How to change your address with the IRS

Five ways to give the IRS your new address

On your tax return. When you file, use your new address. The IRS updates its records from the return. This is enough if your next return is due soon and you are not waiting for a refund or a notice.

Form 8822, for a home address. Use it to change your home mailing address between returns. It is a short form: your name and SSN or ITIN, your old and new addresses, and your signature. If you filed jointly, include your spouse's details too. See the Form 8822 guide.

Form 8822-B, for a business. A business or other entity with an EIN uses Form 8822-B to change its mailing address, its location, or its responsible party.

A signed letter. Write a statement with your full name, your old and new addresses, and your SSN, ITIN or EIN, and sign it. Mail it to the address where you filed your last return.

By phone or in person. You can tell the IRS by phone or at an IRS office. You will have to verify your identity and the address the IRS has on file, so have the same details ready as for a letter.

How long it takes, and what happens to mail

The IRS says a change of address request generally takes four to six weeks after receipt to be fully processed. Until then, mail can still go to the old address.

The Postal Service may update your IRS address from its National Change of Address database when you file a forwarding request. The IRS still asks you to notify it directly, because not all post offices forward government checks.

Special cases

Joint filers. If you still live with the same spouse, give both names, both SSNs or ITINs, the new address and both signatures. If you now live at separate addresses, each of you notifies the IRS separately.

Changing the responsible party. A business that changes its responsible party, the person who controls the entity and its funds, must report it to the IRS on Form 8822-B within 60 days.

Someone else changing it for you. A representative must attach a power of attorney, such as Form 2848. The IRS does not accept an address change from an unauthorized third party. An address written on Form 2848 or 8821 does not change your address of record either: use one of the ways above.

Employment tax returns. For a business that files employment tax returns, the IRS sends confirmation notices to both the new and the old address.

Filling Form 8822 on your phone takes a few minutes in PDF Sign & Fill, and your documents are never uploaded. You still print, sign and mail the form yourself.

Before you send anything

Check which address the IRS has now. It is the address on your last processed return, or the last change you reported. Your IRS online account shows it, and it is also the one printed on recent notices.

Then pick one way and wait. Sending the same change by letter, by form and by phone does not speed it up. Keep a copy of what you sent and the date, in case a notice still goes to the old address.

Frequently asked questions

Can I change my address with the IRS online?

The IRS does not list an online form for it. Its address change page offers your tax return, Form 8822 or 8822-B, a signed letter, or a phone call or visit.

Can I change my address with the IRS by phone?

Yes. Call the IRS and be ready to verify your identity and the address it has on file. Have your full name, old and new addresses, and your SSN, ITIN or EIN at hand.

How do I change my business address with the IRS?

File Form 8822-B for a business mailing address or location. An LLC or other entity uses the same form with its EIN.

Does changing my address with USPS update the IRS?

It may. The IRS can update your address from the Postal Service's change of address database. It still recommends you tell the IRS directly, because not all post offices forward government checks.

Where do I send Form 8822?

To the IRS address listed on the form for the state of your old home mailing address (gift, estate and generation-skipping transfer tax filers use one Kansas City address). The form's own chart has the addresses; the Form 8822 guide explains which one applies.

The form guides

• Form8822 Changes your home address with the IRS. Rev. February 2021 · Read the guide