An official website of the U.S. GovTaxpayers have the right to appeal an IRS decision in an independent forum. One way that taxpayers may exercise this right is by filing a petition with the United States Tax Court.
A notice of deficiency, also called a “Statutory Notice of Deficiency” (SND or SNOD) or, “90-day letter,” is a legal notice in which the IRS determines a taxpayers deficiency. The SND (Letter 3219 or Letter 531) from the IRS is often referred to as your “ticket” to the Tax Court. If you don’t agree with the assessment you have the right to challenge the determination by filing a petition with the U.S. Tax Court (Tax Court) no later than the date listed on the notice. If you receive a SND and wish to have the Tax Court hear your case, you must file a petition with the Tax Court within 90 days of the date that the SND was mailed (or 150 days if the SND is addressed to you outside the U.S.). The Tax Court generally can’t consider your case if you file the petition late.
Note: If the last day of the 90 days (or 150 days) falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, the petition will be timely if filed on the next day that is not a Saturday. Sunday, or legal holiday.
While a petition to redetermine liability is one of the more common reasons you may petition the Tax Court, you can also petition for other issues such as a determination or failure to make a determination by the IRS in your innocent spouse relief case, or a disagreement with the results in your collection due process hearing. These types of petitions have different deadlines for filing, so you should pay close attention to the correspondence you receive from the IRS regarding any due date for filing a petition.
Your petition may be hand-delivered to the drop box at the Tax Court. Petitions may be hand-delivered between 8:00 am and 4:30 pm Monday through Friday, excluding federal holidays.
If you want to mail your petition, send it to:
United States Tax Court
400 Second Street, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20217-0002
The Tax Court encourages petitioners to electronically file petitions. You can e-file your completed petition by following instructions and user guides available on the Tax Court’s Docket Access Within a Secure Online Network, or DAWSON, website to do so. The online application takes you through the steps of completing the petition and uploading your IRS notices(s), confirming your identity, and paying the filing fee. The e-file petition will provide your assigned docket number once the petition is submitted. It also allows you to request a waiver of the filing fee if you cannot afford to pay it.
If you want to mail your petition, send it to:
United States Tax Court
400 Second Street, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20217-0002
The Tax Court is the only judicial forum where you don’t have to pay the proposed deficiency prior to filing a petition. If you miss the deadline in your SND, the IRS will assess the taxes and any penalties proposed in the SND. Then if you still want to dispute the liability, you can pay the liability, file a refund claim with the IRS, and subsequently file a refund suit in a U.S. district court or the U.S. Court of Federal Claims. If you want to dispute the liability but you have not made a payment, you will need to request an audit.
No. You may be able to resolve your case without going to court if you contact the IRS directly. You can contact the person at the top of the first page of the SND with any questions. If you prefer, you can write to the address at the top of the first page of the SND.
Filing fees are required to submit a petition. The Tax Court’s filing fee is $60 and may be paid online, by mail, or in person. The fee may be waived by filing an Application for Waiver of Filing Fee. Your petition must be processed by the Tax Court before the Application for Waiver of Filing fee can be filed electronically.
You can represent yourself before the Tax Court or anyone allowed to practice before the Tax Court can represent you. If you are eligible, you may be able to get assistance from a Low Income Taxpayer Clinic (LITC). LITCs are independent from the IRS and the Taxpayer Advocate Service (TAS). LITCs represent individuals whose income is below a certain level and who need to resolve tax problems with the IRS. LITCs can represent taxpayers in audits, appeals, and tax collection disputes before the IRS and in court. In addition, LITCs can provide information about taxpayer rights and responsibilities to individuals who speak English as a second language. Services are offered for free or a small fee.
If you file a petition with the Tax Court, the Tax Court will send you information about LITCs when a Notice of Trial is sent to you.
While you may contact TAS for assistance with the deficiency proposed in your SND, working with TAS will not extend your time to file a petition with the Tax Court. TAS cannot prepare a petition for you and cannot represent you before the Tax Court. Generally, once you have petitioned the Tax Court (or any other federal court), TAS will not be able to provide further assistance, as the case is being handled by either the IRS Office of Chief Counsel or the U.S. Department of Justice.
