REGULATORY · USA
US federal court ruling on IRS disclosures of taxpayer data to ICE
Change
A US federal judge ruled the IRS violated Internal Revenue Code confidentiality rules by disclosing taxpayers’ last-known addresses to ICE approximately 42,695 times.
Why it matters
US District Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly found the IRS unlawfully disclosed confidential taxpayer information—specifically last-known addresses—to Immigration and Customs Enforcement, citing roughly 42,695 violations of IRC Section 6103. The decision treats the disclosures as erroneous and outside the statute’s strict limits on sharing return information without consent. This changes the operating constraint for federal agencies seeking to use IRS-held data in immigration enforcement by putting the legality of prior request/approval processes under a court finding of repeated violations. The ruling increases the likelihood of remedial actions (e.g., curtailed data flows, audits, or court-ordered safeguards) and elevates privacy-law compliance scrutiny for similar data-sharing arrangements.
Implications
- • IRS–ICE address-data sharing faces heightened legal constraint under IRC 6103
- • Increased litigation and compliance exposure tied to past disclosures (42,695 cited)
- • Interagency requests for IRS return information may face tighter approval standards
- • Potential for mandated controls/audits on IRS handling of third-party data requests
Who is affected
- • Internal Revenue Service (IRS) leadership, privacy/compliance, and disclosure offices
- • US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) enforcement and data-request units
- • Taxpayers whose last-known addresses were disclosed to ICE
- • Federal agencies relying on IRC 6103 pathways for interagency data sharing
Source
Topics