We may receive compensation from the companies for the products or services featured on our site. The compensation may affect the order, prominence, or location of specific listings. Advertising Disclosure

IRS notice decoder

IRS Notice CP508C: your tax debt and your passport

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 section 7345. Once certified, the State Department will not issue you a new passport and may deny a renewal or revoke your current one. For 2026 the threshold is a legally enforceable, unpaid balance over 66,000 dollars, adjusted each year for inflation. The IRS reverses the certification when you resolve the debt.

General information, not tax or legal advice. Deadlines and dollar figures below reflect what the IRS publishes and can change; the controlling dates are the ones printed on your own notice. ClearChoiceRadar is not affiliated with the IRS or any government agency.

How the IRS enforces an unpaid balance

  1. Final noticeLevy rights given
  2. Letter 3172Federal tax lien filed
  3. LevyWages or bank account
  4. CP91Social Security levy
  5. CP508CPassport flagged you are here
  6. CP40Private collection agency

Why you got it

Your assessed, legally enforceable federal tax debt, including penalties and interest, passed the seriously delinquent threshold, which is over 66,000 dollars for 2026 and is adjusted every year. Certification also requires that the IRS has either filed a Notice of Federal Tax Lien with the administrative remedies exhausted, or has issued a levy.

The IRS then notified the State Department under section 7345. The IRS itself does not take your passport. The State Department is the agency that acts on the certification by denying, revoking, or refusing to renew a passport.

Debts the IRS does not certify

Some balances are excluded and are not certified even if they are large. The IRS does not certify a debt that is being paid on time under an approved installment agreement or an accepted Offer in Compromise, one in currently not collectible hardship status, one included in a bankruptcy, or one held by a victim of tax related identity theft. Certain other situations, such as being in a federally declared disaster area, are also excluded.

This is why the fastest way out is often an arrangement rather than full payment: entering an approved installment agreement can move the debt into an excluded category.

How the certification gets reversed

  1. Pay the balance in full, which resolves the certification.

  2. Enter an IRS approved installment agreement so the debt is no longer seriously delinquent.

  3. Have an Offer in Compromise accepted, or a Justice Department settlement in place.

  4. If travel is imminent and you have resolved the debt, ask about expedited decertification, which the IRS can do in roughly 9 to 16 days.

After you resolve it

The IRS sends a CP508R

When the debt is fully paid, becomes legally unenforceable, is no longer seriously delinquent because you entered an approved arrangement, or was certified in error, the IRS reverses the certification. It sends you a CP508R and notifies the State Department within 30 days so passport processing can resume. Note that paying the balance down below the threshold alone does not automatically decertify unless the debt is fully satisfied or otherwise no longer meets the seriously delinquent definition.

CP508C questions

What is the seriously delinquent tax debt threshold?

For 2026 it is a legally enforceable, unpaid federal tax balance over 66,000 dollars, including assessed penalties and interest. The figure is adjusted for inflation each year; it was 64,000 dollars for 2025. Certification also requires that a lien has been filed with remedies exhausted, or a levy issued.

Can the IRS take my passport?

No. The IRS certifies the debt to the U.S. State Department, and it is the State Department that can deny a passport application, refuse a renewal, or revoke a current passport. The IRS action is the certification; the passport action is the State Department's.

How do I reverse a CP508C certification?

Resolve the debt: pay it in full, enter an IRS approved installment agreement, have an Offer in Compromise accepted, or otherwise move it out of the seriously delinquent category. The IRS then reverses the certification, sends you a CP508R, and notifies the State Department within 30 days.

What is a CP508R?

A CP508R is the notice the IRS sends when it reverses a passport certification, after you resolve the debt or the certification is found to be erroneous. The IRS notifies the State Department of the reversal within 30 days so passport processing can move forward.

Sources: IRS: Understanding your CP508C notice, IRS: Revocation or denial of passport in cases of certain unpaid taxes. The deadline that governs your case is the one printed on your notice.

Want help responding to a CP508C?

Compare tax relief companies that handle IRS collection matters. Many offer free initial consultations; check individual providers for details.

Compare tax relief companies

We earn compensation from companies featured on this site. This compensation may influence which companies appear and their placement. Full disclosure