Have You Received an IRS 5263C Letter? What You Need To Do!

We have all grown more suspicious of emails, letters and phone calls - for fear that it could be a scam. But fear not if you receive an Internal Revenue Service (IRS) 5263C letter. These letters are going out to businesses and will be identified in the upper right hand corner as “Letter Number: LTR5263C.” This letter is a legitimate request from the IRS in their ramped-up efforts to curb identity theft.

The purpose of the 5263C letter is to confirm or determine who the “responsible party” is for the business taxpayer. It is a two-page request, easy to complete and can either be mailed or faxed back to the IRS. The IRS says this requested information helps them in their efforts to secure taxpayer information. Some businesses may already have a responsible party on file with the IRS. If you know that your business has changed ownership or the responsible party needs updated, you can do this proactively with a Form 8822-B, Change of Address or Responsible party-Business.

What You Need to Do In Response to an IRS 5263C Letter

If you were or are affiliated with the entity:

• Answer all the questions in the letter
• If the letter you received is for an estate entity, send a copy of the deceased individual’s death certificate with your reply
• If the letter you received is for a trust entity, send a notarized copy of the trust with your reply
• Return the letter to the IRS within 30 days from the date of this letter

If you’re not affiliated with the entity, or you’re not the responsible party:

• Select the correct statement on the letter indicating no affiliation
• Sign and date the declaration statement at the bottom of the letter
• Return the letter to the IRS within 30 days from the date of the letter

The IRS recommends that these letters and requests not be ignored. They can put a hold on your account and not issue timely refunds until the requested information is received.

Remember the IRS will NEVER initiate contact with taxpayers to verify identification via email or phone; they will always do this with a letter. More information about Letter 5263C is available on the IRS website. If you receive another type of letter from the IRS and want to make sure it’s legitimate, search for it on the IRS website or consult your tax advisor.

Shaun Mawhorter, CPA, CGMA
Senior Tax Manager
smawhorter@klcpas.com | 574.264.2247 x303