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1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesIRS employees cannot browse taxpayer records just because they work for the agency. They may access returns and return information only when they have a need to know it for their official tax-administration duties. Internal sharing is also limited to recipients with an official need, and access is subject to safeguards and review.
What gives an IRS employee permission to view a record?
The governing principle is purpose-specific need to know: an employee’s duties must require the particular information being accessed. The IRS Internal Revenue Manual (IRM) says employees may access returns and return information only when they have a “need to know” it for their tax-administration duties. See IRM 11.3.22.2.1, Access by IRS Employees (subsection dated August 4, 2021; the manual page reports an overall effective date of August 9, 2024).
In practical terms, being an IRS employee is not blanket permission to look up any taxpayer. Authorization depends on both the employee’s official work and the information necessary to do it. Curiosity, a personal relationship, or a request unrelated to assigned duties is not a tax-administration need.
Can one IRS employee share taxpayer information with another?
Internal sharing is not automatically permitted just because both people work for the IRS. The employee proposing to share information is responsible for satisfying themselves that the recipient has an official tax-administration need. For requests for legal, technical, or procedural assistance, the manual describes establishing that need case by case.
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Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →If the recipient does not need the taxpayer’s identity to provide assistance or training, staff should avoid sharing identifying details. But removing names or other identifiers does not necessarily make the information unrestricted: original figures from a tax return can remain protected return information.
How do federal tax-confidentiality rules fit in?
Internal access and disclosure sit within the broader confidentiality framework of Internal Revenue Code section 6103, which generally restricts disclosure of returns and return information, subject to specified authorities and exceptions.
Tax-administration work
The IRS describes section 6103(h) as covering federal officers and employees who need tax information for federal tax-administration purposes. That authority is tied to the stated purpose; it is not permission to inspect records without a work-related need.
Specified investigative disclosures
Section 6103(k)(6) allows certain disclosures needed to obtain otherwise unavailable information in official audits, collection work, and civil or criminal tax investigations. These are defined, purpose-specific authorities—not a general license to disclose taxpayer information. The IRS explains these provisions in its section 6103 access guidance.
What controls apply before and during access?
The IRS’s UNAX program addresses unauthorized access or attempted access. Its manual applies to employees and contractors, including some vendor and outsourcing personnel who have staff-like access. The current UNAX program manual states that it became effective April 21, 2026, superseding the March 8, 2023 version. It describes required training and background investigations before access to sensitive information is granted.
IRS safeguards guidance calls for audit records that can help reconstruct successful and unsuccessful access attempts and other material system activity. Examples include logins and logoffs, authorization failures, privileged-user activity, changes to access rights, the responsible user or account, and event date and time. Audit trails should themselves be protected from unauthorized access, deletion, or modification. See the IRS Safeguards program audit guidance.
The IRS also describes proactive auditing signals for recipient agencies handling federal tax information. Examples include unusual access volume, access to records previously viewed when there is no current assignment or need, and patterns involving a small geographic area or restricted taxpayer identifiers. A signal can prompt review; on its own, it does not prove misconduct.
What counts as unauthorized access, and what can happen?
The IRS calls willful unauthorized access or inspection of taxpayer records UNAX. Its public guidance identifies IRC section 7213A as the relevant misdemeanor provision. The IRS says willful unauthorized access can carry a fine of up to $1,000 and up to one year in prison, and notes potential civil damages under section 7431. These are general descriptions; the law’s application depends on the statute and the facts of a particular case. See the IRS UNAX awareness guidance and disclosure-awareness material.
IRS managers and employees are instructed to report suspected willful unauthorized access, inspection, disclosure, or related Privacy Act violations promptly upon discovery, as described in the UNAX program manual.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What the public rules do not establish
The published guidance describes the governing need-to-know rule, UNAX program framework, and audit expectations, but it does not establish one approval workflow, access-review interval, or control map that applies to every IRS system. The public material also does not mean every audit signal results in a finding of wrongdoing; the underlying circumstances must be assessed.
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