Appeal an IRS audit decision through the Independent Office of Appeals

Use the deadline and address in your IRS letter

An examination appeal is time-sensitive. The deadline is generally 30 days from the date of the letter, but the letter controls. Send the protest to the IRS office shown in that letter—not directly to the Independent Office of Appeals.

1. Confirm that the audit decision is still proposed

This route is for an examination or audit that ended with proposed changes and a letter explaining a right to appeal. It is different from audit reconsideration, which addresses certain assessments after an examination has closed, and from a collection appeal about a lien, levy, seizure, or payment agreement.

Before preparing the protest, review the complete examination report and the letter that accompanied it. Identify the tax form, every tax period, each proposed adjustment, the amount of additional tax and penalties, and the exact response date.

2. Give the examiner the facts and records first

The IRS says Appeals may be appropriate when you received appeal rights, disagree with the decision, and are not signing the agreement form. Provide the examiner or the examiner's supervisor all records, explanations, and facts you want the IRS to consider before the case moves to Appeals.

If you first present important new information in Appeals, the Appeals employee may return the case or refer that material to the originating IRS office for review. Organizing the record before filing can prevent avoidable delay.

3. Protect the protest deadline

Follow the date printed in the appeal-rights letter. The IRS states that the formal-protest deadline is generally 30 days from the date of the letter, but some notices and specialized proceedings use different periods. Keep the envelope, letter, report, and proof of the date you sent the response.

A later statutory Notice of Deficiency creates a separate Tax Court deadline. Continuing to discuss the case with the IRS does not extend the date shown on that notice.

4. Choose a small case request or a formal written protest

You may generally use a Small Case Request when the entire proposed additional tax and penalties are $25,000 or less for each tax period in an examination. Follow the letter and either prepare a brief written statement listing each disputed issue and why you disagree, or use Form 12203, Request for Appeals Review, revision August 2022. The IRS also publishes Form 12203 (SP), Solicitud de Revisión de Apelaciones, revision March 2020.

A formal written protest is required when the proposed change for any tax period exceeds $25,000. Employee-plan, exempt-organization, partnership, and S corporation cases also require a formal protest regardless of the amount. Specialized appeal procedures can apply to other case types.

5. Build the protest around each disputed issue

For a formal protest, the current IRS instructions require a statement that you want to appeal, your contact information, the disputed tax periods and proposed changes, the reason you disagree with each issue, facts supporting each position, legal authority when available, the required penalties-of-perjury declaration, and a signature.

Use headings that match the examination report. Attach readable copies of supporting records and explain what each document proves. Do not send original records unless the IRS specifically requires them. Put taxpayer identification numbers only on the official submission sent to the IRS, never into WhatDoIFile.

6. Send the request to the office named in the letter

Mail or submit the protest exactly as the appeal-rights letter instructs. Do not send it directly to Appeals or to an IRS headquarters address. The Examination office that handled the audit will first review the protest and try to resolve the disputed issues. If it cannot, it forwards the case file to Appeals.

Keep a complete copy, mailing proof, upload confirmation, fax confirmation, and any delivery record. If the instructions offer more than one channel, use only a channel authorized for that letter and case.

7. Prepare for the Appeals conference

Appeals conferences are informal and may occur by correspondence, telephone, video conference, or in person. You may represent yourself. An attorney, certified public accountant, or enrolled agent authorized to practice before the IRS may represent you; a representative generally needs a valid power of attorney when speaking for you.

Be ready to explain the facts, the law, and the result you believe is correct for each issue. Appeals considers tax-law arguments and the hazards of litigation, not objections based only on moral, religious, political, constitutional, or conscientious grounds.

8. Decide whether to make a payment or deposit

An administrative appeal of proposed audit changes generally does not require full payment before the protest is filed. However, interest can continue to accrue on an eventual underpayment from the return's original due date. IRS Publication 3498 explains that an advance payment or an Internal Revenue Code section 6603 deposit may stop interest from accumulating on the amount received, subject to the applicable rules.

Payment can affect later procedural choices. The U.S. Tax Court is generally a prepayment forum when a valid Notice of Deficiency gives jurisdiction, while a refund suit in a U.S. district court or the U.S. Court of Federal Claims generally requires full payment and a timely refund claim. Obtain authorized tax advice when the amount or forum choice is significant.

9. Track the transfer and protect the next deadline

If more than 120 days have passed since you submitted the protest and you have not heard from Appeals, the IRS directs you to contact the Examination office that last worked the case. Ask whether it resolved the issue or forwarded the file. Once Appeals has the case, use the official appeal-status page for current contact instructions.

If Appeals does not resolve the dispute, review every later letter immediately. A Notice of Deficiency, claim-disallowance letter, employment-tax determination, or other specialized notice can create a different court, payment, and filing route.