// Audit Defense
Audit Defense
Strategic protection for your business
A DOR audit typically begins with an information document request (IDR) — a formal list of records the auditor needs to evaluate your filing positions. The scope of the IDR often determines the trajectory of the entire audit: a broad, unfocused response can open new issues, while a targeted response keeps the examination narrow and manageable.
DOR auditors follow standardized procedures, but they have significant discretion in how they sample transactions, apply legal standards, and characterize findings. Audits commonly cover four years of filing history and focus on areas like B&O classification accuracy, sales tax collection and exemption documentation, use tax self-assessment, and the proper application of deductions and credits. Each proposed adjustment carries its own legal basis — and its own set of potential counterarguments grounded in statute, regulation, or published DOR guidance.
Once the auditor issues a preliminary assessment, there is a negotiation window before the assessment becomes final. This is where the strongest outcomes are achieved: analyzing each proposed adjustment on its merits, presenting documented counterarguments with legal citations, and narrowing the assessment to only those items that are genuinely owed. If the assessment cannot be resolved informally, the case can move to a formal Rule 100 appeal.
What's Included
- IDR triage and response strategy to control audit scope from the outset
- Document organization and privilege review aligned to DOR examination standards
- Risk identification and exposure quantification for each audit issue
- Audit timeline management and coordination with DOR examination staff
- Issue-by-issue analysis of proposed adjustments with legal counterarguments
- Settlement negotiation and, where necessary, positioning for formal appeal under Rule 100
DOR Resources
Why Washington Tax Desk
The audit process rewards preparation and precision. Understanding how DOR auditors evaluate issues, what triggers expanded scope, and where the strongest legal positions lie is the difference between a manageable resolution and an outsized assessment. Our approach is structured, issue-specific, and grounded in the same statutes, regulations, and published determinations that DOR relies on.