How to Fill Out and Mail the Equifax Dispute Request Form

The Equifax dispute request form is a printable PDF you download from Equifax, fill out by hand or in a PDF reader, and mail with proof of identity and supporting documents to Equifax Information Services LLC, P.O. Box 740256, Atlanta, GA 30374-0256.¹ Once Equifax receives the package, federal law gives the agency 30 days to investigate the items you’re challenging and send you the results in writing.²

You can download the form at assets.equifax.com/assets/personal/Dispute.pdf, or find the link on Equifax’s Contact Us page.³ Mail isn’t the only channel — Equifax also takes disputes online at equifax.com/personal/credit-report-services/credit-dispute/ and by phone at (866) 349-5191 — but the mailed form creates the strongest paper trail if the dispute later becomes a legal matter.⁴

What to Gather Before You Start

Equifax will reject a mail-in dispute that doesn’t include proper identity verification, so pull everything together before you open the form. You need one document proving your identity and one proving your current address.⁵

For identity, send a copy of any one of these, and make sure it shows your Social Security number:

Social Security card
Driver’s license or state ID
Pay stub showing your SSN
W-2 or 1099 form

For address, send a copy of any one of these showing your current mailing address:

Rental lease agreement or house deed
Pay stub showing your address
Utility or phone bill (gas, electric, water, cable, or mobile)

If the name or address on these documents doesn’t match what appears on your credit report, Equifax asks you to add a copy of your driver’s license, Social Security card, or a recent utility bill that reflects the correct information.⁵

Then gather the evidence behind the actual dispute. If you’re challenging an incorrect balance, include the statement showing the real number. If a creditor confirmed an account is closed or paid off, include that letter or payment confirmation. A copy of the credit report page with the disputed items circled or highlighted helps the investigator see exactly what you’re challenging.⁴ Send copies only. Never originals.

Filling Out the Form

You can complete the PDF digitally before printing, or print it blank and fill it in by hand. If you’re handwriting, use black ink and print clearly. Illegible entries cause delays.

Personal Information

The top section asks for your first name, last name, middle initial, suffix, Social Security number, and date of birth. Enter these exactly as they appear on your credit report. Below that, fill in your current mailing address and a former address if you’ve moved recently. The form also has a field for your credit report confirmation number, which appears on a recently obtained Equifax report. Include it if you have it; it helps Equifax locate your file faster but isn’t mandatory.⁴

Dispute Details

The middle section is where you identify the specific items you’re challenging. For each one, enter the creditor’s name and the account number as it appears on your report. A full or partial number is fine. The form has checkboxes for common dispute reasons, such as “this account does not belong to me” or “the balance is incorrect,” and a text area where you explain the problem in your own words.⁵

The explanation matters more than most people realize. “This is wrong” gives the investigator nothing to work with. Write something specific instead: “This account was paid in full on March 15, 2025. Attached is the creditor’s confirmation letter showing a zero balance.” If you’re disputing an account opened through identity theft, say so plainly and note whether you’ve filed a police report or FTC identity theft affidavit. The more concrete your explanation, the harder it is for the creditor to rubber-stamp the existing data as verified.

Proof of Identity Checkboxes

At the bottom of the form, check the box that corresponds to the identity document and the address document you’re including. This tells the processor what to look for in your envelope. Don’t skip these; they match your attachments to the form and speed up processing.

Mailing the Package

Send everything to:

Equifax Information Services LLC
P.O. Box 740256
Atlanta, GA 30374-0256¹

Use certified mail with return receipt requested through USPS. The green return receipt card comes back to you signed and dated, proving exactly when Equifax received your dispute. That date starts the federal clock on the investigation deadline, and if you ever need to take legal action, this receipt is your most important piece of evidence. Regular mail works legally but gives you no proof of delivery.

Before you seal the envelope, photocopy or scan everything: the completed form, every supporting document, and both sides of your ID. Keep those copies with your certified mail tracking number and the return receipt when it arrives. This paper trail is the foundation for any escalation later.

What Happens After Equifax Receives It

Equifax has 30 days from the date it receives your dispute to complete its investigation. During that window, the agency must forward your dispute and supporting documents to the creditor that furnished the information, then report the results back to you.²

Two situations stretch that deadline to 45 days. First, if you filed after receiving your free annual credit report, Equifax gets 45 days instead of 30.⁶ Second, if you submit additional relevant information during the initial 30-day window, the agency can take up to 15 extra days to incorporate that new material.²

Once the investigation wraps up, Equifax has five business days to send you written results. That notice includes a statement that the investigation is complete, a revised copy of your credit report reflecting any changes, and information about your right to add a personal statement to your file if the dispute wasn’t fully resolved. If the disputed item was updated or deleted, the corrected information should appear on your report going forward.

If the Result Comes Back Wrong

Not every dispute produces a correction. Equifax can deny it if the creditor verifies the information as accurate, or the agency can terminate the investigation entirely if it decides the dispute is “frivolous or irrelevant.” A dispute is treated as frivolous when you don’t provide enough information for Equifax to investigate, or when it’s essentially the same dispute you already submitted without new supporting evidence.⁷ If Equifax makes that determination, it must notify you within five business days and explain what additional information you’d need to provide for the dispute to proceed.

When the result doesn’t go your way, you have several options:

File a brief written statement of up to 100 words explaining your side. Equifax must include it in your credit file, and future creditors who pull your report will see it.²
Re-dispute with new evidence. A resubmission that includes genuinely new documentation, such as a fresh letter from the creditor or a police report for fraud, cannot be dismissed as frivolous.
Dispute directly with the creditor that reported the information. Under federal regulations, a properly submitted direct dispute obligates the creditor to investigate and, if it agrees the data is wrong, notify all credit bureaus it reports to.⁸
File a complaint with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau at consumerfinance.gov/complaint or (855) 411-2372. The CFPB forwards the complaint to Equifax, which generally responds within 15 days.⁹

If Equifax knowingly ignores a valid dispute or fails to follow the investigation procedures the Fair Credit Reporting Act requires, the statute creates a private right of action. Willful violations expose the agency to actual damages or statutory damages of $100 to $1,000 per violation, plus possible punitive damages and attorney’s fees.¹⁰ Negligent violations expose it to actual damages plus fees and costs.¹¹ The certified mail receipt from your original dispute is the piece of evidence that makes any of those remedies workable.

1
Equifax. How to Dispute Credit Report Information By Mail
2
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1681i – Procedure in Case of Disputed Accuracy
3
Equifax. Contact Us
4
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. How Do I Dispute an Error on My Credit Report?
5
Equifax. Dispute Request Form
6
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. How Long Does It Take to Repair an Error on a Credit Report?
7
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. 12 CFR 1022.43 – Direct Disputes
8
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1681s-2 – Responsibilities of Furnishers of Information to Consumer Reporting Agencies
9
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Submit a Complaint
10
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1681n – Civil Liability for Willful Noncompliance
11
Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1681o – Civil Liability for Negligent Noncompliance