Whistleblower Protection for Employees 

Who Report Federal Tax Law Violations

Employees are protected from retaliation for reporting underpayment of taxes, 

potential violations of internal revenue laws, or potential violations of any provision 

of Federal law relating to tax fraud to their employers or to the federal government, 

or engaging in other protected activities.

On July 1, 2019, the Taxpayer First Act (TFA) was 

enacted establishing retaliation protections for 

employees who report underpayment of taxes 

or other potential Federal tax law violations or 

engage in other protected activities.

Protected Activity

No employer, or any officer, employee, contractor, 

subcontractor, or agent of an employer, may 

discharge or in any other manner retaliate against 

an employee for engaging in activity protected 

under TFA. 

You are protected from retaliation under TFA 

if you:

• Provided information or assisted in an 

investigation regarding underpayment of tax 

or any conduct which you reasonably believe 

violates internal revenue laws or any provision 

of Federal law relating to tax fraud. The 

information or assistance must be provided to 

one of the entities listed in the statute, which 

include, among others, the Internal Revenue 

Service (IRS), Department of Justice, Congress, 

and supervisors or other employer personnel 

with authority to discover, investigate, or 

address misconduct.

• Testified, participated in, or otherwise assisted 

in any administrative or judicial action taken by 

the IRS relating to an alleged underpayment of 

tax, any violation of the internal revenue laws, 

or a violation of any provision of Federal law 

relating to tax fraud.

What Is Retaliation?

Retaliation is an adverse action against an 

employee because of activity protected by TFA. 

Retaliation can include several types of actions, 

such as: 

• Firing or laying off

• Blacklisting

• Demoting

• Denying overtime or promotion

• Disciplining

• Denying benefits

• Failing to hire or rehire

• Intimidation

• Reassignment affecting promotion prospects 

• Reducing pay or hours

• Making threats

Deadline for Filing Complaints

Complaints must be filed within 180 days after 

the alleged retaliatory action (that is, when the 

employee is notified of the action). 

How to File a TFA Complaint

An employee, or his or her representative, can 

file a TFA complaint with OSHA by visiting or 

calling his or her local OSHA office, sending a 

written complaint to the closest OSHA office, or 

filing a complaint online. No particular form is 

required and complaints may be submitted in 

any language.

Written complaints may be filed by fax, 

electronic communication, hand delivery 

during business hours, U.S. mail (confirmation 

services recommended), or other third-party 

commercial carrier.

The date of the postmark, fax, electronic 

communication, hand delivery, delivery to a 

third-party commercial carrier, or in-person filing 

at an OSHA office is considered the date filed. 

To file a complaint electronically, please visit 

www.osha.gov/whistleblower/WBComplaint.html.

FactSheet
To contact an OSHA area office, please call 

1-800-321-OSHA (6742) to be connected to 

the closest area office. Or visit our website at 

www.osha.gov/contactus/bystate and click 

on your state to find your local OSHA office 

address and contact information. 

When OSHA receives a complaint, the agency 

will first review it to determine whether certain 

basic requirements are met, such as whether 

the complaint was filed on time. If so, the 

complaint will then be investigated according 

to the procedures required by 29 CFR Part 1979, 

until OSHA promulgates procedures specific to 

the TFA.

Results of the Investigation

If the evidence supports an employee’s 

complaint of retaliation and a settlement cannot 

be reached, OSHA will issue an order requiring 

the employer to, as appropriate, put the 

employee back to work, pay 200% of lost wages, 

restore benefits, and provide other possible 

relief. The exact requirements will depend on 

the facts of the case. If the evidence does not 

support the employee’s complaint, OSHA will 

dismiss the complaint. 

After OSHA issues a decision, the employer 

and/or the employee may request a full 

hearing before an administrative law judge of 

the Department of Labor. The administrative 

law judge’s decision may be appealed to the 

Department’s Administrative Review Board 

(ARB). The ARB’s decision is subject to review by 

the Secretary of Labor, and a final decision may 

be appealed to a court of appeals. The employee 

may also file a complaint in federal court if the 

Department has not issued a final decision 

within 180 days of the filing of the complaint. 

26 U.S.C. § 7623(d)(2)(A)(ii). 

To Get Further Information

For a copy of the TFA whistleblower provision, 

26 U.S.C. § 7623(d), and other information, go to 

www.whistleblowers.gov.

OSHA’s Whistleblower Protection Programs 

enforce the whistleblower provisions of more 

than twenty federal whistleblower laws. To learn 

more about the whistleblower statutes that OSHA 

enforces, view our “Whistleblowers Statues 

Summary Chart” at www.whistleblowers.gov/

whistleblower_acts-desk_reference.pdf.

For more information on the Office of 

Administrative Law Judges procedures and case 

law research materials, go to www.oalj.dol.gov

and click on the link for “Whistleblower.”

To obtain more information about tax laws, 

please visit the IRS website at www.irs.gov. 

Under the Occupational Safety and Health 

Act of 1970, employers are responsible for 

providing safe and healthful workplaces for 

their employees. OSHA’s role is to ensure these 

conditions for America’s working men and 

women by setting and enforcing standards, and 

providing training, education, and assistance. 

For more information, visit www.osha.gov.

DWPP FS-4047 06/2020

This is one in a series of informational fact sheets highlighting OSHA programs, policies or standards. 

It does not impose any new compliance requirements. For a comprehensive list of compliance 

requirements of OSHA standards or regulations, refer to Title 29 of the Code of Federal Regulations. 

This information will be made available to sensory-impaired individuals upon request. The voice phone 

is (202) 693-1999; teletypewriter (TTY) number: 1-877-889-5627.