IRS Announces Freedom of Information Act Fee Increase
The IRS recently announced that starting Jan. 1, 2022, IRS Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) fees for search efforts, review efforts and duplication of records increased, regardless of requester category type.
Search fees increased from $41 per hour to $50 per hour. Review fees for Commercial requesters increased from $45 per hour to $50 per hour.
Duplication fees will no longer have a charge of $25 per CD that contains 1,000 or more responsive records.
Duplication fees are restructured to apply only when:
a) hardcopy records must be copied, or electronic records must be printed to provide hardcopy records, which results in fees of $.20 per page or
b) hardcopy records must be scanned to provide the records on electronic media. In these cases, fees are $30 per hour to scan records at a current rate of 1,000 pages per hour.
c) records are available electronically (i.e., copies of email records); there is no duplication charge to provide the records in electronic format such as a CD.
Internal Revenue Manual (IRM) IRM 11.3.5, Fees, was updated October 18, 2021, to reflect these changes. The IRS FOIA Guidelines have also been updated.