What does your IRS letter mean?

Underreported Income (Proposed Changes)

A CP2000 notice means income reported to the IRS by employers, banks, or brokers doesn't match what's on your tax return, and the IRS is proposing a change to your tax — it is not a bill and not an audit.

Balance Due — First Notice

A CP14 notice is the IRS's first bill: it says you filed a return with a balance due that hasn't been paid, and it starts the collection clock.

Notice of Intent to Levy

A CP504 is an urgent IRS collection notice saying the IRS intends to levy (seize) your state tax refund and may pursue other property if you don't pay or make arrangements — it's the last step before final levy notices.

Final Notice of Intent to Levy

An LT11 (or Letter 1058) is the IRS's final notice before levying your wages, bank accounts, or property — you have exactly 30 days to request a Collection Due Process hearing, which pauses collection.

Balance Due Reminders

CP501 and CP503 are escalating reminder bills for an unpaid tax balance — CP501 is the first reminder after a CP14, and CP503 means the IRS still hasn't heard from you and the next step is the CP504 intent-to-levy notice.

Refund Hold — Return Under Review

A CP05 notice means the IRS is holding your refund while it verifies information on your return — income, withholding, or credits — and you generally don't need to do anything unless they ask for documents.

Identity Verification Required

A 5071C letter means the IRS suspects identity theft and needs you to verify your identity — online at idverify.irs.gov or by phone — before it will process the return filed under your Social Security number.

Correspondence Audit — Documents Requested

A CP75 (or Letter 566) is a correspondence audit: the IRS is holding part or all of your refund and asking for documents to prove specific items — most often the Earned Income Credit, dependents, or filing status.

Statutory Notice of Deficiency (90-Day Letter)

A CP3219A is the Statutory Notice of Deficiency — the IRS's formal determination that you owe additional tax, giving you exactly 90 days to petition the U.S. Tax Court before the tax is assessed.

Refund Applied to Other Taxes Owed

A CP49 notice means the IRS took some or all of this year's refund and applied it to a tax balance you owed from another year — the notice shows which year's debt was paid and any refund remaining.

Estimated Payment Mismatch — Balance Due

A CP23 notice means the estimated tax payments the IRS has on record don't match what you claimed on your return, so your refund changed or you now owe — usually because a payment was misdated, misapplied, or claimed twice.

Final Notice — Intent to Levy Federal Payments

A CP90 is a final notice that the IRS intends to levy your federal payments — including Social Security benefits — and like the LT11, it starts a strict 30-day window to request a Collection Due Process hearing.

Business Balance Due

A CP161 is the business version of a balance-due bill: your business return (941 payroll, 1120, 1065) shows tax due that wasn't fully paid — and for payroll taxes, it can escalate to personal liability for owners.

Income Mismatch Inquiry (Pre-CP2000)

A CP2501 notice means the IRS found a difference between income reported by third parties and your tax return and is asking you to explain it — it comes before a CP2000 and proposes no tax change yet.

Math Error — Balance Due

A CP11 notice means the IRS corrected what it considers a miscalculation on your return and the change results in a balance due — you have 60 days to dispute it before the assessment becomes final.

Math Error — Refund Changed

A CP12 notice means the IRS corrected an error on your return and changed your refund amount — often larger or smaller than expected — and no response is needed unless you disagree.

No Record of a Prior-Year Return

A CP59 notice means the IRS has no record that you filed a prior-year tax return it believes you were required to file — you should file it, or explain why you weren't required to.

Annual Balance Reminder

A CP71 or CP71C is the IRS's annual reminder that you still owe a tax balance — it isn't a new bill or a levy threat, but it shows the debt (with penalties and interest) is active and growing.

Installment Agreement Default — Intent to Terminate

A CP523 notice means you defaulted on your IRS payment plan — by missing a payment, incurring new tax debt, or not filing a return — and the IRS intends to terminate the agreement and resume collection (including levies) in 30 days.

Passport Certification — Seriously Delinquent Debt

A CP508C notice means the IRS certified your tax debt as 'seriously delinquent' (over ~$62,000 with a lien or levy in place) to the State Department, which can now deny your passport application or renewal — and in some cases revoke it.

Identity Verification — Phone Only

A 4883C letter means the IRS needs you to verify your identity by PHONE before processing the return filed under your SSN — unlike the 5071C, there is no online option for this letter.

Collection Notices Resuming

An LT38 notice tells you the IRS is restarting its automated collection reminders on your unpaid balance — it's not a levy notice itself, but the escalation sequence (and penalties and interest) resumes after it.

Wage Levy (Garnishment) Served

A Form 668-W is an active IRS wage levy: your employer has been ordered to withhold a large portion of every paycheck and send it to the IRS — only a small exempt amount reaches you until the levy is released.

Bank / Third-Party Levy Served

A Form 668-A is a one-time IRS levy served on your bank, a client, or another third party holding your money — the bank must freeze what's in the account that day and hold it 21 days before sending it to the IRS, and those 21 days are your window to get it released.

Release of Levy

A Form 668-D is good news: it's the IRS's official release of a levy, faxed or mailed to your employer or bank to stop a wage garnishment or unfreeze levied funds — either fully, or partially with a payment amount that continues.

Business Return Not Filed

A CP259 notice means the IRS has no record that your business filed a required return — typically a Form 941 payroll return, 1120 corporate return, or 1065 partnership return — and is asking you to file it or explain why none is due.

Credit on Account — No Return Received

A CP80 notice means the IRS is holding payments or withholding credited to your account for a tax year — but has no record of a return for that year, so it can't apply the money or send your refund until you file.

Reminder — Unpaid Balance

An LT39 is a reminder from IRS Automated Collection that you still have an unpaid tax balance — it adds no new rights or deadlines, but it signals the account is active in collection and escalating letters (and eventually levies) follow if it's ignored.

Final Notice of Intent to Levy (Business)

A CP297 is the IRS's final notice of intent to levy sent to a business — usually over unpaid payroll taxes — giving you exactly 30 days to request a Collection Due Process hearing before the IRS can levy bank accounts, receivables, and other business property.

Final Notice Before Levy on Social Security Benefits

A CP91 (CP298 for businesses) is the IRS's final warning that it intends to take up to 15% of your Social Security benefits every month through the Federal Payment Levy Program — you have 30 days to arrange a resolution before the deduction starts.

Changes to Your Return — Balance Due

A CP22A notice means the IRS made changes to your tax return — usually changes you requested, like an amended return being processed — and the result is a balance due of $5 or more.

Changes to Your Return (Adjustment Notices)

A CP21 notice confirms the IRS changed your tax return: CP21B means the change produced a refund (typically mailed within 2–3 weeks of the notice), CP21A and CP21E mean a balance due, and CP21C means the change came out even.

Installment Agreement Payment Reminder

A CP521 is the monthly reminder the IRS sends when your installment agreement payment is due — it's routine, not a problem, but a missed payment after one is a step toward default (CP523).

Partnership / S-Corp Late Filing Penalty

A CP162 notice charges a penalty because a partnership (Form 1065) or S corporation (Form 1120-S) return was filed late, was incomplete, or wasn't e-filed when required — the penalty runs per partner or shareholder, per month, for up to 12 months.

Please Call About Your Overdue Taxes or Returns

An LT16 is an Automated Collection System letter saying the IRS wants to hear from you about an unpaid balance, unfiled returns, or both — it asks for contact within 10 days and signals the account is in active collection, a short step from levy notices.

Information Needed to Process Your Return

A Letter 12C means the IRS stopped processing your tax return because something is missing — most often Form 8962 for health-insurance premium credits, a missing form or schedule, or documentation of your withholding — and your refund is frozen until you send it.

We Need More Time (Interim Letter)

A Letter 2645C is an IRS stall letter: it acknowledges they received your correspondence, return, or response and says they need more time — usually 60 days — to work on it. It asks nothing of you and requires no response.

Return Under Review Before Refund

A Letter 4464C means the IRS is holding your refund while it verifies the return you filed — typically the income, withholding, or credits claimed — for up to 60 days. You usually don't need to do anything, and it is not an audit.

In-Person Identity Verification Required

A Letter 5747C means the IRS requires you to verify your identity in person at a Taxpayer Assistance Center before it will process the return filed under your SSN — the strictest form of IRS identity verification, with no online option.

Notice of Federal Tax Lien Filed

A Letter 3172 tells you the IRS has filed a Notice of Federal Tax Lien — a public record staking the government's claim on your property for unpaid tax — and starts a 30-day window to request a Collection Due Process hearing challenging or resolving it.