IRS Form 4506-T Instructions

If you are required to obtain tax information by an outside party, such as a college financial aid office or mortgage lender, you may be required to obtain copies of tax transcripts. To do this, you may have to file IRS Form 4506-T, Request for Transcript of Tax Return.

In this article, we’ll walk you through how to request your tax return transcript. Specifically, we’ll discuss:

• How to complete and file IRS Form 4506-T
• Other ways to request tax transcript information
• Frequently asked questions about tax transcripts

Let’s start by walking through this tax form, step by step.

How do I complete IRS Form 4506-T?

This one-page tax form is fairly straightforward. Let’s begin at the top with taxpayer information.

Taxpayer information

The top portion of this tax return transcript request contains taxpayer information. Let’s start at the top.

Line 1: Taxpayer name and Identification number

In Line 1a, enter the taxpayer’s name as shown on your income tax return. If you are a joint filer, enter the primary taxpayer information in Line 1. This should be the name that appears first on the joint tax return.

In Line 1b, enter the taxpayer’s tax ID number. For individuals, this can be a Social Security number or individual taxpayer identification number (ITIN). For a business, this will be the employer identification number (EIN).

Line 2: Spouse’s name and identification number

If your tax filing status is married filing jointly, enter the spouse’s name, as appears on your joint return, in Line 2a. In Line 2b, enter the spouse’s SSN or ITIN as it appears on the joint income tax return.

Line 3: Current address

Enter the current address as it appears on your tax return. This should include the following:

• Street address or mailing address
• City
• State
• Zip code

If you use a post office box, include your P.O. Box number as your mailing address.

Line 4: Previous address

If your previous tax return had a different address than your current address, enter the previous address as shown on your last return.

If you have not changed your address since your last tax return, you should consider filing one of the following change of address forms with the Internal Revenue Service:

• IRS Form 8822: Change of Address
• IRS Form 8822-B: Change of Address or Responsible Party-Business

Note: As of July 2019, the IRS will only mail tax transcript requests to the address of record. Be sure you have the correct address on file before filing your 4506-T Form.

Line 5: Customer file number

The IRS does not require taxpayers to complete this line. However, if you are required to use a customer file number as a reference, you may enter up to 10 numeric characters in Line 5.

The customer file number that you enter here will appear on your tax return transcript. However, you should not use your SSN or any other tax ID number as the customer file number. According to the form instructions, if this field contains a name, SSN, or combination of both, the IRS will enter a generic file entry containing ‘9999999999,’ which will appear on the tax transcript.

Request information

In this section, we’ll select the appropriate box based upon the type of information you’re looking for.

Line 6: Transcript requested

In Line 6, enter the tax form number for the type of transcript you’re requesting. Here are some of the most common type of transcripts that taxpayers request:

• IRS Form 1040 series: Individual tax return information
• IRS Form 1065: U.S. Return of Partnership Income
• IRS Form 1120: U.S. Corporation Income Tax Return
• IRS Form 1120-S: U.S. Income Tax Return For an S-corporation

You may only select one tax form number for each request. If you need to request different types of tax returns, you’ll need to submit a Form 4506-T for each type of transcript.

In Line 6, select the type of transcript that you need. You may choose from three different types of records:

• Return transcript
• Account transcript
• Record of account

Regardless of the type of request, the IRS estimates that it should take approximately 10 business days to process the information and send the tax transcript.

Let’s go through each of these transcript types.

Return transcript

A tax return transcript includes most line items of a tax return.

However, the tax return transcript does not reflect changes made to tax account information after the tax return was filed. For example, if you file an amended tax return, your tax return transcript will only show information reflected on your original return.

Tax return transcripts are only available for the following returns:

• IRS Form 1040 series: Individual income tax returns
• IRS Form 1065: U.S. Return of Partnership Income
• IRS Form 1120: U.S. Corporation Income Tax Return
• IRS Form 1120-A: U.S. Corporation Short-Form Income Tax Return (discontinued)
• IRS Form 1120-H: U.S. Income Tax Return for Homeowners Associations
• IRS Form 1120-L: U.S. Life Insurance Company Income Tax Return
• IRS Form 1120-S: U.S. Income Tax Return For an S-corporation

Account transcript

A tax account transcript contains information on the financial status of the tax account. This might include the following:

• Payments made to the tax account
• Penalty assessments
• Adjustments made after the tax return was filed
  • Can be adjustments made by the taxpayer or the IRS

Account transcripts are available for most tax returns.

Record of account

A record of account is a combination of the return transcript and the account transcript. As a result, a record of account provides the most detailed information of your request options.

You may request a record of account for the current tax year and 3 prior tax years. If you are not sure what type of tax information you need, requesting a record of account may be your best option, as it will contain information from both the return transcript and account transcript.

Line 7: Verification of nonfiling

By selecting this box, you are requesting that the IRS issue a verification of nonfiling letter. A verification of non-filing letter states that the Internal Revenue Service has no record of any tax return information in the taxpayer’s record.

Many college students requesting federal student aid will complete Form 4506-T to obtain a verification of nonfiling letter from the IRS. However, requests for the current year will not be available until after June 15.

The IRS should process this request within approximately 10 business days.

Important note: A verification of nonfiling letter does not attest to the taxpayer’s tax compliance. It also does not indicate whether the taxpayer was required to file an individual tax return. It simply means that there is no tax return for the requested year or years.

Line 8: Form W-2, Form 1099 series, Form 1098 series, or form 5498 series transcript

Check the box in Line 8 if you wish to obtain a tax transcript for any of the listed information returns.

Form W-2 statements: Generally, state or local information is not included with Form W-2 information reported in your tax transcript. If you need W-2 information for retirement purposes, you should contact the Social Security Administration.

Line 9: Year or period requested

Enter the ending date for the tax year or tax period that you are requesting. Use the MM/DD/YYYY format for each date.

For quarterly returns, enter each quarter separately.

There are up to 4 available spaces in this section.

Taxpayer signature

In this field, you may sign your request stating that you are the taxpayer whose name appears on either Line 1 or Line 2. In this case, check the box marked, ‘Signatory attests that he/she has read the attestation clause and upon so reading declares that he/she has the authority to sign the Form 4506-T.’ If you leave this box unchecked, the IRS will not process your request.

After this, enter your telephone number, sign, and date the form. If you are signing the form on behalf of a corporate entity, partnership, estate, or trust, enter the title below your signature. For married taxpayers, your spouse can sign, but does not have to.

If you are a personal representative of a taxpayer you may request additional information on your taxpayers behalf. However, the taxpayer must have specifically delegated this role to you on IRS Form 2848, Power of Attorney, Line 5. Attach a copy of your filed Form 2848 with your completed Form 4506-T.

For requests on behalf of an estate, trust, deceased taxpayer, or for any other requests, Internal Revenue Code Section 6103(e) contains additional guidance on who may request tax return information.

Important note: The IRS must receive your signed request within 120 calendar days of the signature date. If the request arrives after the 120-mark, the IRS will reject your request.

How to file IRS Form 4506-T

You cannot file Form 4506-T electronically. You must file this form by mail or by fax to the appropriate IRS location, based upon where you lived, or where your business entity was located, when you filed your tax return.

It is also important to pay attention to the type of tax information that you are requesting. There are two different charts for you to send your request:

• Form 1040 series, Forms 1099, or W-2 transcripts
• All other transcripts

Form 1040 series, Forms 1099, or W-2 transcripts

If you filed an individual return and lived in:	Mail or fax your transcript request to:
Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas, a foreign country, American Samoa, Puerto Rico, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the U.S. Virgin Islands, or A.P.O. or F.P.O. address	Internal Revenue Service RAIVS Team Stop 6716 AUSC Austin, TX 73301 855-587-9604
Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maine, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, Wisconsin	Internal Revenue Service RAIVS Team Stop 6705 S-2 Kansas City, MO 64999 855-821-0094
Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Idaho, Kansas, Maryland, Michigan, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Utah, Washington, West Virginia, Wyoming	Internal Revenue Service RAIVS Team P.O. Box 9941 Mail Stop 6734 Ogden, UT 84409 855-298-1145

All other tax transcripts

If you filed an individual return and lived in:	Mail or fax your transcript request to:
Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Hawaii, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Washington, Wyoming, a foreign country, American Samoa, Puerto Rico, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the U.S. Virgin Islands, A.P.O. or F.P.O. address	Internal Revenue Service RAIVS Team P.O. Box 9941 Mail Stop 6734 Ogden, UT 84409 855-298-1145
Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vermont, Virginia, West Virginia, Wisconsin	Internal Revenue Service RAIVS Team Stop 6705 S-2 Kansas City, MO 64999 855-821-0094

How you can get tax information without filing Form 4506-T

You do not need to file Form 4506-T to request tax information. You have several options:

Use the IRS website

You can request your tax transcript directly from the IRS website. Simply go to the IRS home page, and select ‘Get Your Tax Record,’ located in the middle of your screen.

From there, you can select, ‘Get Transcript Online,’ where you can request specific tax information through the IRS website. This is a great option for taxpayers who:

• Do not want to wait 10 business days for tax records
• Do not need an official transcript to be mailed
• Do not want sensitive information, such as their SSN, in the mail system

However, you may need to produce income verification, either for government benefits, a mortgage lender, or for student financial aid purposes. If you need to provide proof of income, you can also request your tax transcripts by telephone.

Request by phone

To request by phone, simply call the IRS’ toll-free number: 1-800-908-9946. This is the IRS transcript request line. From there, the automated system will prompt you through:

• Preferred language
• Taxpayer Social Security number
• Address verification
• Type of transcript

This might be a preferable option if you require your tax information in transcript format

Looking For A Different Version Of Form 4506?

If you stumbled upon this page by accident, don’t feel bad. There are many versions of Form 4506, each with different purposes.

We’ve written articles on literally all of the 4506 tax forms. Instead of hitting the ‘Back’ button, take a quick second to peruse the list below to find the version that you want.

• IRS Form 4506, Request for Copy of Tax Return
• IRS Form 4506-A, Request for a Copy of Exempt or Political Organization IRS Form
• IRS Form 4506-B, Request for a Copy of Exempt Organization IRS Application or Letter
• IRS Form 4506-C, IVES Request for Transcript of Tax Return
• IRS Form 4506-F, Identity Theft Victims Request for Copy of Fraudulent Tax Return
• IRS Form 4506-T-EZ, Short Form Request for Individual Tax Return Transcript

Video walkthrough

Watch this instructional video for an overview of how to request your tax transcript using Form 4506-T.

Frequently asked questions

Where can I find IRS Form 4506-T?

You may find this tax form on the IRS website. For your convenience, we’ve enclosed the most recent copy of the form in our article.

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