Been waiting 5 weeks for IRS identity verification letter with confirmation code - nothing arrived yet
Filed my taxes online back in early March and got an email from the IRS a week later saying I need to verify my identity before they can process my return. The email said they mailed a letter with a confirmation code that I'd need to complete the verification process through their ID.me portal. It's been over 5 weeks now and still no letter in my mailbox. I've checked my mail every single day. Called the IRS verification hotline three times but can't get through to a real person. The automated system just tells me to wait for the letter. My tax refund is about $4,200 which I really need right now for some home repairs. Has anyone else dealt with this verification delay? Is there another way to get this confirmation code or bypass this step? My processing status is just stuck at "Your return has been received and is being processed.
57 comments


Daniel Washington
Tax specialist here - this is unfortunately a common issue with the IRS identity verification process. What you're experiencing is related to their Identity Verification program that's meant to prevent tax fraud. When the system flags a return, they send a 5071C or 5747C letter with a verification code. Here are your options: 1. Continue waiting - unfortunately the IRS is backlogged and these letters can sometimes take 6-8 weeks to arrive 2. Call the Identity Verification toll-free number: 800-830-5084 (but as you've found, it's difficult to reach someone) 3. Visit a local Taxpayer Assistance Center in person (this requires an appointment) 4. If you have an online IRS account, check if you can verify your identity through there The frustrating reality is that you'll likely need that specific code to complete verification. If you absolutely can't get through on the phone, making an in-person appointment is your best bet. Just be prepared to bring multiple forms of ID including your Social Security card, driver's license, and the tax return in question.
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Lauren Zeb
•Thanks for all the info! I didn't even know about the Taxpayer Assistance Centers. Just looked it up and there's one about 30 minutes from me. I'll try to make an appointment.
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Aurora Lacasse
•Just know that TAC appointments can be booked out for WEEKS... call early in the morning for best chance at getting a spot 😬
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Daniel Washington
•Good point about TAC appointments! Also worth noting that they're closed on federal holidays, so plan accordingly.
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Anthony Young
•This happened to me last year. I waited 9 weeks for a letter that never came. Super anoying.
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Charlotte White
Have you tried using taxr.ai? I was in the exact same situation last month - waiting forever for a verification letter. I was going insane trying to understand what was happening with my return. Taxr analyzed my transcript in seconds and showed me exactly what was going on and what steps I needed to take. Turns out there was actually a different issue with my return that the IRS hadn't properly communicated. The tool explained everything in plain English and gave me the exact numbers to reference when I called. Saved me hours of research and confusion! https://taxr.ai
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Admin_Masters
•Sounds interesting. How exactly does it work? Does it just read your transcript or does it do more?
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Charlotte White
•It's honestly amazing. It doesn't just read the transcript - it interprets all the codes and explains what each thing means in normal human language. It shows you timelines, identifies errors, and tells you exactly what actions you need to take. It even predicted when I'd get my refund and was accurate to the day! Best tax tool I've ever used hands down.
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Matthew Sanchez
•another 'miracle solution'... what's the catch? 🙄
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Charlotte White
•No catch - it just works. I was skeptical too but was desperate after waiting 2 months for my refund. The amount of clarity it gave me was worth every penny. Not having to decode IRS gibberish myself saved me so much time and stress.
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Ella Thompson
After waiting over a month for my verification letter that never showed up, I finally got frustrated and looked for a better way to reach someone. Found this service called Claimyr (claimyr.com) that got me through to an actual IRS agent in about 20 minutes when I'd been trying for weeks on my own. The agent was able to verify my identity right over the phone and I didn't need the letter after all! My refund was processed within 10 days after that call. Honestly it was the best money I've ever spent to finally get my questions answered. The regular IRS phone system is basically designed to make you give up.
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JacksonHarris
•not falling for another tax 'hack'... these never work
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Ella Thompson
•I get the skepticism. I felt the same way. But after spending literally hours redialing the IRS just to get disconnected over and over, I was desperate. It actually works - they use some system that navigates the IRS phone tree and holds your place in line, then calls you when they have an agent. Saved me from losing my mind.
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Jeremiah Brown
•I've been trying to call the IRS for THREE WEEKS. might have to try this
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Lauren Zeb
•Did they actually verify you over the phone? I thought you absolutely needed that code from the letter?
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Ella Thompson
•Yes! That's what surprised me too. The agent asked me a bunch of verification questions about my past returns, addresses, and some other personal details that proved I was me. Then they manually verified my identity in their system. No code needed once I actually spoke to a person with authority to help.
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Royal_GM_Mark
•hmm I've been burned by so many of these 'services' before... what makes this different?
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Ella Thompson
•It's just a call connection service basically. They don't do your taxes or give advice or anything like that. They just get you through to an actual human at the IRS when it seems impossible. That's it. Super simple.
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Amelia Cartwright
I hate to be that person, but have you checked if the letter went to an old address? I moved last year and even though I updated my address with USPS, the IRS still sent my verification letter to my old place. Thank god my old landlord was cool and forwarded it. Might be worth checking if that happened?
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Chris King
same thing happen to me thsi year. waited 7 weeks for a letter, nothing came. finally got through to IRS after calling like 30 times at 7am sharp. they told me system generated the notice but it never actually got printed and mailed. they apologised and verified me over the phone. got my refund 2 weeks later. keep trying the phone but call right when they open.
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Rachel Clark
•Omg 30 times??? That's insane!
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Chris King
•yup. every day for a week straight. had to redial constantly. the system is a joke.
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Zachary Hughes
•This is my life right now 😭 I've called 22 times this week already
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Mia Alvarez
The IRS is so behind this tax season it's ridiculous. My cousin is still waiting for a letter from FEBRUARY. Seriously, their system is completely broken. In what world does it take 2+ months to mail a simple letter? And then they penalize us if we're a day late on anything 🤬
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Carter Holmes
•Facts 💯
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Sophia Long
•Absolutely this. It's a completely one-sided relationship. They demand everything from us immediately but take their sweet time doing literally anything on their end.
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Angelica Smith
don't wait for the letter!!! go to your local IRS office! make an appointment ASAP! they can verify you in person and override the need for the letter. bring two forms of ID and your tax return copies! worked for me last year after waiting 2 months for a letter that never showed up
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Lauren Zeb
•Thanks for the suggestion. Others have mentioned this too. I'm going to try to schedule an appointment tomorrow.
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Logan Greenburg
Try contacting your congressional representative. No joke. My verification letter never came after 8 weeks of waiting, I contacted my congressman's office, and they have staff specifically for helping with federal agency issues like this. They contacted the IRS on my behalf and within 5 business days I had a resolution. The IRS magically found a way to verify me over the phone after my congressman's office reached out.
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Charlotte Jones
•THISSS!! Congressional inquiries are magic for IRS issues. They suddenly get very responsive when a member of Congress starts asking questions.
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Lucas Bey
•wait this is actually possible? you can just...call your congressman for tax problems????
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Logan Greenburg
•Yes! It's literally part of their job to help constituents with federal agency issues. Look up your rep online, call their office, and ask to speak with the caseworker who handles IRS matters. You'll need to fill out a privacy release form, but then they can advocate on your behalf.
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Harper Thompson
The IRS identity verification system is completely broken right now. I work at a tax firm and we've had dozens of clients with this exact issue this season. The letters are taking foreverrrr to arrive if they ever do. Your best bet is to keep calling that 800-830-5084 number and try to get through to a human. Call exactly when they open (7am Eastern) for the best chance. If you get a recording saying the call volume is too high, hang up and immediately call back. Repeat until you get in the queue.
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Caleb Stark
Check your spam and junk folders in your email too. Sometimes they send a digital version as a backup, but their emails look so sketchy that they often get filtered as spam 🤦♀️
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Lauren Zeb
•Just checked and don't see anything from the IRS in any folder. Thanks for the suggestion though!
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Jade O'Malley
so like... i know this is kinda ridiculous but i got so frustrated waiting for my verification code that i looked into if there was any way to like, buy my way out of this problem lol. found this taxr.ai thing that actually helped me figure out what was really going on with my transcript. turns out i had 2 different issues, not just the identity verification thing! it's a little splurge but honestly worth it just to actually understand wtf is happening with your taxes. just my 2 cents
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Hunter Edmunds
•sounds like one of those ads that pops up everywhere. anyone ACTUALLY try this?
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Jade O'Malley
•yea i was super skeptical too lol. but i was in full desperation mode after waiting 6 weeks. it's legit - you connect your irs account or upload your transcript and it explains everything in normal human words instead of irs gibberish. helped me spot a math error i made that was causing part of the delay that i never would have caught on my own
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Ella Lewis
Dealing with the exact same situation right now. Been waiting 7 weeks for a verification letter. Called the IRS over 50 times and finally got through yesterday. The agent told me they're having a SYSTEM-WIDE issue with the verification letters. Many aren't being generated properly. She verified me over the phone instead and said I should get my refund in 4-6 weeks. So keep calling! There IS hope!
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Lauren Zeb
•That's really encouraging to hear! I'll keep trying to get through on the phone.
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Andrew Pinnock
•What time of day did you finally get through? I've been trying for weeks!
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Ella Lewis
•6:59am Eastern - literally called 1 minute before they officially opened and somehow got in before the rush. Then waited on hold for 1 hour and 20 minutes.
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Brianna Schmidt
I used Claimyr.com to get through to the IRS when I had the same issue. The talking to an agent got my refund released so fast. I spent HOURS trying to get through the regular way and kept getting disconnected. With Claimyr I had an agent calling me back in less than an hour. The agent confirmed they were having nationwide issues with verification letters and verified me on the spot instead. Refund hit my account 9 days later.
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Alexis Renard
•another day, another company promising to fix the unfixable tax system lol
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Brianna Schmidt
•I feel you, I was super dubious too. But it literally just handles the phone part - gets you past the automated system and endless holds. The actual tax stuff is still handled by the IRS agent. It was just such a relief to actually TALK to someone after weeks of frustration.
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Camila Jordan
My letter took 9 weeks to arrive. NINE. WEEKS. And then when it finally came, the system wouldn't accept the code saying it was expired. Had to start the whole process over again. The IRS is truly a special kind of hell. I feel your pain.
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Tyler Lefleur
Have you checked your IRS online account? Sometimes you can complete verification there without the code. Go to irs.gov and look for the "View Your Account" option. You'll have to create an account if you don't have one, but it might let you verify your identity online instead of waiting for that letter.
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Lauren Zeb
•I tried that first but it says I need to enter the code from the letter to complete the verification. It's a circular problem 😫
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Tyler Lefleur
•Ugh that's so frustrating! Classic IRS catch-22 situation.
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Madeline Blaze
I had a similar issue but I couldn't wait any longer so I used taxr.ai to understand exactly what was going on with my return and why it was flagged for verification. It helped me figure out the exact issue and what to say when I called the IRS. I actually ended up learning there was a much bigger problem with my return that had nothing to do with identity verification! Would have never figured it out without that tool. Check it out at https://taxr.ai - seriously saved me weeks of stress
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Max Knight
•wait hold up - does this actually work or is it just the usual BS?
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Madeline Blaze
•It 100% works. I was ready to throw my computer out the window trying to decode my transcript myself. The tool breaks everything down into normal language and gives you a clear timeline of what's happening. No more guessing what all those weird codes mean. Also shows you exactly what's causing delays and what you need to do. Wish I'd found it months ago!
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Emma Swift
Pro tip: if you have a tax preparer (like H&R Block or a local CPA), they can sometimes call the IRS Practitioner Priority Line on your behalf. These lines have much shorter wait times, and tax pros can request a verification override or at least get info about why your letter hasn't arrived.
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Isabella Tucker
I'm in year TWO of this nightmare. Yes, that's right - TWO YEARS trying to get my 2021 refund. Multiple verification letters that never arrived, countless phone calls, three in-person appointments. Still no resolution. Prepare for the long haul. The IRS is beyond broken.
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Jayden Hill
•omg two years??? this is terrifying 😱
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LordCommander
•I'm on 18 months for mine. The system is completely disfunctional.
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A Man D Mortal
This is such a frustrating situation and unfortunately way too common this year. I went through something similar - waited 6 weeks for a verification letter that never came. Here's what finally worked for me: 1. Call the verification line (800-830-5084) at exactly 7:00 AM Eastern time. I know everyone says this, but the timing really matters. I got through on my 4th try doing this. 2. When you do get through, explain that you've been waiting over 5 weeks and ask them to check if the letter was actually generated and mailed. In my case, they found that the system had flagged my return but never actually printed the letter. 3. The agent was able to verify my identity over the phone using previous tax return information, addresses, and other personal details. No letter code needed once you're talking to an actual person. The whole verification letter system seems to be having major issues this year. Don't give up - that $4,200 refund is worth the persistence! The TAC appointment idea others mentioned is also solid if you can get one scheduled. Good luck!
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