In-Person Help With an FTB or IRS Notice in Los Angeles, Santa Ana or San Diego

The Franchise Tax Board has three Southern California field offices, in Los Angeles, Santa Ana and San Diego, and schedules appointments online. The IRS runs local Taxpayer Assistance Centers and also asks you to call ahead for an appointment. A visit can answer questions and take some payments, but it does not stop the deadline in a notice.

FTB field offices

The FTB’s office-locations page lists these Southern California offices:

• Los Angeles: 300 South Spring Street, Suite 5704, Los Angeles, CA 90013-1233; 213-897-5196.
• Santa Ana: 600 West Santa Ana Boulevard, Suite 300, Santa Ana, CA 92701-4543; 714-558-4505.
• San Diego: 7575 Metropolitan Drive, Suite 201, San Diego, CA 92108-4532; 619-688-2550.

Appointments are scheduled online. The FTB says to choose the office, follow the “Schedule an appointment” link to its QLess scheduling site, watch for text-message updates as the time nears, and arrive a few minutes early to check in.

The offices take payments, with limits. The FTB accepts checks, money orders and credit cards at its offices, does not accept cash, and does not accept credit cards for vehicle registration collections. If you plan to pay in person, bring a check or money order and keep the receipt.

IRS Taxpayer Assistance Centers

The IRS offers in-person help at local Taxpayer Assistance Centers. Its local-office page tells you to find a center near you and call ahead for an appointment, and warns that an appointment may be canceled if you arrive more than 15 minutes late without checking in. When you schedule, you can sign up for text messages about the appointment. IRS offices are closed on federal holidays.

The IRS and the FTB are separate agencies, and neither can act on the other’s notice. A federal notice goes to the IRS and a California income tax notice goes to the FTB; sales tax and payroll tax notices come from other California agencies. When the IRS and the FTB are both involved, each needs its own answer.

What to bring

For an IRS appointment, the agency’s list includes two original forms of identification, one of them a current government-issued photo ID; your Social Security number or ITIN; and, if one was filed, a copy of the tax return for the year in question. For either agency, bring:

• the notice itself and its envelope, which shows when it was mailed;
• any earlier notices and your responses;
• the return for the year involved and the records behind the disputed item; and
• proof of any payments already made.

Write down the name of the person you speak with, the date and what you were told. If the conversation leads to an agreement, ask how it will be confirmed in writing.

What a visit cannot do

A visit or appointment does not change a deadline in a notice. A protest of an FTB proposed assessment, an appeal to the Office of Tax Appeals and a Tax Court petition each have their own filing deadline, and none is met by talking to someone at an office. If a deadline is close, file the required response first and use the appointment for questions.

If you live in the Inland Empire

The FTB lists no field office in Riverside or San Bernardino County. Inland Empire taxpayers who want an in-person FTB appointment can book one in Santa Ana, Los Angeles or San Diego, or use the FTB’s online chat, MyFTB, phone or mail instead. For an IRS appointment, use the IRS locator to find the nearest Taxpayer Assistance Center and call ahead.