IRS notice decoder
Got a letter from the IRS? Start with the code in the corner.
Every IRS letter carries a code, usually in the top or bottom right corner: CP14, CP504, LT11, CP2000. The code tells you exactly what the letter is, what deadline it carries, and how close the IRS is to enforced collection. Find yours below.
General information, not tax or legal advice. The controlling deadlines are the ones printed on your own notice. ClearChoiceRadar is not affiliated with the IRS.
The collection sequence, start to finish
- CP14First bill
- CP501Reminder
- CP503Second reminder
- CP504Intent to levy
- LT11 / CP90Final notice, hearing rights
- LevySeizure possible
Two letters live off this main track: the CP2000 proposes changes before a balance exists, and the CP523 warns that a payment plan is about to terminate.
Balance Due, Notice and Demand for Payment
A CP14 says the IRS believes you owe tax that was not fully paid. It is the first bill in the collection sequence, nothing has been …
Pay by the due date printed on the notice
Reminder, Balance Due
A CP501 is a reminder that a balance is still unpaid after the first bill. The important change from the CP14 is the language: the IRS …
Pay by the due date shown on the notice
Second Reminder, Balance Due
A CP503 is the second reminder that a balance remains unpaid, sent because the IRS says it has not heard from you. It reads almost identically …
Pay by the due date shown on the notice
Notice of Intent to Levy
A CP504 is a Notice of Intent to Levy issued under Internal Revenue Code section 6331(d). It demands immediate payment and authorizes the IRS to seize …
The notice demands payment immediately
Final Notice of Intent to Levy and Notice of Your Right to a Hearing
An LT11, Letter 1058, CP90, or CP297 is the IRS's final notice of intent to levy, and it comes with something no earlier letter had: a …
30 days to request a Collection Due Process hearing
Proposed Changes to Your Tax Return
A CP2000 is not a bill and not an audit. It is a proposal: the IRS matched your return against income reported by employers, banks, and …
Respond by the date printed on the notice
Intent to Terminate Your Installment Agreement
A CP523 means the IRS considers your installment agreement in default and intends to terminate it. You have 30 days from the notice date to act. …
30 days from the notice date before termination
Annual Reminder of Balance Due
A CP71 is the annual reminder the IRS is required to send while a balance stays unpaid. It restates the tax, penalties, and interest owed as …
No fixed deadline; pay by the date printed on the notice
Initial Notice of Underreported Income
A CP2501 is the first letter the IRS sends when income or payment information it received from employers, banks, or brokerages does not match what you …
Respond by the date printed on the notice, generally about 30 days
Statutory Notice of Deficiency (90-Day Letter)
A CP3219A is the Statutory Notice of Deficiency, also called the 90-day letter. It is the IRS's formal notice that it is increasing your tax based …
90 days to petition the Tax Court, printed on the notice
Changes to Your Return, Balance Due
A CP11 says the IRS found what it believes is a miscalculation on your return, corrected it, and as a result you now owe a balance. …
60 days to request a reversal without paying first
Overpayment Applied to Taxes Owed
A CP49 tells you the IRS used all or part of your tax refund to pay a federal tax debt you already owed. This is called …
No action needed if you agree; the offset already happened
You Have Unpaid Taxes or Unfiled Returns
An LT16 is a collection notice telling you your account is overdue: the IRS is trying to collect an unpaid balance and, in some cases, its …
No fixed deadline; respond by the date printed on the notice
Notice of Federal Tax Lien Filing and Your Right to a Hearing
Letter 3172 tells you the IRS has filed a public Notice of Federal Tax Lien against your property because of an unpaid balance. A lien is …
30 days from the notice date to request a Collection Due Process hearing
Intent to Seize Up to 15% of Your Social Security Benefits
A CP91 is the IRS's final notice that it intends to levy up to 15 percent of your monthly Social Security benefits to pay an unpaid …
Pay by the date printed on the notice
Certification of Seriously Delinquent Tax Debt to the State Department
A CP508C tells you the IRS has certified to the U.S. State Department that you have a seriously delinquent federal tax debt under Internal Revenue Code …
No fixed deadline; act before the State Department denies or revokes a passport
Your Overdue Account Was Assigned to a Private Collection Agency
A CP40 says the IRS has assigned your overdue tax account to one of its three contracted private collection agencies. The debt is still owed to …
No fixed deadline; the assigned agency will contact you
CP5071 series notice (formerly Letter 5071C)
A CP5071 series notice means a federal income tax return was filed under your Social Security number or ITIN, and the IRS stopped it at the …
No deadline printed; your return sits unprocessed until you verify
Potential identity theft: phone verification
Letter 4883C is the phone-only identity verification letter. Unlike the CP5071 series, there is no online option on its page: you call the Taxpayer Protection Program …
No deadline printed; the return stays unprocessed until you call
Potential identity theft: in-person verification
Letter 5747C is the strictest identity verification tier: the IRS wants to see you, in person, at a Taxpayer Assistance Center. If you filed the return, …
No deadline printed; processing waits for your appointment
We're holding your refund while we review your return
A CP05 notice says the IRS needs more time to verify your income, income tax withholding, tax credits, or business income before issuing your refund. If …
No deadline; the IRS asks you not to call until 60 days after the notice date
We need more information to finish reviewing your refund
A CP05A means the refund review that began with a CP05 now needs your help: the IRS wants supporting documentation to verify your income and federal …
Reply by the date shown on your notice
Verifying your income and income tax withholding
Letter 4464C says the IRS selected your return to determine whether income, expenses, and credits are being reported accurately, and it is verifying your income and …
No deadline; do not call until 60 days after the letter date
We corrected your return; your refund amount changed
A CP12 notice means the IRS corrected one or more mistakes on your tax return, and as a result you are either due a refund or …
If you disagree, contact the IRS by the date shown on your notice
We made the changes you requested (CP21A balance due, CP21B refund)
The CP21 series confirms the IRS processed changes to your return. CP21B is the good letter: the changes you requested were made and a refund should …
CP21A: pay by the date printed on the notice. CP21B: no deadline, refund in 2 to 3 weeks
Changes to your return resulted in a balance due
A CP22A notice means the IRS made changes to your tax return and you owe money because of them. The bill is due by the date …
Pay by the date printed on the notice
Reminder of your unpaid balance as collections resume
An LT38 is the restart letter: the IRS suspended some collection notices during the pandemic, and this notice tells you normal operations are resuming, updates your …
No fixed deadline; interest and penalties continue until paid
We have no record of your prior year tax return
A CP59 notice means the IRS has no record that you filed your prior year personal tax return. The instruction is blunt: file the return immediately, …
No numeric deadline; the instruction is to file immediately
We're holding your refund until you file missing returns
A CP63 notice means the IRS is holding your refund because its records show you still have not filed one or more tax returns and it …
No numeric deadline; the hold lasts until you file or explain
Other codes you might be holding
- CP90 / CP297
- Versions of the final notice of intent to levy with hearing rights. Same legal event as the LT11 and Letter 1058. Covered here.
- Letter 1058
- The revenue officer version of the final notice. Same 30 day hearing window as the LT11. Covered here.
- CP3219A
- Statutory Notice of Deficiency. Usually follows an unanswered CP2000 and opens a firm 90 day window to petition Tax Court. Covered here.
- CP49
- Your refund was applied to a tax debt you owe. Informational; the refund offset already happened. Covered here.
- CP508C
- The IRS certified your debt as seriously delinquent to the State Department, which can deny or revoke a passport. The 2026 threshold is over $66,000. Covered here.
- CP161
- The business version of a balance due notice. Same idea as a CP14, addressed to a business account.
Any notice not listed can be looked up on the IRS notice lookup page. Letter from California's Franchise Tax Board instead of the IRS? Those use different codes and deadlines; see the FTB notice decoder.
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