole Proprietor Identification Numbers Can Be Improved

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Report Type Reports and Testimonies
Report Date Sept. 18, 1995
Report No. GGD-95-160
Subject
Summary:

Taxpayers are required to have identification numbers so that IRS can establish accounts for them and record transactions, such as the payment of taxes. Most taxpayers have only one identification number. However, persons who are self-employed (referred to as sole proprietors) are sometimes required to have two identification numbers--a Social Security Numbers for their individual income tax returns and an Employer Identification Number for their business returns. According to the Internal Revenue Serviced (IRS), sole proprietors are among the worst groups in terms of reporting all income. This report discusses whether IRS (1) accurately cross references the two identification numbers that self-employed persons report and (2) needs to take steps to improve the accuracy of its cross-reference files.

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