What Letter 6217C is
Notice from RICS that the entity record has been locked after confirmed identity theft. The lock blocks name, address and responsible-party changes; returns and payments still post. Changes must be requested in writing, on Form 8822-B for an address, and each change requires an unlock, the change, and a re-lock by the identity protection unit (IRM 25.23.11.6.2.1(3), 25.23.11.7.4.6). Attempted changes while locked unpost.
The deadline
None. The lock has no stated expiry.
What to do
Keep the letter with the entity's records; anyone who later needs to change the address or responsible party will need it. Do not try to update the entity by phone; it will be refused.
What the lock does and does not stop
An entity lock is the business-side counterpart of the identity protection measures the IRS applies to individual accounts after confirmed identity theft. Once the Return Integrity and Compliance Services function confirms that someone used the business's EIN to file returns or information returns it did not file, the entity record is locked: no change to the name, the address of record or the responsible party posts without the identity protection unit first unlocking the account, making the change, and re-locking it. Returns and payments are unaffected. Forms 941, 945, 1120 and the information returns the business files itself post as before, and refunds issue normally.
The lock has no expiry date and is not lifted on request. It is there so that the next attempt to redirect the business's correspondence or take over the responsible-party designation fails.
Living with a locked entity
Legitimate changes still happen. An address change goes on Form 8822-B, mailed, with a copy of Letter 6217C attached and a signature from an officer, partner or owner the IRS already recognizes; a responsible-party change goes the same way. Allow for the extra processing, since each change is three transactions rather than one, and expect the request to be refused if it is made by phone. A change attempted electronically while the lock is on will unpost and may generate a notice of its own. Keep the letter where the next finance lead will find it; the most common problem with ENTLOK is a successor who does not know the account is locked and cannot work out why a routine address change keeps failing. The business identity theft guide covers Form 14039-B and the clean-up that leads to this letter.
Questions about Letter 6217C
Who receives Letter 6217C?
Business. Notice from RICS that the entity record has been locked after confirmed identity theft.
What is the deadline on Letter 6217C?
None. The lock has no stated expiry.
What should I do when Letter 6217C arrives?
Keep the letter with the entity's records; anyone who later needs to change the address or responsible party will need it. Do not try to update the entity by phone; it will be refused.
Is Letter 6217C 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.