ICBA supports bill to fix IRS income verification changes

ICBA and other groups expressed support for legislation that would address concerns with recent IRS policy changes that cut off consumer and commercial lenders from the agency’s Income Verification Express Service.

Background: Lenders and government agencies use the IVES program to confirm the income of borrowers during loan application processing, to combat fraud while improving underwriting efficiency.

Policy Change: The IRS earlier this month published bulletins saying it will only provide IVES transcripts to mortgage lending firms for the sole purpose of obtaining a mortgage on residential or commercial property and that it will no longer provide IVES to government agencies.

2019 Bill: The IRS announced the change under the Taxpayer First Act of 2019, which authorized the agency to develop an automated system to receive these forms in lieu of the current system of sending forms to the IRS via secure fax.

Legislative Fix: The IRS eIVES Modernization and Anti-Fraud Act of 2023 would ensure the IRS modernizes the system without cutting off access to non-mortgage lenders and federal agencies. In a joint letter, ICBA and other groups said the bill would ensure the IRS follows congressional intent under the Taxpayer First Act.