How to Find Last Year’s Tax Return or Transcript

The quickest way to find last year’s tax return is to log back into the tax software you used to file it, or to ask the preparer who handled it. Both usually have a downloadable PDF of the complete return, including schedules, ready within minutes. If you need something directly from the IRS, a free transcript summarizing your return is available immediately through your IRS Online Account, and a full photocopy of the original filing is available by mail for $30 per year.

Start With Your Tax Software or Preparer

If you filed electronically, log back into the platform you used. Major providers keep your returns on file for several years, and you can generally download a PDF of the full return, with all schedules and worksheets, from a “prior returns” or “tax history” area of your account. This is the actual return you filed, not a summary.

If a CPA or a tax firm prepared the return, call them. Practitioners typically keep copies of returns they prepare for at least three years. Some charge a small retrieval fee. Either way, it beats waiting on the IRS.

Free IRS Transcripts and Which One You Need

A transcript is not a photocopy of your return. It is a summary the IRS generates from its own records, and the IRS offers four types at no cost, each built for a different purpose.¹

Tax return transcript. Shows most line items from your Form 1040 as originally filed, plus attached forms and schedules. It does not reflect changes made after filing. Mortgage lenders typically ask for this one.
Tax account transcript. Shows basic data like filing status, taxable income, and payment types, along with any post-filing changes such as amended-return adjustments or IRS corrections.
Record of account transcript. Combines the tax return and tax account transcripts into one document.
Wage and income transcript. Shows the information returns the IRS received on your behalf, such as W-2s, 1098s, 1099s, and 5498s. Useful when you are missing income documents for a return you are still preparing.

Tax return transcripts are available for the current year and three prior years. Tax account and wage and income transcripts generally go back nine prior years.¹

Get a Transcript Online

The fastest route to a transcript is your IRS Individual Online Account. Once you are logged in, you can view, print, or download all four transcript types on the spot.²

New users verify identity through ID.me, which involves uploading a photo of a government-issued ID (driver’s license, state ID, or passport) and taking a selfie with a smartphone or webcam. If you already have an IRS Online Account or an ID.me account, you just log in.³

If the automated selfie step fails, ID.me routes you to a live video chat agent who can verify you in a face-to-face conversation.³

Order a Transcript by Phone or Mail

You can request a tax return transcript or tax account transcript by calling the IRS automated line at 800-908-9946, or by submitting Form 4506-T by mail or fax. Both channels are free. Only the tax return and tax account transcripts are available this way. For a record of account transcript or a wage and income transcript, you have to use the online system.¹

Form 4506-T asks for your name, Social Security Number or ITIN, current address, and the specific tax years you want. If you mail or fax it, use the address or fax number for your region; the form includes a table keyed to the state where you lived when you filed.⁴

When You Need a Full Photocopy Instead

A transcript covers most needs. If you need an exact photocopy of the original Form 1040, with all attachments like W-2s and schedules as you submitted them, use Form 4506 (Request for Copy of Tax Return). The fee is $30 per tax year, payable by check or money order to the United States Treasury.⁵

Form 4506 asks for the same identifying information as Form 4506-T. Send the completed form and payment to the IRS office for your region, using the chart on the form itself.⁶

If you live in a federally declared disaster area, the IRS may waive the $30 fee. To claim it, write the assigned FEMA declaration number in bold at the top of Form 4506 or Form 4506-T before submitting.⁷

How Long Each Method Takes

Online transcript through your IRS Online Account: available immediately after login and identity verification.
Transcript by mail or phone (Form 4506-T or 800-908-9946): typically 5 to 10 calendar days to the address the IRS has on file.²
Full photocopy (Form 4506): up to 75 calendar days.⁵

Every mailed document goes to whatever address the IRS has on file for you. If you have moved since filing, submit Form 8822 to update your address before requesting anything by mail, or the paperwork will land at your old one.

Getting Past Returns for a Business

For an LLC, corporation, or partnership, the process runs on the same forms with a separate account. You can view, print, or download business transcripts through an IRS Business Tax Account. You can also request one by mail using Form 4506-T or by calling the IRS business and specialty tax line. A full photocopy of the original business return uses Form 4506 with the same $30 fee.⁸

A third party such as an accountant can request business transcripts on your behalf, but only with proper authorization already on file, usually Form 2848 (Power of Attorney) or Form 8821 (Tax Information Authorization).⁸

If the Return Wasn’t Actually Yours

If you think someone filed a return using your Social Security Number, you can request a masked copy of that fraudulent return through your IRS Online Account, or by mailing or faxing Form 4506-F. The copy blacks out some information to protect the identity thief’s personal data while still showing you what was filed.⁹

The IRS has to resolve your identity theft case before it can share the return, though you can submit the request at any time. The agency acknowledges the request within 30 days. You can ask for copies for the current tax year and the previous six tax years. The address on your request must match what the IRS has on file, so file Form 8822 first if you have recently moved.⁹

1
Internal Revenue Service. Transcript Types for Individuals and Ways to Order Them
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Internal Revenue Service. Get Your Tax Records and Transcripts
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Internal Revenue Service. How to Register for IRS Online Self-Help Tools
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Internal Revenue Service. Where to File Addresses for Filing Form 4506-T
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Internal Revenue Service. Form 4506, Request for Copy of Tax Return
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Internal Revenue Service. Where to File Addresses for Filing Form 4506
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Internal Revenue Service. IRS Announces Tax Relief for Taxpayers Impacted by Severe Storms, Straight-Line Winds, Flooding, Landslides, and Mudslides in the State of Washington
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Internal Revenue Service. Get a Business Tax Transcript
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Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Requesting Copy of Fraudulent Returns