Identity, refunds & unfiled returns
The in-person identity letter: because of a data breach or a high-risk flag, the IRS will only verify you face-to-face at a Taxpayer Assistance Center. Your return waits until you go.
Don't sit on it
The in-person identity letter: because of a data breach or a high-risk flag, the IRS will only verify you face-to-face at a Taxpayer Assistance Center. Your return waits until you go.
Why you got it: Your information appeared in a breach or the return's risk profile requires in-person document checks.
Not an audit and not an accusation — but it is the strictest of the three identity letters: no online option substitutes for the visit.
Your first move: Call the number on the letter to book the Taxpayer Assistance Center appointment, and bring originals: the letter, government photo ID, and the tax return for the year named (plus a prior-year return if you have one).
Every clock runs from this date — not from the day the letter reached you.
Photocopies of ID won't do — the letter lists what to bring; follow it exactly.
Call the number on the letter and explain — the IRS has hardship handling for distance and disability.
Appointment via the phone number on the letter; verification happens at the Taxpayer Assistance Center.
Nobody can 'verify you remotely' for a 5747C for a fee. The real process is free and in person.
No verification, no processed return, no refund — the account simply stays parked.
Where this sits on the ladder: This letter stands on its own track — see the collection ladder for the enforcement road.
One payment. No subscription. Yours to keep — every notice, every letter, every script.