CP215 Notice: A Civil Penalty Charge and What to Do

What the CP215 notice says

The IRS page for this notice says: “We sent you this notice because we charged you a civil penalty.” The notice explains your due date, the amount due, and your payment options. It is a bill for a penalty the IRS has already put on your account, not a proposal.

The Internal Revenue Manual (IRM), the IRS’s own staff rulebook, calls the CP215 a notice that tells a taxpayer the IRS assessed a civil penalty from its 500 and 600 series of penalty codes. One notice number covers many different penalties.

Which penalties arrive on a CP215

The IRM shows several penalties that arrive on a CP215. Two groups stand out. The first is the penalty for information returns, such as Forms W-2 and 1099, that a business filed late, filed on paper when it had to e-file, or filed with a missing or wrong taxpayer ID number. The second is the IRC 6700 penalty for promoting abusive tax shelters and the IRC 6701 penalty for aiding and abetting an understatement of tax. For those two penalties, the IRM pairs a CP215 with a business account and a CP15 with an individual account.

For information returns, the CP215 usually comes second. The IRS first mails Notice 972-CG, Notice of Proposed Civil Penalty, which gives the filer a chance to show reasonable cause before the IRS assesses anything. If the filer does not show reasonable cause or does not reply, the IRS assesses the penalty, and the CP215 reports the charge.

If your CP215 covers late or incorrect information returns, you can check the penalty math under IRC 6721 and 6722. Related tool: Information return penalty calculator: IRC 6721 and 6722.

What you need to do

Read the notice first, and keep it. For information return penalties, the IRM says the IRS campus that runs the program keeps no copy of the Notice 972-CG or the CP215, so hold on to yours. If you agree with the charge, pay online or by mail. The IRS page says that paying in full stops future penalties and interest from adding up, and that interest starts on any unpaid amount after the notice’s payment due date.

If you cannot pay in full, the IRS page points you to its Online Payment Agreement Application or the free number on your notice. Our collection alternatives router walks through the payment plan and other options before you call.

If you disagree with the penalty

The IRS page tells you to call the toll-free number on your notice with your paperwork in hand. The IRM gives the IRS employee who takes that call one instruction for a taxpayer who disagrees: send a written request that explains the circumstances to the IRS office that assessed the penalty. Put your explanation in writing even if you start with a phone call.

For information return penalties, the law lets the IRS waive the penalty when the failure came from reasonable cause and not willful neglect. The IRM names IRC 6724(a) as that rule. Your written request should explain what caused the failure. If the IRS denies that request for the intentional disregard penalty under IRC 6721(e), the denial letter in IRM 21.3.1.7.30 offers an appeal and asks for a written appeal request within 30 days of the letter’s date.

The IRC 6700 and 6701 penalties carry their own rule. IRC 6703(c)(1) says that to stop a levy while you contest one, you must pay at least 15% of the penalty and file a refund claim within 30 days of the notice and demand. Then you must file a refund suit within 30 days after the IRS denies the claim or, if earlier, within 30 days after six months pass from the day you filed the claim (IRC 6703(c)(2)). A CP215 for one of those penalties starts that clock.

Why the CP215 matters later

The CP215 does not end your chance to argue about the penalty. In a Collection Due Process hearing, a taxpayer may challenge the amount owed if it had no earlier opportunity to dispute it. The IRM lists “Letter CP15 and CP215, Civil Penalty Notice” among its examples of notices that do not count as that earlier opportunity.

That matters if the penalty goes unpaid and the IRS later sends a final notice of intent to levy. Our final notice of intent to levy page explains the hearing that notice offers. The IRM speaks to the CP215 itself, not to any notice that came before it, such as a Notice 972-CG.

What people mistake the CP215 for

Some readers take the CP215 for a proposal they can answer before any charge. It is not one: the IRS has already assessed the penalty. For information return penalties, the proposal came earlier, as the Notice 972-CG.

Others confuse it with the CP15. For the IRC 6700 and 6701 penalties, the IRM uses the CP15 for an individual account and the CP215 for a business account.

Common Questions