IRS Secure Messaging is an invitation-only, encrypted portal that lets you exchange messages and documents directly with the IRS employee handling your case. You cannot sign up on your own, and you cannot use it to ask general tax questions. Access starts with a mailed invitation containing a unique access code tied to a specific open case, most often an audit or an Offer in Compromise review.
The system is used most heavily by the Large Business and International division and the Small Business/Self-Employed division during exams, and by the Tax-Exempt and Government Entities division for compliance work with nonprofits and government employers.1Internal Revenue Service. TE/GE Secure Messaging Specialty Collection employees also use it to request financial documentation during Offer in Compromise investigations.2Internal Revenue Service. IRM 5.8.2 Centralized Offer in Compromise Initial Processing If a tax professional is representing you, they can access your case in the portal, but only with a Form 2848 Power of Attorney or Form 8821 Tax Information Authorization already on file.3Internal Revenue Service. About Form 2848, Power of Attorney and Declaration of Representative They register under their own Social Security number and link to your case within the portal.
Setting Up Your Account
Your invitation will include a web link and a unique alphanumeric access code. Before the code will work, you have to verify your identity through ID.me, the third-party service the IRS uses across most of its online tools.4Internal Revenue Service. New Identity Verification Process to Access Certain IRS Online Tools and Services If you already have an ID.me account from another government service, sign in with those credentials.
New users have two options. The self-service route requires a photo of a government-issued ID (driver’s license, state ID, or passport) plus a selfie taken with a smartphone or webcam. If you would rather not use the automated selfie process, ID.me offers a live video chat with an agent who can verify you without collecting biometric data.5Taxpayer Advocate Service. Identity Verification and Your Tax Return Any selfie or video collected during verification is deleted afterward unless the session gets flagged as suspicious.
Once your identity is confirmed, enter the access code from your invitation along with your identifying number (SSN, ITIN, or EIN) to activate your mailbox. From then on, you log in through the IRS portal whenever you need to read or send messages.
Sending Messages and Uploading Documents
The interface works like basic webmail. When a new message arrives from your agent, you get an email notification at the address you registered. That notification will never contain your personal tax information; you have to log in to read the actual message.
To reply or open a new thread, select the case in your inbox and compose your response. The system accepts PDF, JPEG, and TIFF attachments.6Internal Revenue Service. Sending and Receiving Emails Securely Each file can be up to 15 MB, you can attach up to 40 files per submission, and PDFs are capped at 120 pages each.7Internal Revenue Service. IRS Expands Secure Digital Correspondence for Taxpayers A confirmation screen verifies the transmission after you send.
Keep messages focused on the case. The terms of service prohibit using the platform for anything unrelated, and sending excessive or irrelevant messages can get your account terminated.8Internal Revenue Service. IRS Secure Messaging Terms of Service and Rules of Conduct Response times from your agent vary with case complexity and workload.
Deadlines Don’t Pause for Outages
This trips people up. If the portal goes down for maintenance or a technical glitch, your IRS deadlines do not move. A system outage is not an extension.9Internal Revenue Service. IRS Secure Messaging Help If you can’t get into the portal and a deadline is approaching, call your assigned agent, send a fax, or mail your response. Waiting for the system to come back is not a valid excuse for a late reply.
Secure Messaging is only one channel. The IRS may still send you important notices by mail, and monitoring every channel is on you.8Internal Revenue Service. IRS Secure Messaging Terms of Service and Rules of Conduct Relying only on the portal and missing a mailed notice can create real problems.
Save Your Records Before the 30-Day Purge
Every message and attachment in the portal is part of the official case record. Your access to it is not permanent. All communications and documents on the platform are deleted 30 days after the IRS sends you a case-closure message.8Internal Revenue Service. IRS Secure Messaging Terms of Service and Rules of Conduct
Download or print anything you want to keep before that window closes. Once the data is purged, you cannot retrieve it through Secure Messaging. That includes your uploaded documents, the agent’s responses, and any attachments the IRS sent you. If you later need those records for an appeal or a different tax matter, you’ll have to request them through other channels.
Opting Out
Participation is voluntary at every stage. If you would rather communicate by mail, send a secure message to your agent stating that you want to opt out. The IRS will confirm and switch your case back to paper correspondence for the remainder of the matter.9Internal Revenue Service. IRS Secure Messaging Help
Opting out does not change your deadlines, close your case, or alter any obligation. It only changes how you and the IRS exchange information going forward. If the IRS terminates your account for violating the rules of conduct, you can still log in to view existing messages, but you lose the ability to send new ones.9Internal Revenue Service. IRS Secure Messaging Help
Spotting Fake IRS Emails
Because Secure Messaging sends email notifications, scammers have an obvious opening. A phishing email pretending to be an IRS notification can look convincing, especially if you’re already expecting messages from the agency. Watch for these signs:
- Legitimate IRS emails come from an address in the format employee.name@irs.gov. Anything else is not from the IRS.6Internal Revenue Service. Sending and Receiving Emails Securely
- The IRS does not initiate contact by email or social media. Your first Secure Messaging invitation arrives by mail. If your first notice of a case is an email, it is almost certainly a scam.10Internal Revenue Service. Ways to Tell if the IRS Is Reaching Out or if It’s a Scammer
- Real notifications never include your tax details. They only say a message is waiting. Any email showing your SSN, balance due, or refund amount is fraudulent.
- Scam messages often link to fake IRS websites. Instead of clicking a link, type the portal URL into your browser directly.10Internal Revenue Service. Ways to Tell if the IRS Is Reaching Out or if It’s a Scammer
If you get a suspicious email claiming to be from the IRS, forward it to phishing@irs.gov and then delete it. Don’t click any links or open any attachments.
Not the Same as the Document Upload Tool
The IRS also runs a separate Document Upload Tool for responding to certain CP-series notices. That one is a one-way upload: you submit documents, but you cannot exchange messages with an agent.7Internal Revenue Service. IRS Expands Secure Digital Correspondence for Taxpayers If you received a CP notice and want to send back documents, that tool is what you need. Secure Messaging is for two-way communication during an active case with an assigned employee.
Security Basics
Log out when you finish, and take extra care on shared or public computers. The IRS holds you responsible for activity on your account and for the security of your device and internet connection.8Internal Revenue Service. IRS Secure Messaging Terms of Service and Rules of Conduct If your contact email changes during your case, update it in the portal settings so notifications keep reaching you. Failing to update your email does not pause any deadline. For technical trouble logging in or navigating the portal, call the IRS agent assigned to your case first.