You can view IRS notices online by signing in to your IRS Individual Online Account at irs.gov, where most notices and letters the agency sends you appear as downloadable PDFs under the Notices and Letters section.1Internal Revenue Service. Online Account for Individuals – Frequently Asked Questions Not every notice shows up there. A handful are legally required to arrive by physical mail no matter what your account settings say, so the portal is a useful complement to your mailbox rather than a replacement for it.
Setting Up Access to Your Account
Before you can see anything, you have to verify your identity through ID.me, the third-party service the IRS uses.2Internal Revenue Service. New Online Identity Verification Process for Accessing IRS Self-Help Tools Start at irs.gov and select “Sign in to your Online Account,” then create or log into an ID.me account. You’ll need:
- A government-issued photo ID (driver’s license, state ID card, or U.S. passport)
- Your Social Security Number or ITIN
- A smartphone or computer with a camera, used to take a selfie that ID.me compares against your photo ID
- A valid email address
The selfie check is automated. If it fails, or if the self-service path doesn’t work for you, ID.me routes you to a live video chat with an agent who can verify you instead.3Internal Revenue Service. How to Register for IRS Online Self-Help Tools
If neither online nor video verification is workable, schedule an appointment at a local IRS Taxpayer Assistance Center. Bring a current government-issued photo ID plus a second form of identification, such as a Social Security card, birth certificate, utility bill showing your current address, or a car title, along with your taxpayer identification number and any relevant tax documents.4Internal Revenue Service. Contact Your Local IRS Office
Finding and Downloading Your Notices
Once you’re in, the dashboard shows your current balance and recent activity. The Notices and Letters section lists your digital correspondence with the date each notice was issued, the notice number (CP2000, CP14, and so on), and a short description.1Internal Revenue Service. Online Account for Individuals – Frequently Asked Questions Every notice is stored as a PDF, so you can open it on almost any device, save it to your records, or print a hard copy for a lender, accountant, or attorney. A digital copy also spares you a phone call if the paper version got lost in the mail.
The IRS does not publish a specific retention period for how long notices stay visible in the portal. If a notice you need is gone, you can request a transcript by filing Form 4506-T, which is available online, by mail, or by fax.5Internal Revenue Service. About Form 4506-T, Request for Transcript of Tax Return
Which Notices Appear Online and Which Do Not
The IRS makes only “certain notices and letters” available digitally.6Internal Revenue Service. Understanding Your IRS Notice or Letter Common ones you can typically find in the portal include:
- CP2000 notices, which flag a mismatch between what you reported on your return and what employers, banks, or other third parties reported to the IRS7Internal Revenue Service. Understanding Your CP2000 Series Notice
- CP14 notices, which inform you of an unpaid balance including tax, penalties, and interest8Internal Revenue Service. Understanding Your CP14 Notice
- Confirmation letters covering account changes, personal information updates, or approved payment plans
Some notices are legally required to be sent by physical mail, and paperless settings do not override that. The most important is the statutory notice of deficiency, sometimes called the 90-day letter, which the IRS must send by certified or registered mail.9Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 U.S. Code 6212 – Notice of Deficiency It proposes additional tax the IRS believes you owe and gives you 90 days (150 days if you’re outside the United States) to petition the Tax Court before the amount is automatically assessed. Miss that deadline and you lose the right to challenge the deficiency in Tax Court, and collection can begin immediately.10Internal Revenue Service. IRM 4.8.9 – Statutory Notices of Deficiency Keep checking your physical mail even if you use the online account daily.
Responding Through the Portal
For certain notices, particularly the CP2000 series, you can respond directly on the IRS website instead of mailing back a paper form. If you agree with the CP2000 finding, you sign and return the response form digitally. If you disagree, you submit a signed statement explaining why, along with supporting documents like W-2s, 1099s, or 1098s.11Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 652, Notice of Underreported Income – CP2000
The IRS Document Upload Tool accepts JPEG, PNG, or PDF files up to 15 MB each. You can upload as many as 40 files at a time, and individual PDFs can run to 120 pages.12Internal Revenue Service. IRS Expands Secure Digital Correspondence for Taxpayers Uploading is faster than mailing, which matters because response windows are short.
Deadlines That Control Regardless of When You See the Notice
Every IRS notice carries a deadline printed on it, and that printed date controls, no matter when you actually open the PDF or the envelope. A CP2000 gives you 30 days from the date on the notice to respond, or 60 days if you live outside the United States.11Internal Revenue Service. Topic No. 652, Notice of Underreported Income – CP2000 If you don’t respond, the IRS will generally assess the proposed changes and send you a bill. For a statutory notice of deficiency, the clock is 90 days (150 days if you’re abroad) to petition the Tax Court.10Internal Revenue Service. IRM 4.8.9 – Statutory Notices of Deficiency
Delay also costs money. The failure-to-pay penalty runs at 0.5% of the unpaid tax for each month or partial month a balance stays outstanding, up to 25%.13Internal Revenue Service. Failure to Pay Penalty With an approved payment plan after a timely-filed return, the rate drops to 0.25% per month. Ignore a levy notice past the 10-day window and it jumps to 1% per month.
Turning On Paperless Delivery
From your online account profile, you can opt into paperless delivery for the notices that qualify. Once you do, an email alerts you whenever a new notice is posted to your account.14Internal Revenue Service. Online Account for Individuals You can opt back out from the same profile page at any time.1Internal Revenue Service. Online Account for Individuals – Frequently Asked Questions Paperless does not cover every notice, and the statutory notice of deficiency will still come in the mail.
Letting a Tax Professional View Your Notices
A tax professional can see your notices through the IRS Tax Pro Account, but only after you authorize them. Their access is limited to the specific tax forms and periods your authorization covers, and it runs through their Centralized Authorization File (CAF) number.15Internal Revenue Service. Tax Pro Account
Two forms handle the authorization. Form 2848 (Power of Attorney) lets the professional act on your behalf. Form 8821 (Tax Information Authorization) lets them inspect and receive your tax information without representing you.16Internal Revenue Service. About Form 8821, Tax Information Authorization Either can be submitted online through the Tax Pro Account. One catch: a new authorization submitted through the portal automatically revokes any prior authorization for the same tax matters and periods. If you need an existing authorization to stay in place, your professional should file the new one by mail with the retention box checked.