I just filed my return. Do I still need Form 15103?

The IRS pages for notices CP59, CP516 and CP518 say you do not have to do anything if you filed your tax return within the last 8 weeks. If it has been longer, send Form 15103 with a signed and dated copy of the return. If you have not filed, file the return with Form 15103 if you are required to file; otherwise complete Form 15103 to explain why you don't have to file.

Can I use Form 15103 to tell the IRS I will file later?

No. The form has no option for a future filing date. For a CP516 or CP518 notice, the IRS asks you to file the return right away together with the completed Form 15103, explaining why it is late.

Can I send Form 15103 online?

For a CP59 notice, the IRS page says you can upload Form 15103 through your IRS Online Account, or mail or fax it. For CP516 and CP518, online submission is available when you are only sending Form 15103 to explain why you don't have to file; otherwise return it, with the tax return if applicable, to the address on the notice or fax it to the number in the notice.

What if the taxpayer named on the notice has died?

Form 15103 has a section for that: enter the date of death and, if a Form 1041 was filed for the estate instead of a Form 1040, the name(s) on that return, its EIN and the tax year. Filing Form 1041 for the estate does not replace a final Form 1040 or 1040-SR that the deceased person's representative must file, or any required individual return for an earlier year.

Form 15103, Form 1040 Return Delinquency: Fill Out Online

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What is Form 15103?

Form 15103, Form 1040 Return Delinquency, is the IRS form you complete and send back when the IRS says it has no record of your personal income tax return for a prior year. The IRS pages for these notices point to it:

CP59: "We have no record that you filed your prior year personal tax return." If you believe the IRS made a mistake, complete Form 15103 and mail or fax it; you can also upload it through your IRS Online Account.
CP516: a follow-up after a previous notice.
CP518: the final reminder.

For a CP59 notice, if you are a bona fide resident of a U.S. territory (such as the CNMI, Guam or the U.S. Virgin Islands) and filed a return with your territory tax office, the IRS page says to contact that office for guidance on how to respond, which may include providing the IRS with a copy of your territory tax transcript.

The blank above is the IRS form as posted on IRS.gov, revision June 2017, two pages. The form's first instruction is to complete both sides and send it back in the enclosed envelope, with the IRS address showing through the window.

When do you use it?

For a CP516 or CP518 notice, the IRS asks you to respond in one of two ways:

file your tax return right away together with the completed Form 15103, explaining why you are filing late or that you already filed; or
complete Form 15103 to explain why you don't have to file.

If you filed your return within the last 8 weeks, the IRS pages for CP59, CP516 and CP518 say you do not have to do anything. If more than 8 weeks have passed since you filed, the CP516 page says to send a signed and dated copy of the return with Form 15103 and to make sure the name, Social Security number and year on the return match. If you have not filed, file the return with Form 15103 if you are required to file; otherwise, complete Form 15103 to explain why you don't have to file. The CP516 page also says the IRS accepts returns electronically for the 2 most recent prior years, through an e-file provider that offers the service.

The CP518 page lists what can happen if the IRS doesn't hear from you: it may determine your tax for you, penalty and interest may continue to accrue, and a refund you are owed may be delayed.

How to fill out Form 15103

Contact information. Social Security Number and name; your new address only if it has changed; a primary and a secondary phone number with the best time to call.
If you already filed a tax return. Check the box, enclose a signed and dated copy of the return, and enter the name(s) shown on the return, the form(s) filed, the tax year(s) and the return date(s).
If the person addressed on the notice is deceased. Enter the date of death. If a Form 1041, Income Tax Return for Estates and Trusts, was filed instead of a Form 1040, check that box and enter the name(s) on the return, the EIN listed on Form 1041 and the tax year. Filing Form 1041 for the estate does not replace a final Form 1040 or 1040-SR that the deceased person's representative must file, or any required individual return for an earlier year.
If you don't think you have to file. Give your filing status, check the circumstances that applied to you (for example, age 65 or older, blind, or could be claimed as a dependent on someone else's return), and enter your total income and the reason for not filing. The answers cover only the year named on the form.
Page 2, prior-year credit. If a refund from a prior year was applied to that year's taxes, or you made estimated tax payments, choose whether to apply the credit to another tax return (form number, tax period, SSN) or to receive it as a refund check. The form notes that you must file a return for that year to apply the prior-year credit, and that you must file a tax return to be eligible for a refund even though you may not be required to file.
Sign and date. You sign under penalties of perjury for the form and for any income tax return and schedules you attach.

If you received an IRS-issued identity protection PIN (IP PIN), include it on the tax return you send, as directed (on a joint return, each spouse's IP PIN). Use the IP PIN assigned for the calendar year in which you submit the individual income tax return, including when the return covers an earlier tax year. Form 15103 itself has no IP PIN field.

How to send it

Mail it in the enclosed envelope to the address on your notice, or fax it to the number in the notice (CP516 and CP518 pages); for a CP59 notice the IRS page says to mail or fax it. If you are only sending Form 15103 to explain why you don't have to file, the CP516 and CP518 pages say you can submit it online with an IRS Online Account.

Form 15103: frequently asked questions

I just filed my return. Do I still need Form 15103?

The IRS pages for notices CP59, CP516 and CP518 say you do not have to do anything if you filed your tax return within the last 8 weeks. If it has been longer, send Form 15103 with a signed and dated copy of the return. If you have not filed, file the return with Form 15103 if you are required to file; otherwise complete Form 15103 to explain why you don't have to file.
Can I use Form 15103 to tell the IRS I will file later?

No. The form has no option for a future filing date. For a CP516 or CP518 notice, the IRS asks you to file the return right away together with the completed Form 15103, explaining why it is late.
Can I send Form 15103 online?

For a CP59 notice, the IRS page says you can upload Form 15103 through your IRS Online Account, or mail or fax it. For CP516 and CP518, online submission is available when you are only sending Form 15103 to explain why you don't have to file; otherwise return it, with the tax return if applicable, to the address on the notice or fax it to the number in the notice.
What if the taxpayer named on the notice has died?

Form 15103 has a section for that: enter the date of death and, if a Form 1041 was filed for the estate instead of a Form 1040, the name(s) on that return, its EIN and the tax year. Filing Form 1041 for the estate does not replace a final Form 1040 or 1040-SR that the deceased person's representative must file, or any required individual return for an earlier year.

Form 15103, Form 1040 Return Delinquency