5071C: the IRS wants you to verify your identity and a return

What a 5071C means

A 5071C is an identity check. The IRS says a Form 1040-series return was filed under your Social Security number or ITIN, and it needs you to verify your identity and that return before it keeps processing it. [1]source 1

The IRS groups it with the CP5071 and CP5071F as one series, and the same page covers all three. [1]source 1

We read it as a fork in the road. If you filed, verifying lets your return move again. If you didn't file, verifying is how you tell the IRS someone else may have used your number. [1]source 1

The single habit we'd stress: start verification only by typing irs.gov into your browser yourself. Never start it from a link in a message. Scammers copy these letters because people expect them.

Why people get one

• You filed, and something about the return made the IRS's filters want to confirm it's really you.
• Someone else filed a return using your Social Security number or ITIN.
• Your return looked different from your past returns in a way that drew a second look.

First steps

1. Start verification only by typing irs.gov into your browser yourself. Never start it from a link in an email, text or social media message, even one that looks like it came from the IRS.
2. If your letter offers online verification, the IRS says to start at irs.gov/verifyreturn. Type that address in yourself. [1]source 1
3. Gather the notice, the return for the year on the notice, a prior-year return if you have one, and supporting documents such as Forms W-2 and 1099 and Schedule C or F. [1]source 1
4. If you didn't file a return, be ready to say so during verification. [1]source 1
5. If you can't verify online, use the number printed on your notice, and keep in mind it handles identity and return verification only, not refund status. [1]source 1
6. After it's settled, look into an Identity Protection PIN so no one else can file with your number. [1]source 1

What not to do

• Don't start verification from a link in an email, text or social media message. Type irs.gov yourself.
• Don't file Form 14039, Identity Theft Affidavit, once you've verified, unless the IRS tells you to. [1]source 1
• Don't call the number on the notice to ask about your refund; the IRS says other account information may not be available there. [1]source 1
• Don't file a second copy of the same return to speed things up. Verify instead.

Related notices

• Related 4883C A related identity letter that asks you to verify by calling the number printed on it.
• Related 5747C A related identity letter that may ask you to verify in person at a Taxpayer Assistance Center.

Keep reading

• Form 2848

Questions