A tax audit is the examination by a tax agency of a taxpayer's return or other transactions to verify whether the filing is accurate. A tax audit requires the auditing agent (auditor) have total access to all the required financial statements and documents the taxpayer has on file and/or on computer. A tax audit may be conducted by the IRS or any other type of tax agency. Types include correspondence or letter audits, office audits and field audits. Tax audits are restricted by a statute of limitations. Depending upon the state, the auditor can request access to the last 3 (New York) or 4 (New Jersey) years of financial statements and transactions. The taxpayer will receive notice of intent. The letter will be followed up by a telephone call. An appointment is set up and confirmed by another letter. The letter will contain the information, books, data, etc, the auditor will require. The pre-audit conference will explain the specifics. The actual audit usually happens at the place of business. Depending upon the amount of material requested and received, the tax audit may take anywhere from a few days to a year to complete. When finished, the auditor will provide a report. The taxpayer then has the right to protest the findings. He or she may disagree and file an appeal.