IRS plans to lay off 7K probationary workers across US starting today

The IRS will lay off roughly 7,000 workers in Washington and around the country beginning on Thursday, a person familiar with the plans told AP.

The layoffs affect probationary employees with roughly one year or less of service at the agency and largely include workers in compliance departments, according to the person, who was not authorised to disclose the plans and spoke on condition of anonymity Wednesday. Compliance work includes ensuring that taxpayers are abiding by the tax code, filing their returns and paying their taxes, among other duties.

The layoffs are part of the Trump administration's intensified efforts to shrink the size of the federal workforce through the Department of Government Efficiency by ordering agencies to lay off nearly all probationary employees who have not yet gained civil service protection. They come despite IRS employees involved in the 2025 tax season being told earlier this month that they would not be allowed to accept a buyout offer from the Trump administration until mid-May, after the taxpayer filing deadline.

It's unclear how the layoffs may affect tax collection services this year. As the nation's revenue collector, the IRS was tasked during the Biden administration with targeting high-wealth tax evaders for an additional stream of income to the US, which is USD 36 trillion in debt. By the end of 2024, the IRS collected over USD 1.3 billion in back taxes from rich tax dodgers.

The IRS has roughly 90,000 employees total across the US, according to the latest IRS data. Racial minorities make up 56 per cent of the IRS workforce, and women represent 65 per cent.

In addition to the planned layoffs, the Trump administration intends to lend IRS workers to the Department of Homeland Security to assist with immigration enforcement. In a letter sent earlier this month, DHS Secretary Kristi Noem asked Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to borrow IRS workers to help with ongoing immigration crackdown efforts.

Representatives from the IRS and US Treasury did not respond to requests for comment from the AP.