Telework eligibleFederal

Internal Revenue Agent (Employee Plans Agent)

Internal Revenue Service · Department of the Treasury

Salary
$40,736–$137,128/year
Grade
5–9
Work location
Telework eligible (US)
Schedule
Tour of Duty: Monday-Friday, 8:00am - 4:30pm.
Posted
Aug 10, 2026
Apply by
Aug 21, 2026
Category
Internal Revenue Agent

Apply on USAJOBS →

Source: USAJOBS. Applications happen on the original posting, not on this site.

Summary

WHAT IS TAX EXEMPT/GOVERNMENT ENTITIES? A description of the business units can be found at: https://www.jobs.irs.gov/about/who/business-divisions Position(s) are to be filled in following area(s): Tax Exempt/Government Entities (TEGE), Employee Plans, Examinations. This job (or announcement) is open to current permanent IRS competitive service employees in Tax Exempt/Government Entities business units. REVIEW THE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION BELOW FOR FURTHER DETAILS

Duties

The following are the duties of this position at the full working level. If this vacancy includes more than one grade and you are selected at a lower grade level, you will have the opportunity to learn to perform these duties and receive training to help you grow in this position. Under guidance, analyzes and issues determination letter applications with accompanying information and applies technical tests to verify that a pension, profit sharing, and stock bonus plans' governing document satisfies Internal Revenue Code and other regulatory provisions. Analyzes and issues determination letter applications with accompanying information and applies technical tests to verify that a pension, profit sharing, and stock bonus plans' governing document satisfies Internal Revenue Code and other regulatory provisions. Provides general advice pertinent to employee plans, guidelines/codes, benefits, etc. to internal and external customers with professional and helpful service. Such includes guidance on how to follow the plan document's terms and statutes governing compliance with the tax law related to the plan's form and operational compliance. (i.e., tax law, government position, what barriers have occurred in the plan, etc.). STANDARD POSITION DESCRIPTIONS (SPD): PD23460, PD23459, and PD23458 Visit the IRS SPD Library to access the position descriptions.

Requirements

Probationary Period - A person who is required to go through a probationary period and then is transferred, promoted, demoted, or reassigned before he or she completes such period is required to complete the remainder of the probationary period in the new position. Tax Audit - The employment of any candidate, including a current employee or a new hire, selected for this position may be conditional upon classification and/or audit of federal tax returns. This audit may include up to 2 years of returns. ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS SHOWN IN QUALIFICATIONS SECTION

Education

Specialized Experience GS-09: In addition to the basic requirements, you must have 1 year of Specialized Experience at a level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to the GS-07 grade level in the Federal service. Specialized experience for this position includes: Qualifying experience in accounting, auditing, tax, financial, legal, or other fields to sufficiently demonstrate knowledge of and skill in applying the principles, concepts and methodology of professional accounting and related fields. Examples of qualifying experience may include (but list is not all inclusive): Professional accounting work that includes the design, development, operation, or inspection of financial/accounting systems; examination, analysis and interpretation of accounting data, records, or reports; provides accounting or financial management advice and assistance to management; auditing various types of tax returns to determine federal tax liability of individual taxpayers, businesses, or corporations; Interpreting and applying the Internal Revenue Code and related regulations and procedures; Making determination and redetermination, or audit, on liability for Federal taxes. Testing, tying and reconciling information across various data sources to ensure accuracy, consistency and completeness. Documenting actions taken in a written narrative that is clear, concise, accurate and complete. Drafting, consolidating, and reviewing financial statements. Make recommendations to internal and external stakeholders to improve processes Interacting with clients or customers by asking precise questions, documenting answers thoroughly, explaining complex issues and managing difficult conversations professionally. OR EDUCATION: A course of study that includes two (2) full years of progressively higher-level graduate education, leading to a master's degree, in accounting or related field of business law, economics, statistical/quantitative methods, computerized accounting or financial systems, financial management, or finance. OR A master's degree in accounting or related field of business law, economics, statistical/quantitative methods, computerized accounting or financial systems, financial management, or finance. OR an equivalent amount of combined education and experience as described in paragraphs above. AND You must also meet the following requirement(s): TIME AFTER COMPETITIVE APPOINTMENT (TACA): By the closing date (or if this is an open continuous announcement, by the cut-off date) specified in this job announcement, current civilian employees must have completed at least 90 days of federal civilian service since their latest non-temporary appointment from a competitive referral certificate, known as time after competitive appointment. For this requirement, a competitive appointment is one where you applied to and were appointed from an announcement open to "All US Citizens" TIME IN GRADE (TIG): For positions above the GS-05, applicants must meet applicable time-in-­grade requirements to be considered eligible. One year (52 weeks) at the next lower grade level is required to meet the time-in-grade requirements for the grade you are applying for. For positions at the GS-05, you cannot advance to the GS-05 if you have held a GS-02 in the past 52 weeks. There is no TIG restriction for GS-02, 03 or 04 positions. A college or university degree generally must be from an accredited (or pre-accredited) college or university recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. For a list of schools which meet these criteria, please refer to Department of Education Accreditation page. FOREIGN EDUCATION: Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the requirements. You must show proof the education credentials have been deemed to be at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. education program. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence when applying. Click here (Section 3, Explanation of Terms) or here for Foreign Education Credentialing instructions. We recommend choosing an evaluator from a member organization of one of the following national associations of credential evaluation services: National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) or Association of International Credentials Evaluators (AICE).

How you will be evaluated

Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), your responses on the application questionnaire, and your responses to all assessments required for this position. Applicants who disqualify themselves will not be evaluated further. You will be assessed on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics): Accounting Principles Auditing Decision Making Interpersonal Skills Planning and Evaluating Self Management Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on an assessment may also result in your removal from consideration. Rating: Your application will be evaluated in accordance with the Service's Merit Promotion Plan. A quality group rating will be used to rank and select eligible candidates. If qualified, you will be assigned to one of three quality level groups, Superior/Best Qualified, Highly Qualified and Qualified. Referral: Eligible applicants rated in the highest quality group, may be referred to a selecting official for consideration. Candidates, if required to participate in a selection interview (telephonic and/or in person at the discretion of the Selecting Official in accordance with hiring practices), will be interviewed in quality group order. We will not reimburse costs related to the interview such as travel to and from the interview site. Performance Appraisal and Awards - Will not be used in determining your overall rating. Any performance appraisal/evaluation and award documentation you provide will be forwarded to the selecting official. The selecting official will review this documentation and give it due weight consideration during the overall selection process. IRS employees may obtain their most recent awards listing at https://persinfo.web.irs.gov/. If you are a displaced or surplus Federal employee (eligible for the Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP), you must receive a score of Highly Qualified or better to be rated as "well qualified" to receive special selection priority.

Check your resume against this job

Rule-based, on-device analysis — your resume text is never sent to our servers or stored anywhere. Not a substitute for professional resume review.