Internal Revenue Manual - 25.4.2 "Caution Upon Contact" Taxpayer

IRS Resources

Part 25. Special Topics
Chapter 4. Employee Protection
Section 2. "Caution Upon Contact" Taxpayer

The designation of "Caution Upon Contact" must be based on reliable evidence or information. There must also be a nexus to tax administration.
Taxpayers must be identified by Social Security Numbers and/or Employer Identification Numbers.
A PDT designation takes precedence over a CAU designation. As a result, taxpayers who have been identified as PDT's cannot be simultaneously designated with the Caution indicator.
The following criteria have been established for determining CAU status:
1. Threat of physical harm that is less severe or immediate than necessary to satisfy PDT criteria;
2. Suicide threat by the taxpayer; or
3. Filing or threatening to file a frivolous lien or a frivolous criminal or civil legal action against an IRS employee or contractor or an IRS employee's or contractor's immediate family member.
Note:

The preceding criteria were approved by Chief Counsel. Adherence to the criteria is essential to ensure compliance with the Privacy Act. If a particular situation represents a borderline case in the application of the above criteria, the determination should be made in favor of the CAU designation (erring on the side of caution) for the protection of Service employees.
A taxpayer who meets any of the above criteria should be approached with caution.

Employees will complete and submit a Caution Indicator Referral Report, Form 13090, to the OEP via fax, mail or a secure E-mail message. Employees should provide a copy of the completed form to their immediate manager.
The form should contain a minimal amount of tax information and only what is necessary to explain the incident. Employees should not include subjective statements such as "I didn't feel threatened" .
When preparing Form 13090, employees should be sure to:
1. Cite the specific CAU criterion or criteria met during the incident;
2. Supply the taxpayer's Social Security Number or Employer Identification Number; and
3. Mention the exact words or gestures made by the taxpayer.

The Chief, OEP has the authority to make all CAU determinations.
Cases determined to not meet CAU criteria can be appealed by the referring employee's manager.
The referring employee's manager should contact the OEP, either in writing or by telephone, to discuss the reasons for disagreement.
If an agreement is not reached between the OEP and the employee's manager, the OEP will forward the case to Chief Counsel, who will make the final decision on the determination.

Under the service-wide CAU Indicator database, which is a component of the Employee Protection System (EPS), input and removal of the CAU indicator is restricted to the OEP.
Input of the CAU indicator will result in the initials " CAU" being listed on all IDRS/Master File documents and ICS, as listed in Exhibit 25.4.2-1.
If an employee is unsure whether the CAU indicator is on the primary or secondary taxpayer, the employee could contact the OEP at (313) 628-3742.

If a CAU referral meets PDT criteria rather than CAU criteria:
1. The OEP will notify the referring employee and his/her manager that a PDT case will be initiated on the reported incident.
2. The OEP will contact the referring employee's local TIGTA Field Division to begin an investigation and to initiate a PDT case.

A CAU indicator will remain on the taxpayer's IDRS/Master File account for five years, at which time, the status will be reevaluated by the OEP.
Any taxpayer who has been designated with a CAU indicator for five years, and who meets one or both of the following criteria, will retain the CAU indicator for an additional five-year period:
1. An additional CAU or PDT referral was made during the five-year period under review and/or
2. There is current IRS activity by Criminal Investigation, Collection or Examination at the time of the review.
If the taxpayer does not meet either of the above criteria, the OEP will remove the CAU indicator from that taxpayer's IDRS/master file account.

The CAU indicator will be reflected on the following IDRS/Master File documents:

Part 25. Special Topics