Tax attorney: Postal delays severely compromise taxpayer rights

01/21/25 - Tax attorney Tina Azarvand, who currently lives on Saipan, is sounding the alarm about how postal delays are hurting taxpayer rights and compliance capabilities in U.S. territories, specifically Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands.

Azarvand wrote to CNMI Delegate Kimberlyn King-Hinds recently describing U.S. Postal Service issues as an “insurmountable barrier to basic constitutional rights.” She said she wrote the letter on behalf of U.S. taxpayers residing in the CNMI and Guam. Azarvand said that delayed mail delivery between the states and the islands places residents here in a “discriminatory situation.”

She explained, “While the IRS provides 30-day response windows for various notices, these critical documents frequently arrive in Guam or the CNMI with merely five days remaining—and in numerous document cases, after the deadlines have already expired.”

She argues that those in the territories lack the same constitutional protections that those living in the states enjoy.

King-Hinds’ office responded to her letter quickly and is planning to address the matter.

Meanwhile, Azarvand said the situation is dire and the delays caused people to miss their 30-day response period for Employee Retention Credit information document requests from the IRS. That means they had to forfeit their claim or hire a tax practitioner to file an appeal. She noted that the IRS phone service is also limited in Guam and the CNMI.

The tax attorney plans to provide letters from local business owners who share the same concerns.

She said, “The most urgent step towards ensuring equal protection under the law is guaranteeing all U.S. taxpayers have their Taxpayer Bill of Rights protected, including having the same effective timeframes to respond as U.S. taxpayers residing stateside.”

Azarvand is collecting impact statements from the community. If you've experienced similar issues with the IRS or other federal agencies she said to email Info@AzarvandTaxLaw.com.