LT51 Notice: The IRS Is Still Contacting Others About Your Unfiled Returns

What LT51 means

The IRS page for this notice says: “We previously notified you that we would contact third parties to get or verify your contact information. We’ll continue to contact others through the period shown on your notice.”

It goes with unfiled returns or a shared responsibility payment (SRP), the charge IRC 5000A(b) set for some months without qualifying health coverage. The IRS page says the IRS is trying to collect one or both from you. A third party is anyone other than you.

What the earlier notice told you

The IRS page calls it only an earlier notice. The law requires that kind of notice before most third-party contacts: IRC 7602(c)(1) bars the IRS from contacting others about your tax unless the contact falls within a period that a notice to you names. Our LT41 page covers a related advance notice the IRS sends on unfiled-return and SRP accounts.

LT51 extends what the earlier notice started. The same section lets the IRS send more than one notice for the same tax, with periods that together run longer than a year, which fits a notice that says the contacts continue.

The IRS page also says the IRS sends you a copy of the contact list once a year, and if you get no list, it contacted no one it must tell you about. IRC 7602(c)(2) adds that you can ask for the record.

What to do now

File all missing returns. The IRS page says to mail each return, with supporting documents, to the address at the top of your notice by the date on the notice. You may need to file for more than one tax year.

Pay your balance in full by that date to avoid more penalties and interest. If you can’t, the IRS page points you to its online payment plan application and, for financial hardship, to options such as a temporary delay in collection or settling your tax debt.

If you already filed a return the notice lists, the IRS page says to send a signed copy again if more than 10 weeks have passed since you mailed it. If the IRS lists a return as missing by mistake, call the toll-free number on your notice.

What people mistake LT51 for

Some people take LT51 to mean the IRS already shared their tax details with others. The IRS page says the IRS generally tells third parties only limited information, such as your name.

Others confuse LT51 with LT40, the advance contact notice the IRS manual pairs with accounts that carry an unpaid balance (IRM 5.19.5.14.1). LT51 concerns unfiled returns or an SRP, and it says contacts continue, not that they will start.

For practitioners: what to check first

Read the dates on LT51 against the earlier notice. IRC 7602(c)(1) allows a new notice to add a period, so check which notice covers any contact the client asks about.

Fix the filing gap first. The IRS page says that to get a refund on a late return, you must file within three years of the original due date, or within two years of the date you fully paid the tax, if that applies. A client owed money for an old year can lose it by waiting.

Request the contact record if the client needs it before the yearly mailing. IRC 7602(c)(2) says the IRS provides it on request.

Common Questions