To find where to mail your tax return, match your state to the right IRS address and check whether you’re enclosing a payment. The IRS uses three service centers for returns filed without a payment (Austin, Kansas City, and Ogden) and two lockbox locations for returns filed with a check or money order (Charlotte and Louisville).1Internal Revenue Service. Where to File Addresses for Taxpayers and Tax Professionals Filing Form 1040 The tables below give you the exact addresses for a Form 1040 or 1040-SR filed in 2026.
Form 1040 Address if You Are Not Enclosing a Payment
If you owe nothing, are getting a refund, or are paying your balance electronically, use one of these three addresses based on where you live.2Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Forms 1040 and 1040-SR
Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Austin, TX 73301-0002
- Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas
Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Kansas City, MO 64999-0002
- Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin
Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Ogden, UT 84201-0002
- Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Kansas, Michigan, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, Wyoming
These groupings change from time to time. Verify the address on IRS.gov before mailing a return for any later tax year.1Internal Revenue Service. Where to File Addresses for Taxpayers and Tax Professionals Filing Form 1040
Form 1040 Address if You Are Enclosing a Payment
If you’re mailing a check or money order with your return, it goes to a different location. Only two addresses cover the entire country.
Internal Revenue Service, P.O. Box 1214, Charlotte, NC 28201-1214
- Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas
Internal Revenue Service, P.O. Box 931000, Louisville, KY 40293-1000
- Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, Wyoming
Include Form 1040-V (the payment voucher) with your check, and put the return, voucher, and check loose in the envelope. Do not staple them together.3Internal Revenue Service. Form 1040-V Payment Voucher for Individuals Make the check or money order payable to “United States Treasury,” not “IRS.” Write your name, address, Social Security number, daytime phone, the tax year, and “Form 1040” on the payment itself so it can be matched to your return if the two get separated in processing.4Internal Revenue Service. Pay by Check or Money Order
Address if You Live Outside the United States
If you live in a foreign country, at an APO or FPO address, or you’re filing Form 2555 to claim the foreign earned income exclusion, use these addresses:5Internal Revenue Service. U.S. Citizens and Resident Aliens Abroad – Where and When to File and Pay
- Without payment: Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Austin, TX 73301-0215, USA
- With payment: Internal Revenue Service, P.O. Box 1303, Charlotte, NC 28201-1303, USA
Residents of American Samoa, Puerto Rico, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Northern Mariana Islands should consult IRS Publication 570 for territory-specific rules.
Address for an Amended Return (Form 1040-X)
An amended return goes to a different address than your original 1040, and the state groupings are not the same either. Do not reuse the address from your original filing.6Internal Revenue Service. Where to File Addresses for Taxpayers and Tax Professionals Filing Form 1040-X
Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Kansas City, MO 64999-0052
- Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin
Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Austin, TX 73301-0052
- Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, Texas
Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service, Ogden, UT 84201-0052
- Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, Wyoming
Filers abroad or at an APO/FPO address send Form 1040-X to Austin, TX 73301-0215.6Internal Revenue Service. Where to File Addresses for Taxpayers and Tax Professionals Filing Form 1040-X
Address if You Are Using FedEx, UPS, or DHL
Private couriers can’t deliver to P.O. Boxes, so the addresses above won’t work. Use the IRS submission processing center street addresses instead, and remember that with a private carrier, returns with and without payments go to the same location.7Internal Revenue Service. Submission Processing Center Street Addresses for Private Delivery Service (PDS)
- Austin: Internal Revenue Submission Processing Center, 3651 S IH35, Austin, TX 78741
- Kansas City: Internal Revenue Submission Processing Center, 333 W. Pershing, Kansas City, MO 64108
- Ogden: Internal Revenue Submission Processing Center, 1973 Rulon White Blvd., Ogden, UT 84201
Only specific service levels qualify as “timely filing” under federal law. Ground shipments do not.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 7502 – Timely Mailing Treated as Timely Filing and Paying The approved services are:9Internal Revenue Service. Private Delivery Services (PDS)
- DHL Express 9:00, 10:30, 12:00, Worldwide, and Envelope; DHL Import Express 10:30, 12:00, and Worldwide
- FedEx First Overnight, Priority Overnight, Standard Overnight, 2 Day, International Next Flight Out, International Priority, International First, and International Economy
- UPS Next Day Air Early A.M., Next Day Air, Next Day Air Saver, 2nd Day Air, 2nd Day Air A.M., Worldwide Express Plus, and Worldwide Express
How to Prove You Mailed It on Time
Under 26 USC 7502, a return is treated as filed on the date of the USPS postmark, so long as it is postmarked by the deadline, carries prepaid postage, and is correctly addressed.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 7502 – Timely Mailing Treated as Timely Filing and Paying The recorded delivery date from an approved private carrier works the same way. The federal filing deadline for tax year 2025 is April 15, 2026.10Internal Revenue Service. IRS Opens 2026 Filing Season
If the IRS later says your return arrived late or never arrived, the burden of proving timely mailing is on you. Your options, from strongest to weakest:
Registered mail is the strongest. The registration date is treated as the postmark date, and the registration itself is prima facie evidence that the IRS received your return, meaning the IRS has to disprove it if delivery is disputed.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 26 USC 7502 – Timely Mailing Treated as Timely Filing and Paying
Certified mail with return receipt is the more common choice. You get a dated mailing receipt and a signed card confirming IRS receipt. It doesn’t carry the same statutory presumption as registered mail, but most taxpayers find it enough.
Plain first-class mail leaves you with nothing to show if a dispute comes up. For a document with real financial stakes, the few extra dollars for tracking are worth it.
If your e-filed return was rejected and you’re switching to paper, you have until the later of the original due date (including extensions) or 10 calendar days after the IRS notified you of the rejection to get the paper return postmarked.11Internal Revenue Service. Age Name SSN Rejects, Errors, Correction Procedures
What to Put in the Envelope
Use Form 1040, or Form 1040-SR if you were born before January 2, 1961. Both you and your spouse must sign a joint return by hand. Typed, digital, and electronic signatures are not valid on a paper return.2Internal Revenue Service. Instructions for Forms 1040 and 1040-SR
Include:
- Your legal name, mailing address, and Social Security number, printed clearly and matching your Social Security card exactly
- All W-2 forms attached to the front of the return, plus any W-2G and 1099-R forms if tax was withheld
- Schedules arranged behind the 1040 in the order shown by the attachment sequence number in each form’s upper-right corner
- Form 1040-V and your check or money order, loose in the envelope, if you owe a balance
Make a full copy of everything before sealing the envelope. The IRS recommends keeping tax records for at least three years.12Internal Revenue Service. Managing Your Tax Records After You Have Filed
Your state income tax return is separate and goes to your state’s department of revenue, not to any of the addresses above. Check your state return’s instruction booklet or your state revenue agency’s website for the current address each year.