Who can receive a cash award for blowing the whistle to the IRS?

Almost anyone can be an IRS whistleblower if they provide original information about a violation of federal tax laws. There is no citizenship requirement. Information is “original” if it has not been disclosed in a government investigation or the news media.

Six categories of individuals, however, are ineligible to receive IRS whistleblower awards.

• Current or former employees of the Department of Treasury, unless they acquired the original information after their employment ended;
• Federal employees who obtained the information through their official duties;
• Federal contractors who had access to the information only because of their contract;
• People who had an obligation to provide the relevant information under federal law;
• People who were prohibited by federal law from disclosing the information; and
• People who obtained the information from another ineligible person.

To learn more about the IRS’s whistleblower program and other programs, go to www.mololamken.com and follow us on LinkedIn. “Brilliant lawyers with courtroom savvy” — Benchmark Litigation. Copyright MoloLamken LLP 2025.