Duties

Chief Counsel attorneys provide top quality legal advice and representation to the IRS in the administration of the nation's tax laws. With the Internal Revenue Service as its primary client and 1500 attorneys on staff, the Office of Chief Counsel is the preeminent employer for tax attorneys in the country. Our attorneys are valued assets and the legal experience provided by Chief Counsel is unlike any other. The Office of the Associate Chief Counsel (Employee Benefits, Exempt Organizations and Employment Taxes) provides legal advice and litigation support services on tax matters involving employee retirement plans, exempt organizations, employment tax, executive compensation, health and welfare benefits, and certain federal, state, local and Indian Tribal Government issues. We are seeking to fill one or more positions in the Employee Benefits, Exempt Organizations and Employment Taxes (EEE) Associate office with one or more attorneys.

As a General Attorney (Tax), you will handle all aspects related to professional legal work involving one or more of the following areas:

Qualified Retirement Plans - §§ 401-436 - rules for qualified retirement plans; § 403(b) - certain employee annuity plans; §§ 408 and 408A - individual retirement arrangements (IRAs) and Roth IRAs; § 457(b) - certain eligible deferred compensation plans; § 414(d) - governmental plans; § 414(e) church plans; § 501(a) - exemption from tax for qualified retirement plan trusts; § 72 - taxation of distributions from qualified retirement plans; § 3405 - withholding rules for designated distributions from retirement arrangements; §§ 4971, 4972, 4980, 4980F - penalties and excise taxes related to qualified retirement plan failures.

Executive Compensation Arrangements - § 83 - property transferred in connection with the performance of service; § 162(m) - deduction limit on excess compensation; §§ 280G and 4999 - golden parachute payments; § 402(b) - nonexempt employees trust/secular trust; § 403(c) - non-qualified annuities or annuities purchased by exempt organizations; § 404(a)(5) - deduction for nonqualified deferred compensation; § 409A - nonqualified deferred compensation; §§ 421 through 424 - statutory stock options; § 451 - constructive receipt (as applied to compensation arrangements); § 457(f) - tax treatment of participants in ineligible deferred compensation plans of state and local governments and tax-exempt entities; § 457A - nonqualified deferred compensation from certain tax indifferent parties, and § 4960 - excise tax on tax-exempt organization executive compensation.

Health and Welfare Benefits - § 79 - group term life insurance; § 104 - compensation for injuries and sickness (except § 104(a)(2)); § 105 - accident and health plans; § 106 -employer provided coverage under accident or health plans; § 125 - cafeteria plans; § 129 -dependent care assistance programs; § 223 - health savings accounts; §§ 419 and 419A - funded welfare benefit plans; § 501(c)(9) - voluntary employees' beneficiary associations (VEBAs); § 4980B - continuation coverage requirements of group health plans (COBRA); § 4980H - employer shared responsibility provisions; §§ 9801 through 9833 -HIPAA and related health care benefit provisions.

Employment Tax - § 61 - fringe benefit valuation rules; § 74(c) - employee achievement awards; § 107 - parsonage allowance; § 102(c) - employee gifts; § 117(c) - scholarship limitation; § 119 - meals and lodging; § 132 - certain fringe benefits; §§ 1401 through 1403 - self-employment tax; §§ 3101 through 3128 - Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) tax, including worker classification; §§ 3201 through 3241 Railroad Retirement Tax Act (RRTA) tax; §§ 3301 through 3311 - Federal Unemployment Tax Act (FUTA) tax; §§ 3401 through 3404 - federal income tax withholding, including statutory employer rule; §§ 3501 through 3512 - general employment tax provisions, including agents and Certified professional employer organizations; Miscellaneous Subtitle F provisions - employment tax reporting, refund and adjustment procedures; § 7436 - Tax Court proceedings for determinations of employment status; Section 530 of the Revenue Act of 1978.

This is not an all-inclusive list.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• Refer to "Additional Information"
• Click "Print Preview" to review the entire announcement before applying.
• Must be a U.S. Citizen or National

Qualifications

To qualify, you must meet the education and/or experience requirements described below. Your resume must clearly describe your relevant experience; if qualifying based on education, your transcripts will be required as part of your application.

To qualify for this position of General Attorney (Tax) you must meet the qualification requirements listed below by the closing date of this announcement:

Basic Requirements for General Attorney (Tax):

• Possess at least the first professional law degree (LL.B. or J.D.) from a law school accredited by the American Bar Association; AND
• Applicants must be an active member in good standing of the bar of a State, U.S. Commonwealth, U.S. territory, the District of Columbia, or the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico.

GS-13 Experience Requirements:

• 1 year of general professional legal experience; plus
• 1 year of professional legal tax experience

GS-14 Experience Requirements:

• 1 year of general professional legal experience; plus
• 2 years of professional legal tax experience

Professional Legal Tax Experience is defined as: Working on the basic concepts underlying the federal taxation of employee benefit arrangements (including familiarity with the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) [regarding qualified retirement plans, executive compensation and health and welfare benefits]and/or the federal taxation of fringe benefits and federal employment taxes. The professional tax experience must include handling of sophisticated legal issues and interpretations relating to one or more of these areas.

At least one year of this experience must be equivalent to the work performed at the next lower grade/level position in the federal service for the grade you are applying to. Note: Only experience gained after Bar Admission may be credited as Professional Legal Service.

Education Substitution: An LL.M. degree may be substituted for the one year of the general legal experience listed above.

Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community; student; social). You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. One year of experience refers to full-time work; part-time work is considered on a prorated basis. To ensure full credit for your work experience, please indicate dates of employment by month/year, and indicate number of hours worked per week, on your resume.

Education

For positions with an education requirement, or if you are qualifying for this position by substituting education or training for experience, submit a copy of your transcripts or equivalent. An official transcript will be required if you are selected.

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: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show the education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. If you are qualifying based on foreign education, you must submit proof of creditability of education as evaluated by a credentialing agency. For further information, visit: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html .

Additional information

• We may select from this announcement or any other source to fill one or more vacancies.
• Relocation expenses are not authorized.
• This is abargaining unit position.
• We offer opportunities for telework.

Conditions of Employment Continued:

• Subject to a 1-year trial period (unless already completed).
• Subject to a Tenure Commitment of up to 3 years.
• Must successfully complete a background investigation.
• Complete a Declaration for Federal Employment to determine your suitability for Federal employment, at the time requested by the agency.
• If you are a male applicant born after December 31, 1959, certify that you have registered with the Selective Service System or are exempt from having to do so.
• Have your salary sent to a financial institution of your choice by Direct Deposit/Electronic Funds Transfer.
• Go through a Personal Identity Verification (PIV) process that requires two forms of identification from the Form I-9 . Federal law requires verification of the identity and employment eligibility of all new hires in the U.S.
• Obtain and use a Government-issued charge card for business-related travel.
• Undergo an income tax verification.
• 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.