Quick Answer: A notice offering Collection Due Process (CDP) hearing rights generally gives a 30-day request period. Identify the exact notice and deadline, then submit a timely written hearing request—commonly Form 12153—to the hearing-request destination on the notice. Calling, making a partial payment or gathering records does not by itself preserve that right.
For the wider picture, see IRS representation and notice resolution.
Keep the notice, every attachment and the envelope. Note the taxpayer, tax type, periods, balance and response date. If wages or bank funds have already been levied, identify the immediate financial effect as well. A levy is a collection action; an examination notice or an ordinary balance-due reminder has different procedures.
Identify the notice before counting the days
Two provisions are often confused. Section 6331 generally requires notice of intent to levy and advance timing. Section 6330 generally provides the CDP hearing opportunity. A letter warning that the IRS intends to levy is not necessarily the letter that gives you the CDP request deadline.
| Document | What to check | Practical response |
|---|---|---|
| LT11, Letter 1058 or another final notice with CDP rights | The hearing-right language, covered periods and last date to request a hearing | Submit the written hearing request on time if you seek CDP review |
| CP504 | A section 6331 intent-to-levy warning; prior CDP notices and state-refund collection may matter | Address the balance or dispute promptly; do not assume it creates the same rights as LT11 |
| CP504B | The notice’s payment/contact deadline and any business levy exceptions | The IRS says to pay or contact it within 30 days; check whether separate CDP rights apply |
| Levy already received by a bank or employer | What property is affected, when the levy was received and any available release grounds | Contact the IRS promptly about release while preserving any hearing or appeal deadline |
The Taxpayer Advocate Service identifies common final levy notices. For a standard qualifying CDP levy notice, use the request deadline printed on it. If the date, address or delivery is disputed, obtain a prompt procedural review; do not assume the clock begins when you opened the envelope. A later bill does not necessarily restart a previously supplied hearing opportunity.
What CP504 does and does not establish
The IRS CP504 page identifies it as a notice under section 6331(d). It warns of collection and can precede a levy on a state tax refund. In the usual case, CP504 alone is not the CDP final notice permitting general bank or wage levy without a further required hearing opportunity.
That does not make CP504 harmless. If the IRS already provided the required CDP opportunity for the tax period, it need not offer a new one with every bill. Statutory exceptions can also permit levy before the hearing. CP504 describes possible Collection Appeals Program (CAP) review; CAP and CDP are different processes.
The CP504B instructions similarly explain that disqualified employment-tax or federal-contractor levies may follow its response period. In most other situations, the IRS supplies a CDP opportunity before levying property. Read the account’s notice history rather than treating CP504 and CP504B as identical to LT11.
Submit the hearing request before the deadline
Form 12153, Request for a Collection Due Process or Equivalent Hearing, provides the usual written request format. Follow its current instructions and your notice:
- Identify the taxpayer, the tax type and the periods covered by the collection notice.
- Identify the collection action and state the reasons you disagree or the collection alternative you want considered.
- Include the required signature and authorization if an eligible representative signs.
- Send the request to the hearing-request address identified in the notice, not merely the address for tax payments. If using fax, confirm the proper number with the IRS as the form instructs.
- Keep a complete copy and evidence of timely mailing or delivery. Confirm receipt when needed.
A letter meeting the applicable requirements can also request a hearing, but Form 12153 helps organize the needed information. A phone call, partial payment, request for transcripts or plan to hire a representative is not itself a written CDP request.
Do not miss the deadline while completing every financial form or old return. The Form 12153 instructions say financial information is helpful but is not required with the initial hearing request. You still need a proper request with reasons and a signature. Appeals may subsequently require detailed financial and compliance information to consider a particular alternative.
What a timely CDP request does
A timely qualifying request generally suspends levy action that is the subject of the hearing while the hearing and related appeals are pending, subject to statutory exceptions. It also generally suspends the collection limitations period. It does not cancel the debt, automatically withdraw a lien notice or reopen every prior tax dispute.
Appeals considers procedural compliance, relevant collection issues and permitted alternatives. A challenge to the underlying tax liability is restricted when you received a statutory notice of deficiency or otherwise had an opportunity to dispute it. The governing rules are in section 6330.
After a CDP determination, a Tax Court petition generally has a separate 30-day deadline. Preserve it even if you are still discussing the case with the IRS. The Supreme Court has held that this particular petition deadline may be subject to equitable tolling, but that is not an automatic extension; obtain prompt advice if it was missed.
Cases where the hearing can follow the levy
Section 6330(f) provides post-levy CDP procedures for:
- Jeopardy collection.
- A levy on a state tax refund.
- A disqualified employment-tax levy, as specifically defined by the statute.
- A federal-contractor levy.
The IRS must provide a hearing opportunity within a reasonable time after these levies. Do not describe jeopardy as the only exception, or assume that every employer with payroll debt is automatically subject to the disqualified-employment-tax exception. Its definition involves a prior employment-tax CDP request during the statutory lookback period.
If the ordinary request period has passed
You can generally request an equivalent hearing within one year of the levy CDP notice date. Form 12153 includes an equivalent-hearing request option. Act promptly and verify eligibility and timing for your specific notice.
An equivalent hearing does not provide CDP’s automatic levy suspension or collection-statute suspension. Its decision generally cannot be challenged through the ordinary CDP Tax Court petition route. Other independently available rights may still matter. See IRS Publication 1660 for the distinction between CDP, equivalent hearings and CAP.
Missing the CDP deadline does not mean a levy necessarily happens on day 31, nor does continued silence mean the account is protected. Contact the IRS about payment arrangements, hardship or release and any remaining appeal route.
If this raises questions about IRS Installment Agreements, “IRS Installment Agreements: Payment Plan Options and Records” addresses it directly.
Address a levy causing immediate hardship
The IRS bank and employer instructions explain that a bank levy generally freezes affected funds and includes a 21-day holding period before remittance. A wage levy generally continues until released, subject to the exempt amount. If a levy prevents payment of reasonable basic living expenses, explain the hardship immediately and provide the available financial evidence.
The IRS levy-release guidance describes release grounds, including verified economic hardship. The CNC hardship procedures allow a determination despite missing returns when the financial condition can be verified. A verified hardship levy cannot remain merely to compel filing. Address those returns in parallel rather than waiting to make an urgent hardship contact.
For business liabilities, distinguish the entity’s financial circumstances from an owner’s personal hardship. Identify who owes the particular tax and what funds are affected. A corporation’s operating costs and an individual’s basic living expenses do not create identical relief requirements.
Keep records and confirm the outcome
Maintain the full notice and envelope, earlier correspondence, return and payment records, hearing request, delivery evidence and a dated contact log. Add financial information requested for the proposed resolution. Confirm the actual IRS decision and any release received by the bank or employer. Requesting relief is not the same as obtaining it.
If you need help identifying the deadline or preparing a response, contact CPA Firm South Florida with the notice and response date. Confirm the engagement scope, eligible representative and fee. Form 2848 authorizes representation for specified matters and periods; it does not extend deadlines. For qualifying unresolved hardship, Taxpayer Advocate Service resources may also help.
Frequently asked questions
Does calling the IRS preserve my CDP hearing deadline?
No. A CDP hearing generally requires a timely written request stating the grounds, commonly on Form 12153. Send it to the hearing-request destination specified in the notice and retain proof of timely submission.
What if I miss the 30-day CDP request period?
A late equivalent hearing can generally be requested within one year of the levy CDP notice date. It does not provide the same automatic levy suspension, collection-statute suspension or ordinary Tax Court review route as a timely CDP hearing. Contact the IRS promptly about the remaining options.
Does CP504 mean all my accounts can be levied without another hearing notice?
Not by itself in the usual case where you have not already received the required CDP opportunity. CP504 is a section 6331 notice of intent to levy and can precede a state-refund levy. Prior hearing notices and statutory exceptions can change the procedure.
Must I finish every missing return before asking about a hardship levy?
No. Ask promptly about a levy that prevents you from meeting reasonable basic living expenses, and address missing returns in parallel. The IRS may approve hardship CNC when it can verify the hardship despite unfiled returns; filing obligations remain.