Guides to IRS letters

Short, plain-English answers with IRS sources.

• How to respond to an IRS letter: Read every page of the notice, find the date printed on it, and compare the numbers with your own records.
• Is this IRS letter real?: To check if an IRS letter is real, look it up in your IRS Online Account or the official IRS2Go app, or call the IRS at a number listed on IRS.gov, not a number printed on the letter.
• IRS payment options explained: If you owe the IRS, the main options are paying in full now through IRS.gov/payments, setting up a short-term or long-term payment plan, applying for an Offer in Compromise to settle for less than you owe, asking the IRS to temporarily delay collection, or requesting penalty relief.