Criminal Investigator

Summary

WHAT IS CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION ?

A description of the business units can be found at:

• Position(s) are to be filled in the following area(s):
  • CI - Criminal Investigation
• Consider each location carefully when applying. If you are selected for a location, that location will become your official post of duty.

REVIEW THE ADDITIONAL INFORMATION BELOW FOR FURTHER DETAILS

Learn more about this agency

Duties

Help

IRS-CI Special Agents (SAs) are duly sworn federal law enforcement officers throughout all 50 states and US territories including special agent attachés located in 11 countries. As a SA, you will combine your accounting skills with law enforcement skills to investigate financial crimes. SAs fill a unique niche in the federal law enforcement community due to IRS-CI's broad jurisdiction of Title 18 and Title 31 crimes, in addition to our primary tax enforcement mission. SAs are known for their financial investigative expertise in areas, such as, tax fraud, public corruption, cybercrimes, narcotics, terrorism, and much more. Today's sophisticated schemes demand the analytical ability of financial investigators to trace transactions through complex financial records.

The following are the duties of this position at the full working level.

• The Criminal Investigator plans and conducts investigations relative to criminal statutes of tax administration and financial crimes and other related offenses, which vary in levels or complexity.
• The work involves investigations analyzing precedent setting legal or investigative questions, complex or unusual accounting problems.
• The Criminal Investigator analyzes information obtained from diversified sources gathered over a wide section of the country; situations where the interrelationship of facts and evidence identification is difficult because of the numerous holding companies, entities, etc., involved; and cases including a mixture of legal and illegal activities; international transfers of funds; working with DOJ and IRS Foreign country attaches to obtain records; and cryptocurrency investigations.
• Performs other investigative and enforcement duties such as testifying as a Government witness, assisting the U.S. Attorney during the preparation of cases for trial, and conducting collateral inquiries.
• Obtains, evaluates, integrates, and recommends action on information items to identify large areas of
  noncompliance (e.g., major profession, occupation, industry, or wide geographic area).

Requirements

Help

Conditions of employment

• Probationary Period - All newly appointed employees to the competitive (or excepted) service are subject to a probationary (or trial) period. During this time, your performance, conduct, and suitability for continued employment will be evaluated. You will not automatically convert to permanent status at the end of the probationary (or trial) period. Your supervisor must affirmatively determine that continued employment is in the best interest of the Federal service. If no certification is made before the probationary (or trial) period ends, your appointment will be terminated. You are encouraged to actively engage with your supervisor, seek feedback, and understand role expectations. Additional guidance and support will be provided during onboarding.

Law Enforcement Officer (LEO) Positions:

• Physical Examination - Complete a pre-employment physical examination by an authorized Government physician; be determined physically fit to perform strenuous physically demanding duties. Undergo regular physical examinations to maintain a level of physical fitness IAW the standards/policies of this agency.
• Drug Test - Submit to a drug test prior to your appointment and random drug testing while you occupy the position.
• Firearm - Carry and use a firearm. Maintaining firearm proficiency is also mandatory. You will be ineligible to occupy this position if at any time you have been convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence, unless you received a pardon or your conviction was expunged or set aside.
• Law Enforcement Training Courses - Complete or have previously completed required courses at the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center (FLETC) in Glynco, GA.
• Law Enforcement Availability Pay (LEAP) - Agree to work an average of two extra hours per day. LEAP has been approved to compensate for unscheduled duty in excess of the 40-hour workweek.
• Commuting distance for Law Enforcement Availability Pay (Required) . IAW Title 5 CFR 550.182(D) the agency must determine that a criminal investigator is generally/reasonably accessible to perform unscheduled duty based on the needs of the agency. The provisions of Treasury Directive 74-06 Home-to-Work Transportation Controls paragraph 3(d) require that special agents reside within 50 miles of their official duty station to be considered for Home-to-Work transportation (only granted/waived by Treasury).

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS SHOWN IN QUALIFICATIONS OR ADDTIONAL INFORMATION SECTIONS

Qualifications

Federal experience is not required. The experience may have been gained in the public sector, private sector or Volunteer Service. One year of experience refers to full-time work; part-timework is considered on a prorated basis. To ensure full credit for your work experience, please indicate dates of employment by month/day/year, and indicate number of hours worked per week, on your resume.

You must meet the following requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

GENERAL REQUIREMENTS FOR GRADE 07 AND 09:

• EXPERIENCE - Must have been acquired in investigative work related to the ACCOUNTING OR AUDITING OF BUSINESS OR COMMERCIAL PRACTICES OF SUBJECTS INVESTIGATED. For examples of specialized experience, click here.
• EDUCATION - If substituting education for specialized experience for the grade 7 or 9, education must be supplemented by at least 15 semester/23 quarter hours in accounting plus an additional 9 semester/14 quarter hours from among the following fields: business law, economics, finance, tax law or money and banking. You may qualify by a combination of experience and education. Combinations of education and experience are qualifying.

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR GRADE 07:

SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: You must have one year of specialized experience at a level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to the GL-05 grade level in the Federal service. Specialized experience for this position includes experience in or related to investigation of criminal violations that provided the experience to successfully perform the duties of the IRS Special Agent. Experience must have required:

1. The exercise of tact, initiative, ingenuity, resourcefulness and judgment in collecting, assembling, and developing facts, evidence and other pertinent data through investigative techniques which included personal interview;
2. Making oral and written reports and presentations of personally conducted or personally directed investigations, examinations, or inspections; AND
3. Analyzing and evaluating evidence and arrive at sound conclusions.

OR

EDUCATION: You may substitute education for specialized experience as follows:

• One full year of progressively higher-level graduate education OR
• Superior Academic Achievement - A bachelor's degree, with one of the following: A GPA of 3.0 or higher on a 4.0 scale for all completed undergraduate courses or those completed in the last 2 years of study, or a GPA of 3.5 or higher on a 4.0 scale for all courses in the major field of study or those courses in the major completed in the last 2 years of study, or rank in the upper one third of the class in the college, university, or major subdivision, or membership in a national scholastic honor society recognized by the Association of College Honor Societies. If substituting Superior Academic Achievement (SAA) for experience at the GS-7 level, please note that grade-point averages are rounded to one decimal place. For example, 2.95 will round to 3.0 and 2.94 will round to 2.9.

ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS FOR GRADE 09:

SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: You must have one year of specialized experience at a level of difficulty and responsibility equivalent to the GL-07 grade level in the Federal service. Specialized experience for this position includes, experience in or related to investigation of criminal violations that provided the specific experience needed to successfully perform the duties of this position. Experience must be sufficient to demonstrate the ability to gather intelligence, analyze and evaluate raw investigative data, prepare comprehensive written investigative reports, and investigate complex claims involving suspected crimes or alleged fraud. Examples of qualifying experience include:

1. Investigating criminal cases requiring the use of recognized investigative methods and techniques and that may have included appearing in court to present evidence;
2. Supervising or conducting interviews or interrogations that involved eliciting evidence, data, or surveillance information;
3. Investigating computerized business and/or accounting systems and forming sound conclusions as to related criminal business practices and compliance with Federal laws and regulations.

OR

EDUCATION: You may substitute education for specialized experience as follows:

• Two full years of progressively higher-level graduate education; OR a master's degree or equivalent graduate degree (i.e., LL.B. or J.D.)

You must meet the following special requirements:

• MINIMUM AGE REQUIREMENT: Generally, applicants for most Federal jobs must be at least 18 years old. For additional information refer to: Is there an age limit for Federal employment? - OPM.gov
  • In addition, provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act, Federal, State, and local laws that relate to the employment of minors in positions requiring the use of firearms must be observed.
• MAXIMUM ENTRY AGE: Provisions of Public Law 93-950 and Public Law 100-238 allow the imposition of a maximum age for original appointments to a law enforcement officer position within the Federal government. The date immediately preceding your 37th birthday is the final date of referral for selection. This age restriction does not apply to preference eligible veterans or land management eligibles. Applicants who are age 37 or over may subtract any of their prior federal service that is in approved position and that is creditable for retirement from their current age to meet this age requirement. This is to ensure you will be able to complete a total of 20 years of special retirement service by the time you reach the mandatory retirement age of 57. Applicants must provide proof of veterans' preference, land management eligibility, or prior creditable Federal service as listed in the announcement.
• PHYSICAL EXAMINATION: You must pass a medical examination prior to being appointed. This position requires moderate to arduous physical exertion involving walking and standing, use of firearms, and exposure to inclement weather. Manual dexterity with free motion of fingers, wrists, elbows, shoulders, hips, and knee joints is required. Arms, hands, legs, and feet must function sufficiently in order for applicants to perform the duties satisfactorily. All of the medical requirements MUST be met at the time of initial examination/test. Applicants failing to meet the medical requirements at the time of their initial examination/test will be considered ineligible for the position.
  • Vision: For all positions, near vision, corrected or uncorrected, must be sufficient to read Jaeger type 2 at 14 inches. Normal depth perception and peripheral vision are required, as is the ability to distinguish shades of color by color plate tests. For all positions covered by this standard, applicants who have undergone refractive surgery (i.e., surgery to improve distant visual acuity) must meet Treasury-approved requirements which include documentation that they have passed specific exam and protocol testing. Uncorrected distant vision must test 20/200, and corrected distant vision must test 20/20 in one eye, and 20/30 in the other.
  • Hearing: Hearing loss, as measured by an audiometer, must not exceed 30 decibels (A.S.A. or equivalent I.S.O.) in either ear in the 500, 1000, and 2000 Hz ranges. You must be able to hear the whispered voice at 15 feet with each ear without the use of a hearing aid.
  • Other Medical Requirements: You must possess emotional and mental stability. Any condition that would hinder full, efficient performance of the duties of this position or that would cause an individual to be a hazard to himself/herself or to others is disqualifying.

For more information on qualifications please refer to OPM's Qualifications Standards.

Education

A college or university degree generally must be from an accredited (or pre-accredited) college or university recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. For a list of schools which meet these criteria, please refer to Department of Education Accreditation page.

FOREIGN EDUCATION: Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the requirements. You must show proof the education credentials have been deemed to be at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. education program. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence when applying. Click here (Section 3, Explanation of Terms) or here for Foreign Education Credentialing instructions.

We recommend choosing an evaluator from a member organization of one of the following national associations of credential evaluation services: National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) or Association of International Credentials Evaluators (AICE).

Additional information

Conditions of Employment (continued from Requirements section)

• Government Credit Card - Obtain and use a Government-issued charge card for business-related travel.
• Driving Credentials - Possess/maintain a valid state motor vehicle operator's license on appointment and maintain a valid license while you occupy the position.
• Tax Audit - The employment of any candidate, including a current employee or a new hire, selected for this position may be conditional upon classification and/or audit of federal tax returns. This audit may include up to 2 years of returns.

Key Eligibility Requirements:

• U.S Citizenship - Must be a U.S. Citizen or National and provide proof of U.S. Citizenship.
• Selective Service Registration - Males born after December 31, 1959 are required to be registered with the Selective Service System or prove they are exempt from having to do so.
• Personal Identity Verification (PIV) - Must provide 2 forms of identification from the Form I-9. Federal law requires verification of the identity and employment eligibility of all new hires in the U.S. These documents must be unexpired original or certified copies

Suitability Requirements:

• Prior IRS Employment - Former employees will be subject to a screening of their prior conduct with the Service. The Taxpayer First Act of 2019, 26 U.S. Code 7804, prohibits the IRS from rehiring certain former employees who were removed from service.
• Tax Check - Must undergo a review of income tax verification. To check the status of your tax record go to: ( If you are not in compliance, you will be determined unsuitable for employment with IRS.
• Fingerprint/Criminal History Check - This position requires that the successful candidate undergo personnel vetting, which includes a background investigation and enrollment upon onboarding into "Continuous Vetting." Enrollment in Continuous Vetting will result in automated record checks being conducted throughout one's employment with Treasury. The successful candidate will also be enrolled into FBI's Rap Back service, which will allow Treasury to receive notification from the FBI of criminal matters (e.g., arrests, charges, convictions) involving enrolled individuals in near real-time. For more information regarding your rights refer to Noncriminal Justice Applicant's Privacy Rights - FBI, FD-258 Privacy Act Statement - FBI, and SEAD-3-Reporting-U.pdf (dni.gov).

Additional Information:

• In the event that a building is closed due to rent management, new hires may be placed in a local commuting location.
• Additional jobs may be filled from this announcement or any other source to fill these vacancies.
• Alternative work schedule, staggered work hours may be available.
• Salary: Salary is based on the selected duty location. Pay tables for Law Enforcement Officer positions GL-03 through GL-10 may be found under 2026 - Law Enforcement Officer.

• Cost-of-Living Allowances (COLA): 7 Tabonuco Street, Guaynabo, PR (PR3930), 949 E 36 Ave, Anchorage, Alaska (AK3237), 1003 Bishop St, Honolulu, Hawaii (HI8469), 108 Hernan Cortez, Suite 500, Hagatna, GU (XXGUAM), and
  Veterans Dr, Charlotte Amalie, Virgin Islands (VI0007).
  includes COLA. See COLA Rates 2026.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

Help

A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

Review our benefits

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.