Position Defense
We stand behind the positions we put on your return.
Included · Qualifying OSA-prepared returns
When we prepare a qualifying return, our work does not end at filing. Position Defense is included for Covered Positions: we help substantiate the position, organize supporting records, and respond to covered IRS or state inquiries during the protection period stated in your engagement.
The commitment
A defined benefit, not a general assurance.
This commitment applies to Covered Positions, not every issue that may arise on the return. That distinction is the whole of the benefit: we are accountable for the treatment we recommended and reported, and we say so without qualification. We are not, by including it, assuming responsibility for every line of a return or every question a taxing authority might raise about it.
Broader examination representation is available through Audit Protection, which is a separate plan with its own schedule.
Included for qualifying OSA-prepared returns and Covered Positions, subject to the disclosed protection period, service limits, and exclusions.
What we support
Four things we do when a notice arrives.
Covered notice responses
Review covered notices and prepare an appropriate response concerning the Covered Position.
Information requests
Help assemble the records, calculations, and explanations requested for the Covered Position.
Factual and tax support
Explain the reported treatment and connect it to the implemented transaction and supporting analysis.
Documentation and reconciliation
Organize the strategy materials generated in the engagement and reconcile the reported amounts to the supporting work.
Definition
What counts as a Covered Position.
A Covered Position is a tax position that OSA recommended or approved in writing within the engagement, that was implemented consistently with the facts and instructions reviewed, and that is identified as covered and reported on a return prepared through the designated OSA preparation provider.
The engagement identifies the qualifying taxpayer, return, tax year, jurisdiction, protection period, and service limits. If a position is not identified as covered in that document, it is not covered, however sound it may be.
Clear limits
What this is not.
Position Defense does not guarantee acceptance by a taxing authority and does not promise to pay taxes, penalties, interest, or other assessed amounts. Administrative Appeals, collection matters, litigation, criminal matters, pre-existing disputes, unrelated return issues, and services exceeding the schedule require a separate engagement or are excluded from this benefit.
Coverage does not automatically extend to returns prepared by another provider, undisclosed facts, material departures from the reviewed implementation, or positions not identified as covered.
OSA and its professionals will not continue asserting a position that cannot properly be supported. A coverage exclusion does not remove any responsibility the preparation provider otherwise has for its own errors.
Legal services are separate, require a separate engagement, and are not included in OSA services.
Next step
Eligibility starts with preparation.
Position Defense attaches to returns prepared through OSA. The first conversation is about whether bringing preparation across makes sense for your situation.
Your written engagement identifies included services, fees, limits, and exclusions. Preparation and broader audit services are included only when expressly selected or specified.
Begin
Speak with a principal.
About the positions on your return, and who stands behind them.
Engagements typically begin at $2M+ of annual income, or a comparable taxable event.