Who we are and how we can help
Led by former IRS senior excise tax attorneys, the KPMG Excise Tax practice in Washington National Tax guides clients across all affected industries through a wide range of complex excise tax issues.
In an area that possesses a myriad of specialized rules, our practice helps clients understand their excise tax positions while helping them manage risks and identify potential opportunities for available tax refunds and credits related to excise taxation.
About our Excise Tax practice
Our Excise Tax practice is led by Taylor Cortright and Rachel Smith, two former IRS Office of Chief Counsel excise tax attorneys responsible for published guidance on excise taxes, technical advice to IRS excise tax agents, and letter rulings to taxpayers.
The Excise Tax practice assists clients with a wide range of federal excise tax matters. Our specialized knowledge includes federal excise taxes relating to motor and aviation fuels, alternative fuels, air transportation services, heavy trucks and trailers, crude oil and imported petroleum products, coal, tires, certain sporting goods, ozone-depleting chemicals, hazardous chemicals and substances, wagering, vaccines, designated drugs, and premiums paid to foreign insurers. Additionally, we assist clients with respect to income tax credits and excise tax credits and refunds for biodiesel, alternative fuels, clean transportation fuel, and sustainable aviation fuel. We also assist clients with federal excise taxes administered by the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) relating to alcohol, tobacco, firearms and ammunition products.
We can help with:
- Evaluating a company's excise tax positions
- Advising on the reduction of future excise tax exposure
- Managing risks related to excise taxation
- Identifying refund and credit opportunities pertaining to excise taxation
- Streamlining excise tax-related administrative processes
- Assisting with excise tax planning, including preparation and review of IRS Form 637 registration, requests for letter rulings, and IRS pre-filing agreements
- Providing compliance services related to excise tax rules and regulations, including excise tax return and claim filings
- Considering penalty standards and pursuing opportunities for relief, including penalties for the late filing of excise tax returns, late payments, and late or missing excise tax deposits
- Supporting clients in complex IRS examinations or at the IRS appeal level, including anticipating, managing, and responding to excise tax issues raised by the IRS and assisting in the drafting of requests for technical advice
- Working with the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) in relation to client examinations and ruling requests.
