What Letter 6042C is
Sent when a return filed under an EIN is selected by the Return Integrity and Compliance Services filters as possible identity theft or entity fabrication. The return is suspended (posts as TC 973) for up to three years. "The taxpayer does NOT need to file a Form 14039 or Form 14039-B" in response (IRM 25.23.9.4.1(12)); RICS never sends a determination letter, so the outcome is learned by calling.
The deadline
30 days from the letter date to reply, by fax to 844-201-5531 or as the letter directs.
What to do
Confirm whether the return is yours. If it is not, say so in a signed statement with the letter attached; if it is, answer the verification questions. Do not file a 14039-B for a return that is already in filters.
What the filters caught
Business returns pass through identity-theft filters before they post, in the same way individual returns do. A return under an EIN can be held because the filing pattern changed (a first employment-tax return from an entity with no payroll history, a large withholding credit, an address or bank account that does not match the record), because the EIN was recently assigned, or because another return for the same period is already on file. Letter 6042C is the request that follows: the IRS has a return under your EIN that it will not process until someone at the business confirms it is yours, and it asks a set of verification questions about the entity. While the case is open the return is suspended rather than rejected, and any refund on it is held.
The letter is often the first a business hears that a fraudulent return exists under its EIN, which is why it causes alarm. It is also sent for entirely legitimate returns that merely tripped a filter, so receiving one does not by itself mean anything is wrong.
How to reply, and what not to file
Reply within the 30 days, by fax to the number on the letter or as it directs, with a signed statement from an officer, partner or owner. If the return is yours, answer the questions and say plainly that you filed it and want it processed. If it is not, say that, attach the letter, and ask that the return be removed from your account; include a copy of the return you did file for the period if there is one. Do not file Form 14039-B for a return that is already in the filters. The IRS's instruction for this letter is that the affidavit is not needed, because the case is already open with the identity-theft function, and filing one creates a second case that slows the first. RICS does not send a determination letter when it finishes, so call after about 60 days to confirm the outcome, and check that the legitimate return for the period has posted. The business identity theft guide covers the follow-up if the return was fraudulent.
Questions about Letter 6042C
Who receives Letter 6042C?
Payer. Sent when a return filed under an EIN is selected by the Return Integrity and Compliance Services filters as possible identity theft or entity fabrication.
What is the deadline on Letter 6042C?
30 days from the letter date to reply, by fax to 844-201-5531 or as the letter directs.
What should I do when Letter 6042C arrives?
Confirm whether the return is yours. If it is not, say so in a signed statement with the letter attached; if it is, answer the verification questions. Do not file a 14039-B for a return that is already in filters.
Is Letter 6042C 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 77 in the order they tend to arrive.