I knew it would be a mistake to call the IRS a couple of days before Tax Day, but I was already on the phone with the IRS and I really wanted to get some other things done.  One of my ancillary tasks that day was to request a 2011 tax return transcript for a client.  The first thing I noticed was the complete lack of urgency on the part of the IRS representative.  This is the busiest time of the year for the IRS, but I didn’t get a sense of that from this employee!  I spent nearly 30 minutes with this guy and all I wanted was a simple transcript.  I’ve had a bank levy released more quickly than that.

Eventually he informed me that the 2011 tax return had not been processed yet, so there was no transcript available for 2011 and he would be unable to process my request.  I thanked him for his help and ended the call.

Then, to my surprise, today I received the transcript in question via U.S. mail — it is a two-page letter.  The first page contains standard information about what a transcript is and is not.  The second page shows the taxpayer’s social security number as well as the tax form and tax period in question.   And where the details would normally go, there is the simple phrase: “No record of return filed.”

I didn’t ask for this.  We both agreed that the transcript was not available yet.  But somehow I received a completely unnecessary two-page letter.  That’s the IRS for you…