Got an IRS Notice? Here's Exactly What to Do First

The IRS mails around 200 million notices a year. Most are routine. A few are serious. Almost none require you to panic — but almost all of them require you to act, on their timeline, not yours. Here's exactly what to do the moment one lands in your mailbox.

Step 1: Open it. Read it. Note the deadline.

The single worst thing you can do with an IRS notice is stuff it in a drawer. Every letter has a response deadline printed on the first page, usually 30 or 60 days from the notice date. Miss that window and your options collapse — assessments become final, refunds are forfeited, and appeal rights disappear.

Look for the notice number in the upper right corner. CP2000, CP14, LT11, CP504 — each one means something different and dictates how urgently you need to move.

Step 2: Verify it's real

Real IRS notices arrive by U.S. mail on IRS letterhead. They never demand payment by gift card, wire transfer or cryptocurrency, and they don't threaten immediate arrest. If someone calls, emails or texts you claiming to be the IRS, it's a scam — full stop.

Step 3: Cross-check the numbers against your return

Most notices are triggered by an information mismatch — a 1099 the IRS received that didn't show up on your return, a math error, or a payment posted to the wrong year. Before you agree to anything, pull the return in question and compare line by line. About a third of the CP2000 notices we see are wrong or partially wrong.

When to call us

Any notice involving audit selection (Letter 566, 2205), levy warnings (LT11, CP504), unfiled returns (CP59, CP516) or amounts over a few thousand dollars deserves a professional set of eyes before you respond. IRS resolution is one of our core specialties, and the first consultation is always free.

Bring the notice, a copy of the return in question, and any supporting documents. We'll tell you within 30 minutes whether it's a five-minute reply or something that needs a full response strategy.