Junk Mail Magic

Verify a letter that claims to come from the IRS

Keep the letter, and do not pay or call using the instructions printed on it. The IRS tells people who receive suspicious tax letters to verify them through official IRS resources. Look up the notice on IRS.gov, then confirm it through an IRS contact route you found there yourself.

By Junk Mail Magic. Updated .

Check the letter against IRS.gov

  1. Keep the envelope and every page. On a separate sheet, note the notice or letter number, the date, any tax year and any response deadline.
  2. Type IRS.gov into your browser yourself. Search for the notice number and read what the IRS says that notice is for.
  3. Compare that page with your letter: the sender named, what it asks you to do, how it asks for payment and where it says to reply. Write down anything that does not match.
  4. If you still cannot tell, contact the IRS using a phone number or page you found on IRS.gov. Ask whether the notice is theirs and what it requires.
  5. If the IRS says the letter is not theirs and it came by mail, you can report suspected mail fraud to USPIS. A report does not guarantee an investigation.

When a private company's name is on tax mail

The IRS says private collection letters can be legitimate and that IRS correspondence comes before them. An unfamiliar collector's name does not prove a letter is fake, and an IRS logo does not prove it is real. The IRS's answer settles it.

If the notice is real, its deadline still applies while you check. Respond through the channel the IRS confirms.

Private verification worksheet

Example for your own use. Replace the bracketed details and review what you share.

Sender named on letter: [name] Notice or letter number: [number] Date on letter: [date] Tax year named: [year] Response deadline: [date] Payment method requested: [method] IRS.gov page I compared: [page title] IRS contact route I found myself: [route] IRS answer and date: [answer, date] Next step: [reply as directed / report to USPIS]

Record the answer

Fill in the worksheet before you contact the IRS, then add what they tell you. If the letter is real, put its deadline on your calendar and reply the way the IRS directs. If it is not, store the original and envelope together in case you file a report.

Official sources

Check a tax-debt relief advertisementChoose between mail-fraud and delivery support routesA mailed demand for gift-card codes is a scamSuspicious mailAll practical mail guides

Keep personal records with the organization that handles them

Junk Mail Magic is for ordinary unwanted advertising. Use the official contact route in this guide for records, account changes or someone else’s correspondence.

Compare removal routes