Responding to an IRS penalty notice

What triggers this penalty

• Receiving a notice that assesses a filing, payment or information return penalty.
• Receiving correspondence requesting missing information or warning of continued-failure penalties.
• Finding a discrepancy between the notice and records of a return, extension or payment.

Potential amount

• There is no single penalty-notice amount; verify the statute, tax period and calculation shown in the notice.
• Separate years, forms and continuation assessments may appear in different correspondence and require separate tracking.
• A response or relief request does not itself freeze interest, collection activity or other procedural deadlines; confirm what applies to the particular assessment.

Common situations

• The taxpayer has proof of timely filing but the IRS records show a missing return.
• The penalty concerns an omitted international attachment rather than unpaid income tax.
• A notice offers a response or appeal opportunity that requires action by a stated date.

Identify what the notice actually does

A notice may assess a penalty, request information or address a prior response. CP15 and CP215 are examples of IRS notices used to communicate certain penalty assessments; the number alone does not establish the statute or response procedure. Read the actual explanation and instructions on every page.

Organize one complete response

Create a timeline and separate evidence of correct filing from a request for discretionary or statutory relief. If reasonable cause is relevant, explain the circumstances and corrective action with supporting documents. Keep originals unless specifically required, and verify submission instructions rather than sending sensitive records to an unverified contact.

Preserve review and appeal options

Different penalties can follow different challenge procedures. Do not assume that every notice creates the same court deadline or that an international information penalty follows ordinary income tax deficiency procedures. Review any appeal rights stated in the notice and seek timely professional advice if the deadline or next step is unclear.

What to do after receiving a notice

• Read every page of the notice, identify the form, tax period and legal basis, and record the response deadline immediately. Do not ignore the notice while you investigate whether the assessment is correct.
• Gather the filed return, attachments, extension requests, delivery confirmations and correspondence. Compare the IRS calculation with your records before accepting the amount or disputing it; a filing error and an IRS processing error require different explanations.
• Respond through the address or method stated in the notice, keep a complete copy and proof of timely delivery, and review any appeal rights. Do not assume that a telephone call or a pending relief request suspends another deadline.

Is penalty relief available?

• Relief may be available depending on the facts. Identify the specific penalty and the applicable relief standard before choosing a procedure; eligibility for one type of relief does not establish eligibility for another.
• If reasonable cause is relevant, prepare a truthful, dated account of what prevented compliance, what steps you took to comply, and how quickly you corrected the problem. Support the explanation with records rather than a generic claim that you did not know the rule.
• Chirino USA can review the filing history, notice and supporting evidence to help evaluate correction and response options. Filing the missing information does not itself cancel an assessed penalty or guarantee that the IRS will accept a relief request.