---
kind: "section"
citation: "26 U.S.C. § 7217"
title: "26"
title_heading: "Internal Revenue Code"
number: "7217"
heading: "Prohibition on executive branch influence over taxpayer audits and other investigations"
release: "119-102"
date: "2026-07-12"
url: "https://uscodex.org/usc/26/7217"
units:
  - "Subtitle F — Procedure and Administration"
  - "Chapter 75 — Crimes, Other Offenses, and Forfeitures"
  - "Subchapter A — Crimes"
  - "Part I — General Provisions"
---

# §7217. Prohibition on executive branch influence over taxpayer audits and other investigations

- (a) **Prohibition—** It shall be unlawful for any applicable [person](/usc/26/7701.md?p=a-1) to request, directly or [indirectly](/usc/26/101.md?p=a-3-B), any officer or [employee](/usc/26/7701.md?p=a-20) of the Internal Revenue Service to conduct or terminate an audit or other investigation of any particular [taxpayer](/usc/26/7701.md?p=a-14) with respect to the tax liability of such [taxpayer](/usc/26/7701.md?p=a-14).
- (b) **Reporting requirement—** Any officer or [employee](/usc/26/7701.md?p=a-20) of the Internal Revenue Service receiving any request prohibited by [subsection (a)](#a) shall report the receipt of such request to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration.
- (c) **Exceptions—** [Subsection (a)](#a) shall not apply to any written request made—
  - (1) to an applicable [person](/usc/26/7701.md?p=a-1) by or on behalf of the [taxpayer](/usc/26/7701.md?p=a-14) and forwarded by such applicable [person](/usc/26/7701.md?p=a-1) to the Internal Revenue Service;
  - (2) by an applicable [person](/usc/26/7701.md?p=a-1) for disclosure of return or return information under [section 6103](/usc/26/6103.md) if such request is made in accordance with the requirements of such section; or
  - (3) by the [Secretary of the Treasury](/usc/26/7701.md?p=a-11-A) as a consequence of the implementation of a change in tax policy.
- (d) **Penalty—** Any [person](/usc/26/7701.md?p=a-1) who willfully violates [subsection (a)](#a) or fails to report under [subsection (b)](#b) shall be punished upon conviction by a fine in any amount not exceeding $5,000, or imprisonment of not more than 5 years, or both, together with the costs of prosecution.
- (e) **Applicable person—** For purposes of this section, the term “applicable [person](/usc/26/7701.md?p=a-1)” means—
  - (1) the President, the Vice President, any [employee](/usc/26/7701.md?p=a-20) of the executive office of the President, and any [employee](/usc/26/7701.md?p=a-20) of the executive office of the Vice President; and
  - (2) any individual (other than the [Attorney General](/usc/26/7701.md?p=a-22) of the [United States](/usc/26/7701.md?p=a-9)) serving in a position specified in [section 5312 of title 5](/usc/5/5312.md), United States Code.

## Source credit

(Added Pub. L. 105–206, title I, § 1105(a), July 22, 1998, 112 Stat. 711.)

## Notes

### Editorial Notes

### Prior Provisions

A prior section 7217, added Pub. L. 94–455, title XII, § 1202(e)(1), Oct. 4, 1976, 90 Stat. 1687; amended Pub. L. 95–600, title VII, § 701(bb)(7), Nov. 6, 1978, 92 Stat. 2923, related to civil damages for unauthorized disclosure of returns and return information, prior to repeal by Pub. L. 97–248, title III, § 357(b)(1), (c), Sept. 3, 1982, 96 Stat. 646, applicable with respect to disclosures made after Sept. 3, 1982.

### Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

### Effective Date

Pub. L. 105–206, title I, § 1105(c), July 22, 1998, 112 Stat. 711, provided that: “The amendments made by this section [enacting this section] shall apply to requests made after the date of the enactment of this Act [July 22, 1998].”