Do I have to provide all the documentation that the auditor is requesting? Yes and no. If the IRS wants to, the IRS auditor has broad authority to get whatever documentation they need in connection with the audit. If you refuse to provide the documentation, the auditor can issue a summons and you can end up in district court, which is the last place you want to be in an audit.
But the reality of the situation is, the IRS auditor has limited resources. You’re one of many cases that the IRS auditor has open, and the auditor has only a certain amount of hours in the day, just like we all do. So the auditor is forced to pick and choose where they want their fights to be. Now, the auditor is going to need all the documentation that they need to complete the audit. But in the course of the process, you can negotiate with the auditor in an effort to trim down the IDR or focus on the issues that are really important. The auditor wants to see receipts for $5 ,000 worth of expenses. Maybe you can talk them into thinking that that’s immaterial and requesting only larger expense categories as a method of verifying the expenses on the return.
The point is, is even with this backstop and even with the broad power that they’re given, IRS auditors are under some limitations. So if you’re strategic about it, you can limit the scope of their investigation, move them through the process quickly, and get the audit over with as soon as possible.