H.R. 6362 — Tax Fairness for Abuse Survivors Act

This section establishes, in new IRC §6015(h), procedures relieving a requesting spouse from joint and several tax liability (including interest and penalties) attributable to a nonrequesting spouse's erroneous items on a joint return if (1) the requesting spouse or a family member was a victim of domestic violence or abuse by the nonrequesting spouse, and (2) the requesting spouse either did not know or have reason to know of the understatement, or knew but did not challenge it due to fear, pressure, threats of retaliation, or duress. (As background, IRC §6015 generally provides innocent spouse relief from joint liability for a spouse's tax errors, including under separate rules for unknowing spouses, separated spouses, and equitable relief.) It further allows the requesting spouse to submit evidence of abuse (triggering a presumption that any known understatement resulted from such factors), prohibits IRS notices to the nonrequesting spouse from revealing the relief request or mentioning abuse, makes conforming amendments to §6015 to incorporate the new subsection, and applies to requests for relief after enactment.