Is this about your personal tax return, not a business? A 5747C means the IRS will only verify you in person. Book an appointment at a Taxpayer Assistance Center (844-545-5640) and bring the letter, this year's return, last year's return and the identification listed on the letter. The refund is released after the visit, usually within nine weeks. If you did not file the return, call the number on the letter instead. The rest of this page goes deeper, from the side of the businesses that file 1099s; the parts on how the IRS handles the letter apply to you too.
What Letter 5747C is
The in-person version of the Taxpayer Protection Program letter, "Issued on accounts containing a TC 971 AC 123 with a MISC field of 'TAC AUTH ONLY' or ... 'HIGH RISK AUTH'. The taxpayer must visit their local Taxpayer Assistance Center (TAC) for an in-person visit or call the TPP line if they did not file the return in question" (IRM 25.25.6.1.7, June 15, 2026). It is used when the IRS's risk score on the return is too high for phone or online verification. A pilot that began in July 2025 lets recipients schedule their own TAC appointment through the Field Assistance Scheduling Tool.
The deadline
No date is printed; the return stays unprocessed and the refund held until the visit. Verification by phone or online is not offered for this letter. Posting after an in-person verification takes up to nine weeks, longer for a return that was archived.
What to do
Make an appointment at a Taxpayer Assistance Center (the letter explains how, and the IRS appointment line is 844-545-5640) and bring the letter, the return in question, a prior-year return and the identification documents listed; "The TPP letter is not required when authenticating in-person at a TAC office with required identification documents." If you did not file the return, call the TPP number on the letter instead and report it as identity theft. A person who fails authentication in person receives Letter 5216, which "can only be issued one time."
Questions about Letter 5747C
Who receives Letter 5747C?
Individual taxpayer. The in-person version of the Taxpayer Protection Program letter, "Issued on accounts containing a TC 971 AC 123 with a MISC field of 'TAC AUTH ONLY' or ...
What is the deadline on Letter 5747C?
No date is printed; the return stays unprocessed and the refund held until the visit. Verification by phone or online is not offered for this letter. Posting after an in-person verification takes up to nine weeks, longer for a return that was archived.
What should I do when Letter 5747C arrives?
Make an appointment at a Taxpayer Assistance Center (the letter explains how, and the IRS appointment line is 844-545-5640) and bring the letter, the return in question, a prior-year return and the identification documents listed; "The TPP letter is not required when authenticating in-person at a TAC office with required identification documents." If you did not file the return, call the TPP number on the letter instead and report it as identity theft. A person who fails authentication in person receives Letter 5216, which "can only be issued one time."
Is Letter 5747C about my own income tax?
No. This decoder covers information reporting and withholding: the notices a payer, filer or payee sees because of Forms 1099, W-2, 945 and the TINs on them. Individual income-tax notices follow a different track.
Have a different notice? The IRS notice decoder lists all 83 in the order they tend to arrive.