LT26 Notice: The IRS Wants Your Missing Tax Returns Now

What the LT26 notice says

The IRS page for this notice says: “We previously contacted you to file your federal tax returns, but we didn’t receive a response. You must file your tax returns immediately.” It tells you to send the completed returns to the address on the notice “within 10 days from the date of your notice.”

The Internal Revenue Manual (IRM), the IRS’s staff rulebook, titles the letter “Please File Your Tax Return Immediately.” The IRS’s Automated Collection System (ACS), its phone-based collection unit, sends it on individual accounts; the IRM sends businesses an LT18 or LT16 instead. Your notice lists the missing years, and the IRS page warns that you may need to file returns for several tax years. For questions, call the toll-free number on the notice; the IRS page also offers online chat for individuals on weekdays.

Why the IRS sent it, and what can follow

The IRM tells collection staff to use the LT26 to warn that failing to file by the date given “could subject the taxpayer to a fine and/or criminal penalties.” The same instruction warns of possible “Substitute for Return” processing, in which the IRS prepares a return from the income information it holds.

Our substitute for return page explains the notices that follow that path. The LT26 still gives you the chance to file your own return first. When you file, put your current address on each return; the IRM tells staff to remind taxpayers of that step.

If you already filed, or think you do not have to

If you mailed the return more than 10 weeks ago, the IRS page tells you to call the toll-free number on the notice. If you think you did not have to file, call the same number and explain why. If you mailed it more recently, the IRM tells staff to allow time for the return to post before they act.

To check whether you had to file, the IRS page points to its Do I Need to File a Tax Return? tool. Our filing requirement checker walks through the same income tests year by year. If a tool says you did not have to file but the notice says you did, the IRS page tells you to call.

If you are due a refund, or cannot pay

The IRS page warns that you may still have to file even when the IRS owes you a refund. It sets a limit on getting that money back: you “must file a delinquent return within three years from the original return due date, or within two years from the date you full paid the tax, whichever is later.” After that, you cannot get the refund, so file the oldest refund years first.

If the return shows tax due, the IRS page says to pay what you can when you file to cut interest and penalties. It lists the Online Payment Agreement tool if you owe less than $50,000, a call to the number on your notice, or Form 9465, Installment Agreement Request. Our collection alternatives router compares a plan with the other options.

What people mistake the LT26 for

Some readers assume they can skip filing because they owe nothing, or because the IRS owes them. The IRS page says you may still have to file, and a late refund return has a deadline of its own.

Others take the LT26 for the CP59 or CP518, the earlier filing reminders. IRM 5.19.2.3 describes that order: the CP59 first, then the CP518, before the case moves on. The LT26 comes later, from collection staff. Our unfiled return notices page covers those earlier notices and what each one asks you to send.

Common Questions