How to Respond to an IRS Notice (and Spot a Fake One)

Few envelopes land harder than one that says Internal Revenue Service. But most IRS notices are routine — a balance question, a small correction, a request to verify something — and the great majority are resolved by one calm, on-time written reply. The panic is optional. The response is what matters.

Here's how to respond to an IRS notice the steady way: confirm it's genuine, read what it actually says, protect your deadline, and answer in writing.

First: is it really the IRS?

Because the IRS is one of the most impersonated senders there is, start here. One fact does most of the work:

The IRS generally first contacts you by mail, through the U.S. Postal Service — not by surprise phone call, email, text, or social media. And a genuine notice will never demand payment by gift card, prepaid card, cryptocurrency, or a wire transfer to a private account; real payments go to the U.S. Treasury. It won't threaten to send police to arrest you, revoke your license, or deport you. Those are the moves of a scammer, every time.

A real notice also looks like a real notice:

• A notice or letter number in the upper-right corner — usually a CP or LTR number.
• Your tax year and taxpayer-specific detail.
• A dry, procedural tone that explains your options and gives you weeks, not hours.

To verify without touching the letter's contact info: log in to your own account at IRS.gov, where many genuine notices are mirrored, or call the IRS at a number you look up yourself. Never call the number on a letter you're trying to confirm, and be cautious with any QR code — scammers have started mimicking even real notices that include them. If it fails these checks, don't respond; run it through the full scam check and report it to the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration.

Then: decode what it's asking

Once you know it's genuine, run it through The 6-Pass Method™. A tax notice usually comes down to a few plain questions:

• What is it? Say it in one sentence. "The IRS says I underreported income for 2024 and owe $X." "The IRS adjusted my refund." "The IRS needs to verify my identity before processing my return."
• What's fact vs. claim? Their number is a proposed figure, not a verdict. Match it against your own records — your return, your W-2s and 1099s, your receipts. Notices are sometimes based on incomplete information, and a plain explanation with documentation often resolves them.
• What do they need, and by when? This is the pass that matters most, below.
• My position: do you agree, partly agree, or disagree? That decides your reply.

Mind the deadline — it's the real one

Many tax notices carry a genuine response window, and it's usually the most important thing on the page. A notice proposing additional tax typically gives you a set number of days to respond or to challenge it before the amount is finalized; an identity-verification notice can hold up your refund until you act. Missing the window can cost you the chance to contest the amount, or move it toward collection.

So count carefully. IRS response windows usually run from the date printed on the notice, not the day you open it — so the days the letter spent in the mail come out of your time, not on top of it. When in doubt about which clock applies, treat the earliest one as real and give yourself margin.

How to respond

If you agree, follow the notice's instructions — pay, or arrange a payment option through the IRS directly, and keep proof.

If you disagree or partly agree, reply in writing, on time, and make it easy to follow:

• Reference the notice by its CP/LTR number and the tax year, so your letter lands in the right file.
• State your position plainly, point by point, matched to what the notice claims.
• Enclose copies — never originals — of the documents that support you.
• Be specific and calm. You're not arguing with a person; you're showing the record. "My W-2 shows $52,100, which matches my return; the notice appears to include a duplicate entry" beats any amount of frustration.
• Send it so you can prove it, and keep a complete copy of everything.

A simple opening:

Re: Notice [CP/LTR number], Tax Year [year], [your name and last four of SSN as the notice requests]

Greetings,

I received the above notice dated [date] proposing [what it says]. After reviewing my records, I disagree with [specific point], for the following reason: [plain explanation]. I've enclosed [documents] that support this.

Please review these and adjust the account accordingly. If you need anything further from me, I'm glad to provide it.

The same warmth-and-precision that works on any institution works here: courteous to the person who'll read it, exact on the facts and the numbers.

When to bring in a professional. Some tax letters are past the point of a do-it-yourself reply. Talk to a tax professional or tax attorney if the notice is a statutory notice of deficiency ("90-day letter"), if it involves an audit, a lien or levy, or a large sum, or if you can't verify the deadline yourself. A CPA, enrolled agent, or tax attorney can represent you before the IRS — and the cost is small next to a waived right. This is also the moment to get help if the notice touches possible fraud or identity theft.

The bottom line

Confirm it's genuine (mail-first, never gift cards, real notice number). Decode what it's really asking. Protect the deadline, counted from the notice date. Then reply in writing, referencing the notice, stating your position plainly, with copies of your proof. Steady beats scared — and steady is what the IRS is set up to answer.

That calm, on-the-record approach is what The Response Desk™ teaches for every agency letter. The 6-Pass Method™ is where it starts; our course, Writing Letters That Respond, carries it through tax notices, benefits decisions, and every official letter that lands on your table.

The 6-Pass Method™ is a trademark of The Response Desk.

The Response Desk is a writing service, not a law firm. This article explains how to read and respond to IRS notices in general. It isn't tax or legal advice. Tax procedures and deadlines are specific and change; for a deficiency notice, an audit, a lien or levy, or any large or uncertain matter, consult a qualified tax professional or tax attorney.

Related reading: Decode Any Formal Letter · Is This Letter a Scam? · Respond to a Debt Collector Letter