What does this mean to me?
If you have a tax debt, the IRS can issue a levy, which is a legal seizure of your property or assets. It is different from a lien — while a lien makes a claim to your property or rights to property as security for a tax debt, the levy takes your property (such as funds from a bank account, Social Security benefits, wages, your car, or your home). For specifics, see Levies on TAS Get Help and/or Liens on TAS Get Help for further information.
This Notice is Your Right to request a Collection Due Process (CDP) hearing. You’ll have until the date shown on the notice to request a CDP hearing with the IRS Office of Appeals. See IRS Publication 1660, Collection Appeal Rights, for a full explanation of the CDP process. If you wish to appeal the filing of the lien and/or the proposed levy action, you need to timely complete and mail Form 12153, Request for a Collection Due Process or Equivalent Hearing. If your request for a CDP hearing isn’t timely, you can request an Equivalent Hearing within one year from the date of the CDP notice, but you can’t challenge Appeals decisions in U.S. tax court if you disagree with their decision.
If the IRS has already issued a CDP notice for that particular tax debt, then you can still request a hearing with the IRS Office of Appeals either before or after the IRS levies your property. You can also request a hearing when the IRS proposes filing of a Notice of Federal Tax Lien and when the IRS rejects, modifies or terminates an installment agreement. You will need to request a conference through the Collection Appeals Program (CAP), but unlike a CDP hearing, you may not seek review of Appeal’s determination in the U.S. Tax Court. See IRS Publication 594, The IRS Collection Process, and Publication 1660, Collection Appeal Rights, for a full explanation of the CAP.
You can also ask that the IRS manager review your case informally. You can obtain the manager’s name and phone number by contacting the employee listed on your notice. IRS employees are required to give you their manager’s name and phone number. For specifics, see Levies on TAS Get Help and/or Liens on TAS Get Help for further information.
This notice also explains the possible denial or revocation of your United States passport. Visit Revocation or Denial of Passport in Case of Certain Unpaid Taxes for further information.
How did I get here?
You received various notices or letters from the IRS requesting payment for the tax balance owing and the debt remains unpaid. Since you have a balance owing, the IRS is continuing with its collection process by either filing a lien, which makes claim to your assets as security for a tax debt, or issuing a levy that can take your property (such as funds from a bank account, Social Security benefits, wages, your car, or your home).
Also, you may have requested an installment agreement or have an existing one. Under the Collections Appeals Program (CAP), you also have 30 days to appeal the rejection, modification and/or termination of an installment agreement.