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Under section 7491(c), respondent has met his burden of production because petitioner admits, and the record clearly establishes, that petitioner failed to file her 1998-99 and 2000-06 tax returns by the due dates. Petitioner argues that she had reasonable cause for failing to timely file her returns because she believed that she was not required to file returns for the years at issue.
A taxpayer’s mistaken belief that no return is required under the law does not necessarily constitute reasonable cause for failure to file a return. See Beck Chem. Equip. Corp. v. Commissioner, 27 T.C. 840, 860 (1957); P. Dougherty Co. v. Commissioner, 5 T.C. 791, 800 (1945), aff’d, 159 F.2d 269 (4th Cir. 1946). A taxpayer who decides not to file a return must use reasonable care to ascertain that no return was necessary. See Beck Chem. Equip. Corp. v. Commissioner, 27 T.C. at 858-860.
Reasonable reliance on the advice of a tax adviser that no return is required to be filed may constitute reasonable cause for a taxpayer’s failure to file the return. See Boyle, 469 U.S. at 250-251 n.9. The taxpayer must show that: (1) the adviser was a competent and qualified professional who had sufficient expertise to justify the taxpayer’s reliance on him, (2) the taxpayer provided all necessary and accurate information to the adviser, and (3) the taxpayer actually relied in good faith on the adviser’s judgment. See Neonatology Assocs., P.A. v. Commissioner,
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