IRS Notices – The Most Common Ones Explained 

CP 504 – Urgent!! We Intend to Levy on Certain Assets. Please respond NOW.
Do not ignore this notice. A CP 504 is usually issued before the Letter 11 or the Letter 1058. You still have time to respond. However, if you ignore this notice you will soon receive one of the final notices mentioned above. The CP 504 warns you that collection actions such as wage garnishments, bank levies, or tax liens and seizures of assets are next.

CP 92 and CP 242 – Notice of Levy upon Your State Tax Refund – Notice of Your Right to a Hearing
These two nearly identical notices inform you that the IRS levied your state tax refund to pay your unpaid federal taxes. This notice and referenced publications explain how to request an appeal if you don’t agree. You should file a Form 12153, Request for A Collection Due Process Hearing, and send it to the address shown on your levy notice within 30 days from the date of the letter to appeal the action with the Independent Office of Appeals.

CP297 and CP90 – Final Notice, Notice of Intent to Levy, and Notice of Your Right to a Collection Due Process Hearing
These two notices and Letter 1058 – essentially the same language – notify you the IRS hasn’t received full payment despite sending you several notices about your unpaid federal taxes. The IRS may seize (levy) your property or rights to property. To appeal the proposed seizure (levy) of your assets, you should file a Form 12153, Request for A Collection Due Process Hearing, and send it to the address shown on your levy notice within 30 days from the date of the letter to appeal the action with the Independent Office of Appeals.

CP 523 – IMF Installment Agreement Default Notice
If you don’t make a payment as promised or you incur a new tax liability, this may cause your installment agreement to default. This letter puts you on notice that the IRS intends to terminate your agreement in 30 days. You have the right to file a Collection Appeal Request (CAP) to ask for an appeal if you disagree.

CP 2000 – Proposed Adjustment
This is one of the most common letters issued by the IRS. When returns are filed, they are computer-matched against the IRS database that contains copies of W-2s, 1099s, K-1s, and other information documents. If the computer identifies one or more items (like interest income or dividend payment received) that were not included in your return, the IRS will recompute your tax liability and notify you of their plans to change your return as filed.   You are provided a computation of the proposed adjustment to your return based on this information. If you agree, you sign and return the agreement forms. If you do not agree, you can submit a request for appeal/protest to the office/individual that sent you the letter. You have a limited period within which to file the request. If you had your return prepared by a professional, be sure to contact them immediately for assistance and to verify the item or items the IRS identified were not already included in the return. If you prepared the return yourself and do not understand what the IRS is proposing, get help quickly. The information presented is general in scope, may omit many details and special rules, is current only as of its published date, and cannot be regarded as legal or tax advice. Please contact our office for more information on this subject and how it pertains to your specific tax or financial situation.

Letter 1085 – 30-Day Letter Proposed 6020(b) Assessment
If you fail to file a tax return voluntarily, the IRS has the authority to prepare a return on your behalf using information they have received (such as copies of forms W-2, 1099, K-1, etc.) and industry standards for your job or business. You have a 30-day window to protest the IRS proposed assessment which is most often a balance due that is more than what you truly owe as the IRS never includes deductions or credits to which you may be entitled. Get help quickly.

Letter 73 – Notice of Levy and of Your Right to a Hearing
This letter notifies you that the IRS hasn’t received payment of your federal employment tax and has issued a notice of levy to collect your unpaid taxes. The IRS has determined you are not entitled to a pre-levy hearing because you (or your predecessor) previously requested a collection due process hearing under Internal Revenue Code (IRC) Section 6330 that included an employment tax period that fell within the two-year period that ended with the beginning of the period shown on the notice.

Letter 525 – General 30-Day Letter
You will get this letter with a computation report of proposed adjustments to your tax return. It outlines your options if you don’t agree with the proposed adjustments. If you agree with the adjustment, sign and return the agreement form. If you don’t agree, you can submit a request for appeal to the office that sent you the letter. The letter contains information and lists IRS publications on how to file an appeal/protest. You should file your protest within 30 days from the date of this letter to appeal the proposed adjustments with the Independent Office of Appeals.

Letter 531 – Notice of Deficiency
You will get this letter if you owe additional tax or other amounts for the tax year(s) listed in the letter. The letter explains how to dispute the adjustments if you don’t agree. If you want to dispute the adjustments without payment, you will have 90 days from the notice date to file a petition with the United States Tax Court.

Letter 692 – Request for Consideration of Additional Findings
You will get this letter with a computation report of proposed adjustments to your tax return. It outlines your options if you don’t agree with the proposed adjustments. If you agree with the adjustment, sign and return the agreement form. If you don’t agree, you can submit a request for appeal to the office that sent you the letter. The letter contains information and lists IRS publications on how to file an appeal/protest. You should file your protest within 15 days from the date of this letter to appeal the proposed adjustments with the Independent Office of Appeals.

Letter 915 – Examination Report Transmittal
This letter explains adjustments in the amount of tax. If you agree with the adjustment, sign and return the agreement form. If you don’t agree, you can submit a request for appeal/protest to the office that sent you the letter. The letter or referenced publications explain how to file a protest. You should file your protest within 30 days from the date of this letter to appeal the proposed adjustments with the Independent Office of Appeals.

Letter 950 – 30-Day Letter-Straight Deficiency
This letter is used for un-agreed, straight deficiency, straight overassessment, or mixed deficiency and overassessment cases. This letter may be used for various types of tax. If you agree with the adjustment, sign and return the agreement form. If you don’t agree, you can submit a request for appeal to the office that sent you the letter. The letter contains information and lists IRS publications on how to file a protest. You should file your protest within 30 days from the date of this letter to appeal the proposed adjustments with the Independent Office of Appeals.

Letter 1058 – Final Notice Reply Within 30 Days
This letter is an alternative to the CP297 and CP90. It notifies you of unpaid taxes and that the IRS intends to levy to collect the amount owed. The letter and referenced publications explain how to request an appeal if you don’t agree. You should file a Form 12153, Request for A Collection Due Process Hearing and send it to the address shown on your levy notice within 30 days from the date of the letter to appeal the action with the Independent Office of Appeals.

Letter 3172 – Notice of Federal Tax Lien Filing and Your Rights to a Hearing under IRC 6320
This letter notifies you the IRS filed a notice of tax lien for unpaid taxes. If you disagree you can request appeals consideration within 30 days of the date of the letter. The letter and publications explain how to request a hearing from the Independent Office of Appeals. You should file Form 12153, Request for A Collection Due Process Hearing, and send it to the address shown on your lien notice within 30 days from the date of the letter to appeal the action with the Independent Office of Appeals.