High-Income IRS Audits: Wealth Squad Targeting

High-Income IRS Audits: What HNWIs Need to Know About Wealth Squad TargetingIf your income exceeds $500,000 — or your net worth exceeds $10 million — your audit risk profile is categorically different from the average American taxpayer. The IRS has dedicated specialized programs, trained teams of senior revenue agents, and sophisticated analytical tools specifically designed to examine high-net-worth individuals and their related entities. The most important of these is the Global High Wealth (GHW) program — informally known as the 'Wealth Squad' — which conducts enterprise-wide examinations covering every entity you are connected to: partnerships, S-corporations, trusts, holding companies, and foreign structures. These are not routine audits. They are multi-agent, multi-year investigations conducted by the IRS's most experienced field examiners, and they require an equally sophisticated defense. This guide explains how high-income audits work, what specifically the IRS is looking for in wealthy individuals' returns, how GHW examinations are structured, and what effective defense looks like at this level. IRS audit defense Key Takeaways High-net-worth taxpayers face audit rates 5–20x the national average — the IRS has dedicated programs targeting them. The Global High Wealth (GHW) program ('Wealth Squad') examines all related entities, not just the individual return. GHW audits are conducted by teams of senior revenue agents specializing in complex financial structures. Key targets: equity compensation, offshore accounts, complex entity structures, conservation easements, and lifestyle inconsistency. A full team — Tax Court attorney, CPA, and EA — is the minimum appropriate representation for a GHW examination. What Is the IRS Global High Wealth Program? The Global High Wealth (GHW) program was established by the IRS's Large Business & International (LB&I) division to conduct comprehensive examinations of high-net-worth individuals and family enterprises. The program specifically targets taxpayers with $10 million or more in assets or income. 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