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IRS Passport Revocation (Notice CP508C): How to Get Your Passport Back
Updated: 1 day ago
To get your passport back after an IRS certification (Notice CP508C), you have to fully resolve the certified debt: pay it in full, or move it into an arrangement the law treats as not seriously delinquent, such as a timely installment agreement or an accepted offer in compromise. Once that happens, the IRS reverses the certification and notifies the State Department within 30 days of resolving the debt. All State Tax Resolution (Sabih Shafi, EA, IRS Enrolled Agent) helps taxpayers in every state, and U.S. citizens living abroad, work out which route fits their case.
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What Notice CP508C actually means
CP508C is the IRS telling you in writing that it has certified your federal tax debt as seriously delinquent under Internal Revenue Code section 7345 and has notified the State Department. The IRS says your passport may be revoked and that an application for a new passport or a renewal will be denied.
Two things are worth separating. First, certification is not the same as revocation. The IRS's own notice page says that if you already hold a passport you can still use it, and that the State Department will notify you in writing if your application is denied or your passport is revoked. Second, the State Department, not the IRS, makes the passport decision. The IRS says the State Department has the sole authority to issue, limit, deny or revoke passports, and that the IRS may ask it to revoke the passport of a taxpayer whose debt is certified. Before making that request, the IRS sends Letter 6152 asking you to call and resolve the account.
One more detail matters if you have a representative. The IRS sends CP508C by regular mail to your last known address and says it will not send a copy to a taxpayer's power of attorney, so pass the notice along yourself.
Which tax debts get certified
Not every balance qualifies. The IRS describes seriously delinquent tax debt as legally enforceable, unpaid federal tax debt, including assessed penalties and interest, totaling more than $66,000 for 2026, adjusted yearly for inflation. Earlier years were lower: $62,000 for 2024 and $64,000 for 2025. Rev. Proc. 2025-32 confirms the $66,000 figure for calendar year 2026. See how much you have to owe the IRS to lose your passport.
The dollar amount is only the first test. The IRS must also have filed a Notice of Federal Tax Lien and the administrative remedies under the law must have lapsed or been exhausted, or the IRS must have issued a levy.
What the State Department does next
If you apply for a passport or try to renew one while your debt is certified, the State Department sends you a letter and holds the application open for 90 days from the date of that letter. In that window you can enter a satisfactory payment arrangement with the IRS, pay the debt in full, or resolve an erroneous certification. If you do not make satisfactory payment arrangements within 90 days of the letter, the application is denied and closed, and you need to submit a new one.
If you simply hold a valid passport and have not applied for anything, you will hear from the State Department in writing. Keep every letter and note its date, because you may need it to ask the IRS to speed up a reversal.
How a certification gets reversed
The IRS reverses a certification when the debt is fully satisfied or becomes legally unenforceable, when the debt is no longer seriously delinquent, or when the certification was a mistake. That means one of these paths:
Pay it in full. If you recently filed this year's return and expect a refund, the IRS applies the refund to the debt, and if it covers the balance the IRS treats the account as fully paid once the return and refund are processed.
A timely installment agreement. A debt that is being paid on time under an IRS-approved installment agreement is no longer seriously delinquent. See installment agreements versus Currently Not Collectible.
An accepted offer in compromise. A debt being paid on time under an accepted offer qualifies too. To be eligible to apply you must have filed all required returns, made required estimated payments, and not be in an open bankruptcy. See the offer in compromise cost guide.
A collection due process hearing or an innocent spouse request. A debt tied to a levy that is suspended because you timely requested a hearing is excluded, as is a debt suspended because of a request for innocent spouse relief.
Hardship, bankruptcy, identity theft, a disaster area, or a pending request. The IRS will not treat the debt as seriously delinquent if your account is currently not collectible due to hardship, you are in bankruptcy, you are an identity theft victim, you are in a federally declared disaster area, or you have a pending request for an installment agreement or offer in compromise.
The certification was wrong. If you disagree with the amount or think the certification was an error, call the number on your notice: 855-519-4965, or 267-941-1004 from outside the United States.
When the IRS reverses a certification it sends Notice CP508R. By statute, for an installment agreement or an accepted offer in compromise, the IRS has to notify the State Department no later than 30 days after the agreement is entered into or the offer is accepted.
The partial-payment trap
Paying your balance down to just under $66,000 does not reverse a certification. The IRS says it will not reverse a certification if the debt falls below the threshold through partial payments or collection statute expirations, and that to qualify for decertification you must fully resolve all certified tax debt. If you have been sending the IRS what you can afford without a formal arrangement, read our guide on the passport partial payment trap.
If you are traveling soon
If you have an open or pending passport application and international travel within the next 45 days, the IRS says to contact it promptly. When it expedites, it can generally shorten the standard 30-day processing time for decertification to 9-16 days. You send proof of travel and a copy of the State Department letter denying your application or revoking your passport, dated within the last 90 days. Expediting speeds up the reversal but does not replace resolving the debt. Full steps are in our guide on expedited CP508R requests for travel.
If you live abroad
The IRS says that when taxpayers with certified tax debts are overseas, the State Department may issue a limited-validity passport that lets them return directly to the United States. Mail is the weak point for people abroad, because CP508C goes to your last known address, so make sure someone is checking it. For expedited requests you can tell the IRS that you live abroad. We cover this in detail in US citizen abroad: passport revoked over IRS taxes.
A practical order of operations
Read the notice and note the dates. Write down the amount, the notice date and the phone number on it. Note the date of any State Department letter too, since the 90-day clock runs from it.
Confirm the balance and your filing status. An offer in compromise requires every required return to be filed.
Choose the route. Full payment, an installment agreement, an offer in compromise, hardship status, a hearing request, or a dispute. Each has its own eligibility rules.
Decide whether you want a representative. You authorize one on Form 2848, which lets an eligible person represent you before the IRS and receive your confidential tax information. Because the IRS does not copy a representative on CP508C, hand over a copy of the notice yourself.
Send proof of payment the fast way. If you have already paid, use IRS electronic tools such as the Document Upload Tool where available, and otherwise mail it following the instructions on the notice.
Watch for CP508R. That is the IRS's confirmation that it reversed the certification.
If you think the certification is wrong
The IRS says a taxpayer whose debt was certified can file suit in the U.S. Tax Court or a U.S. District Court to ask whether the certification is erroneous or whether the IRS failed to reverse it, without filing an administrative claim first. Discuss that with a representative first.
A passport certification is a collection matter. If your situation also involves possible fraud or contact from an IRS special agent, that is a separate track; see our guide to IRS criminal investigations: what happens and what to do.
If you are also considering bankruptcy, the IRS says a certified debt is no longer seriously delinquent for a taxpayer in bankruptcy. Our guide to bankruptcy and IRS tax debt explains what a filing does and does not change.
Working with an Enrolled Agent
The IRS says enrolled agents, CPAs and attorneys all have unlimited representation rights before the IRS, including payment and collection issues. An enrolled agent is licensed by the IRS and must pass a three-part Special Enrollment Examination covering tax planning, return preparation and representation. All State Tax Resolution is led by Sabih Shafi, EA, and works with clients in every state and abroad by phone and video.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can the IRS revoke my passport for unpaid taxes?
The IRS does not revoke passports itself. It certifies seriously delinquent tax debt to the State Department, which has the sole authority to issue, limit, deny or revoke passports. All State Tax Resolution helps clients check whether their debt meets the IRS definition.
How do I get a CP508R reversal notice?
You get CP508R when the IRS reverses the certification, which happens when the debt is fully paid or becomes legally unenforceable, is no longer seriously delinquent, or was certified in error. The IRS says it reverses within 30 days of resolving the debt. A timely installment agreement or an accepted offer in compromise can end seriously delinquent status without full payment.
Does paying part of my tax debt remove the passport certification?
No, not by itself. The IRS says it will not reverse a certification if the debt falls below the threshold through partial payments or collection statute expirations, and you must fully resolve all certified debt. A partial payment that is part of an approved installment agreement or accepted offer in compromise is a different matter, because those arrangements can end the certification.
How long does the State Department hold my passport application?
If you apply or renew while your debt is certified, the State Department holds the application open for 90 days from the date of its letter. During that time you can pay in full, enter a satisfactory payment arrangement with the IRS, or resolve an erroneous certification. After 90 days without a satisfactory arrangement, the application is denied and closed and you must apply again.
Will the IRS send CP508C to my power of attorney?
No. The IRS sends CP508C by regular mail to the taxpayer's last known address and says it will not send a copy to a power of attorney. If you hire Sabih Shafi, EA or another representative, give them a copy of the notice yourself.
Can I still use my passport after I get CP508C?
The IRS says yes, until the State Department notifies you in writing that your application was denied or your passport revoked. Certification alone does not cancel a passport you already hold. Because the State Department can act later, treat the notice as a reason to resolve the debt promptly.
Related Reading
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Last reviewed: October 2026 by Sabih Shafi, EA
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This article is general information, not individual tax advice. If you want to talk through your own IRS situation, book a free 20-minute review or call or text us directly.
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