You cannot fax Form 9465 to the IRS through any public fax number. The agency’s instructions for the Installment Agreement Request give two submission methods: apply through the Online Payment Agreement tool, or mail the paper form to the service center listed in the current instructions.1Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 9465 Fax is not on that list. If you send the form to a general IRS fax line, it will not be processed, and you will have no record that the agency ever received it.
The One Time Faxing Is Allowed
There is a narrow exception. If an IRS revenue officer, a collections representative, or someone from the Automated Collection System is already working your account and gives you a direct fax number during a phone call or in written correspondence, you can fax Form 9465 to that number. Someone on the other end is expecting it and knows which case to attach it to.
Outside of that situation, do not fax the form. If no IRS employee has handed you a specific number tied to your case, you don’t have a valid fax option. Use one of the two methods below instead.
How to Actually Submit Form 9465
Apply Online Through the Payment Agreement Tool
The fastest route is the IRS Online Payment Agreement (OPA) tool. You get an immediate approval or denial when you finish the application.2Internal Revenue Service. Online Payment Agreement Application Individual taxpayers who owe $50,000 or less in combined tax, penalties, and interest, and who have filed all required returns, qualify to use it.3Internal Revenue Service. Payment Plans Installment Agreements
Online is also cheaper. The setup fee difference between an online application and a mailed paper form is large enough that it should be the deciding factor for anyone who qualifies.
Mail the Paper Form
If you don’t qualify for the online tool, prefer paper, or are attaching Form 9465 to a tax return you’re filing, mail it to the IRS. The correct address depends on the state you live in and whether the form is going in with a return or on its own. Pull the current Form 9465 instructions and use the address listed there, because the IRS reassigns processing centers from time to time.1Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 9465
A boundary worth flagging: if you run a business that is still operating and owes employment or unemployment taxes, Form 9465 is not your form at all. Call the phone number on your most recent IRS notice to request an installment agreement for those liabilities.1Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Form 9465
What the Submission Method Costs You
How you apply, and how you agree to pay each month, both move the one-time setup fee. The current fee schedule looks like this:3Internal Revenue Service. Payment Plans Installment Agreements
- Short-term plan of 180 days or less: $0 setup fee, regardless of how you apply. Available to individuals who owe less than $100,000.
- Long-term plan with Direct Debit, applied online: $22.
- Long-term plan with Direct Debit, applied by phone or mail: $107.
- Long-term plan without Direct Debit, applied online: $69.
- Long-term plan without Direct Debit, applied by phone or mail: $178.
The spread between a $22 online direct-debit agreement and a $178 mailed non-direct-debit agreement is $156. If you can use the online tool and authorize automatic bank withdrawals, do both.
If Your Income Is Low
If your adjusted gross income is at or below 250% of the federal poverty level, the IRS treats you as a low-income taxpayer and adjusts the fee. The setup fee for a Direct Debit Installment Agreement is waived entirely. For a long-term plan without direct debit, the fee drops to $43, and the IRS reimburses that amount once you complete all payments. The system is supposed to flag eligible taxpayers automatically, but if it misses you, submit Form 13844 to request the reduced fee.3Internal Revenue Service. Payment Plans Installment Agreements
Filling Out the Form
Form 9465 itself is short. You enter your total tax liability including accrued penalties and interest, propose a specific monthly payment amount, and pick the day of the month payments will come out. The amount you propose has to be large enough to pay off the balance within the timeframe allowed for your type of agreement.
If you’re choosing Direct Debit, the form asks for your bank’s routing number and your account number. That one choice lowers the setup fee and takes the risk of a missed payment off the table, which is one of the most common ways agreements fall apart.
What Happens After You Send It
While your Form 9465 is under review, the IRS is prohibited by regulation from levying your wages or bank accounts to collect the debt covered by the request. That levy pause continues for 30 days after a rejection, and through any appeal you file.4eCFR. 26 CFR 301.6331-4 – Restrictions on Levy While Installment Agreement Is Pending or in Effect The same regulation suspends the collection statute of limitations during that period, so the IRS gets the time back on the other end.
For mailed forms, the IRS generally responds within about 30 days.5Internal Revenue Service. What If I Have Requested an Installment Agreement During that window, don’t ignore other IRS notices. Automated collection letters sometimes cross in the mail with a pending agreement request. If you get a threatening notice while you’re waiting, call the number on the notice and tell the representative your Form 9465 is in process.
If you applied online, you already have your answer: the OPA tool tells you on the spot whether the plan was accepted and on what terms. That is the single biggest practical reason to use the online route if you qualify. No fax number is going to get you a faster or more certain result than that.