IRS Solutions vs TaxNow: Tax Resolution Workflow Automation

Tax resolution work is a race against the clock. Mail lags, clients call in a panic, and your team pieces together transcripts, notices, and next steps while deadlines loom. Two platforms promise to flip that script with automation and proactive alerts: TaxNow, the “digital fast pass to the IRS” for live transcript access and monitoring, and IRS Solutions, an end-to-end resolution suite built by former IRS pros for managing POAs, analyses, recommendations, and client communications. Here’s a practical, workflow-first comparison to help you decide which engine should power your tax resolution practice.

What problem are we really trying to solve?

Suppose your bottleneck is simply knowing sooner, such as when refunds are issued, balance changes occur, CP2000s are being prepared, or audits are on the horizon. In that case, TaxNow’s 24/7 monitoring and alerts are designed to surface activity (including audit signals) well before a letter arrives in the mailbox. If your bottleneck is executing the resolution, including CSED tracking, bankruptcy discharge calculations, first-time penalty abatement, and installment or OIC planning, IRS Solutions layers guided workflows, calculators, and documents on top of transcript data so staff can move from “we saw this coming” to “here’s the plan.”

How do they automate the access and analysis of transcripts?

TaxNow pulls up to a decade of IRS transcripts instantly and keeps accounts under continuous watch. It centralizes a client’s Tax History so advisors can scan multi-year income and issues at a glance, and it even tracks ERC claim status. IRS Solutions also automates transcript downloads, but immediately runs its analyses. It flags potential remedies, identifies dates that drive strategy, such as CSED and bankruptcy windows, and recommends resolution pathways, ensuring the next action is never a guess.

Where do alerts and early warnings fit in the day-to-day?

TaxNow’s alerting is the star: refunds, notices, penalties, audit activity, and identity-theft risk arrive as actionable pings, positioning your firm to contact clients up to about 180 days before a mailed audit notice. IRS Solutions’ IRS Advance Notice (IAN) provides a similar early-warning layer across audits, liens, installment changes, OIC activity, and passport certifications, giving your team a steady pipeline of proactive outreach and recurring engagement.

How does each platform slot into the accounting firm's workflow tools?

If your practice already uses Karbon, TaxNow’s native integration is compelling: nightly checks push alerts with the source transcript attached directly to the client timeline, and you can automatically route priorities to owners or managers. IRS Solutions provides its own operational backbone, including a client portal, file and report sharing, reminders, and built-in invoicing with CPACharge. This enables you to manage the resolution lifecycle in one place, even without a separate practice hub.

What’s the onboarding and access experience like?

TaxNow handles ongoing access by preparing and submitting Form 8821 after KYC or KYB checks. Approvals typically arrive within 5 to 10 business days, and firms can also enable instant access via Section 7216 consent for faster processing. IRS Solutions is browser-based with guided onboarding and live training or CE. Since it is hosted in AWS GovCloud and enforces 2FA, teams can credential quickly and standardize access firm-wide without desktop installs.

How do pricing and scalability compare for different firm sizes?

TaxNow’s low-friction entry is rare in this space: a Free tier for one account and TaxNow+ at $20/mo for up to five accounts make it easy for solos or SMB-focused advisors to prove ROI before scaling. TaxNowPRO adds multi-client dashboards and tailored reporting with custom pricing. IRS Solutions offers a transparent membership approach tailored to resolution teams: Solo at $159/month, Multi-User from $318/month for three seats, with every third user free, plus Enterprise for larger rollouts. E-signatures start with included credits and then bill per use, a helpful predictability if you run high case volumes.

What about security, compliance, and client trust?

Both lead with security. TaxNow touts SOC 2 Type II and a published trust center, featuring encryption in transit and at rest, which is crucial when clients grant decade-long access to transcripts. IRS Solutions is AWS GovCloud-hosted, utilizing AES-256 encryption, TLS 1.2+, and enforced two-factor authentication (2FA), ensuring US-only data residency and a “Made in USA” positioning, which provides comfort for institutions and compliance-sensitive clients. Either way, you can speak confidently about controls in your engagement letters and proposals.

Which teams get the most value from each?

Choose TaxNow if your current pain is signal acquisition: you want early warnings, fast transcript history, and alerts posted where your team already works, especially if you’re on Karbon. Choose IRS Solutions if your pain is case execution: you want calculators, recommended options, client portal, documents, and payments bundled so staff can move a case from first alert to final resolution without juggling tools. Many firms pair them: TaxNow for surveillance and triage, IRS Solutions for the heavy lift of representation.

Are there caveats to plan around?

On the TaxNow side, firm pricing is customized, and some account or billing changes still require routing through support. It is not a prep or e-file system and is not a substitute for your CPA judgment. With IRS Solutions, plan for data export in case you ever cancel, as data is purged after a defined window. Also, budget for additional e-signatures if your caseload is signature-heavy. Neither is a silver bullet, but both meaningfully reduce the time between IRS activity and firm action.

Conclusion

If you want to spot trouble early and meet clients with answers before the IRS does, TaxNow’s monitoring and transcript visibility will sharpen your edge. If you're going to standardize the resolution process, from analysis to proposals to payments, IRS Solutions provides your team with repeatable, guided workflows. Pick the platform that solves your primary bottleneck today. When your practice matures, you can layer the other to turn alerts into outcomes, reliably and at scale.

Contact Genwise today to get expert advice tailored to your business and confidently move forward with the right platform.