Duties

Summary

The Wage & Investment Division (W&I) serves about 122 million taxpayers who file upwards of 94 million returns each year. Key W&I objectives are to provide high-quality taxpayer assistance, and to enable taxpayers to transact and communicate electronically to file their returns, make payments and receive assistance. W&I partners with private organizations to provide assistance to such disadvantaged groups as elderly and low-income taxpayers.

See "Other Information" for Locations.

Learn more about this agency

Responsibilities

WHAT DOES A CLERK (INITIAL ASSISTANCE REPRESENTATIVE) DO? As a Clerk (Initial Assistance Representative), you will serve as the first point of contact for all customers coming into the Field Assistance walk-in site. You will work with taxpayers and tax practitioners needing tax assistance, as well as, a variety of other individuals including higher-level management from Headquarters, IRS officials, news media and individuals who need to be directed to other offices. In this role, you will be responsible for assessing/determining the taxpayer needs and then directing them to the appropriate individual or area. You will also work to control the walk-in area traffic flow and demands.

As an Initial Assistance Representative Clerk you will:

• Provide assistance by assessing taxpayer needs and directing them to the appropriate individual.
• Analyze and suggest resolution to reduce barriers impacting the effectiveness of operations and improve efficiency of the work area.
• Assist taxpayers with inquiries on basic tax law, forms, and IRS services such as W-2, W-7, obtaining an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number, filing requirements, filing status, and VITA locations.
• Examine returns, supporting documents, and monetary receipts for completeness and discrepancies.
• Use word processing and other software to produce a variety of correspondence in proper format, with responsibility for procedural and grammatical accuracy, factual correctness, and adequacy of treatment.

WHERE CAN I FIND OUT MORE ABOUT OTHER IRS CAREERS? If you want to find out more about IRS careers, visit us on the web at www.jobs.irs.gov

Travel Required

Occasional travel - 1 to 5 Nights per Month

Supervisory status
No

Promotion Potential
05

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

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

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Qualifications

You must meet the following requirements by the closing date of this announcement:

GS-05 LEVEL: A. One year of specialized at a level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to the GS-04 grade in the Federal service. Specialized experience is experience that is related to the work of this position and has provided you with the competencies required for successful job performance. Specialized experience is administrative, typing or other work that indicates knowledge of the procedures and technique involved in carrying out the work of an organization and involves application of procedures and practices within the framework of established guidelines. Examples of General Clerical experience may be; A clerk, secretary, administrative assistant, maintaining accounting files, Accounts Receivable/payable filing clerk, data entry clerk, or other positions that included application of typing and/or telephone skills as a significant part of the work. OR A Bachelor's degree or four (4) years of education above high school in any field of study from an accredited college or university. OR A combination of education and experience equivalent to that described above.
OR
You may qualify by a combination of experience and education. Options for qualifying based on a combination will be identified in the online questions.　

• The experience may have been gained in either the public or private sector or Volunteer Service . 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

Additional information

1 (One) Position is located in Wage & Investment Cust Ast-Relatnshp & Ed(Care) Field Assistance at 77 K Street NE, Washington, D.C. (DC0198).


CONDITIONS OF EMPLOYMENT:

- We may select from this announcement or any other source to fill one or more vacancies.
- This is a bargaining unit position.
- We offer opportunities for flexible work schedules.
- A 1-year probationary period is required.
- A 1-year supervisory or managerial probationary period is required.
- Must successfully complete a background investigation including an FBI criminal history record check (fingerprint check).
- 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 and review of prior performance/conduct.
- Tour of Duty: Monday - Friday 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
- Length of Season: 6 to 8 Months.
- Eligible for Health and Life Insurance.
- 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.


How You Will Be Evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

Your application includes your resume, responses to the online questions, and required supporting documents. Please be sure that your resume includes detailed information to support your qualifications for this position; failure to provide sufficient evidence in your resume may result in a "not qualified" determination.

Rating: Your application will be evaluated in the following areas: Reading, Listening, Conscientiousness, Interpersonal Skills, Flexibility, Teamwork and Customer Service. Category rating will be used to rank and select eligible candidates. If qualified, you will be assigned to one of two quality level categories, (i.e., A/B = Best Qualified, C= Qualified) depending on your responses to the online questions, regarding your experience, education, and training related to this position. Your rating may be lowered if your responses to the online questions are not supported by the education and/or experience described in your application.

Veterans' preference is applied after applicants are assessed. Preference-eligibles will be listed at the top of their assigned category and considered before non-preference-eligibles in that category. Qualified preference-eligibles with a compensable service-connected disability of 10% or more will be listed at the top of the highest category.

Referral: If you are among the top qualified candidates, your application may be referred to a selecting official for consideration. You may be required to participate in a selection interview (telephonic and/or in person at the discretion of the Selecting Official in accordance with hiring polices). We will not reimburse costs related to the interview such as travel to and from the interview site. If you are a displaced or surplus Federal employee (eligible for the Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP)/Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) , you must receive a rating of category A/B or better to be rated as "well qualified" to receive special selection priority.

To preview questions please click here .

Background checks and security clearance

Security clearance
Not Required

Drug test required
No

Required Documents

A complete application includes 1. A resume, 2. Vacancy question responses, and 3. Submission of any required documents. Please note that if you do not provide all required information, as specified in this announcement, you will not be considered for this position (or may not receive the special consideration for which you may be eligible).

All applicants are required to submit a resume either by creating one in USAJOBS or uploading one of their own choosing. ( Cover letters are optional). To receive full credit for relevant experience, please list the month/year and number of hours worked for experience listed on your resume. We suggest that you preview the online questions, as you may need to customize your resume to ensure that it supports your responses to these questions. Please view Resume Tips

VETERANS' PREFERENCE DOCUMENTATION: If you are claiming veterans' preference, you must submit a copy of your DD-214 (Member 4 copy), or other official documentation from a branch of the Armed Forces or the Department of Veterans Affairs showing dates of service and type of discharge. Ten-point preference eligibles must also submit an Application for 10-point Veteran Preference, SF-15 , along with the required documentation listed on the back of the SF-15 form. For more information on veterans' preference view FedsHireVets .

Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) or Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) DOCUMENTATION If you are a displaced or surplus Federal employee, click CTAP/ICTAP for eligibility and a detailed list of required documents. IRS CTAP eligibles can apply for jobs both within and outside the commuting area.

EDUCATION DOCUMENTATION: 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 . If you are qualifying based on foreign education, you must submit proof of creditability of education as evaluated by a credentialing agency. Refer to the OPM instructions.


If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:

Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education .

Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.