Topic no. 654, Understanding your CP75 or CP75A notice, Request for supporting documentation

You received this notice because the IRS is auditing your tax return. We're asking for information to verify items you claimed on your tax return. You must send in the documents needed to close your audit or we will send you an audit report showing our proposed changes.

Please don't ignore this notice. It's very important that we hear from you by the date shown on your notice. If you need more time to get all the requested information, please call the number on your notice to let us know. Also, it's important that we be able to contact you during the audit. If you move or change your phone number, please let us know by calling the toll-free number on the notice, faxing or uploading the response section of your notice. The fax number is shown on your notice. You can upload your response using your computer or mobile device to the Campus Correspondence Exam Document Upload Tool or you can scan the quick response (QR) code found on your notice.

This notice tells you what items on your tax return the IRS is auditing. We've also included other forms or publications that have important information about what you must send us and what you need to know about your rights during an audit and more. We'll walk you through each step of what to do and when to refer to the other documents. It's helpful to have a copy of your tax return when you're going through this notice.

Before we begin, here are some important tips:

  • At the top of the notice on the right side, we list the tax year that we're auditing. When we use the term tax year, we mean that year.
  • Any documents you send in need to cover the year we're auditing.
  • Don't send original documents. Send us copies.

Earned Income Credit (EIC)

The first item listed is the earned income credit (EIC). Enclosed in the packet with your Notice CP75 or CP75A is a Form 886-H-EIC that lists all the different documents you can send to prove you may claim the EIC with one or more qualifying children. You can send any combination of these documents to provide the information we need. Look at the Schedule EIC you filed with your tax return and complete the following steps for each qualifying child listed:

  • First, you must prove you lived with your child in the U.S. for more than half the tax year:
    • If your child lived with you at the address shown on your notice, you need to send a document showing your child lived at that same address for more than half the tax year. For example: you could send copies of school records for your child that have your name and show the child's address. The dates on the document must be for more than half the tax year (for school records you may need more than one semester to show more than half the year).
    • If you moved and you and your child lived at another address, you must send documents showing the same address for both of you for more than half the tax year.
    • If your child didn't go to school, you can send in copies of medical records or a statement from a daycare provider.
    • If you need to get a statement from your child's school, or daycare or medical care provider, you can find templates here. Your school or provider can copy and paste the template to their letterhead to make sure all the required information is provided.
    • Don't forget to check the Form 886-H-EIC for more examples of documents you can send.
    • If you can't prove your child lived with you for more than half the tax year, you cannot get the EIC.
  • Second, you must verify how you're related to the child. The child must be related to you in one of these ways:
    • Your son, daughter, adopted child, stepchild, foster child or a descendent of any of them, such as your grandchild
    • Brother, sister, half brother, half sister, step brother, step sister or a descendant of any of them, such as a niece or a nephew

      The Form 886-H-EIC gives examples of what to send to prove how you're related.
       
  • Third, if your child is age 19 years old or over, you must verify either that:
    • Your child was under age 24 at the end of the tax year, and a full-time student for at least five months of the tax year and younger than you (or your spouse, if filing jointly) (you can do this by sending copies of official school records), or
    • Your child is permanently and totally disabled (you can do this by sending a copy of one of the official documents shown on Form 886-H-EIC).
  • Fourth, you must verify you, your spouse (if filing a joint return) and your child have a valid SSN for employment:
    • To claim the EIC, you (and your spouse, if filing a joint return) must have a valid SSN issued by the Social Security Administration (SSA) by the due date of your return for the tax year we are auditing (including extensions).
    • Any qualifying child listed on Schedule EIC also must have a valid SSN by the due date of your return for the tax year we are auditing (including extensions).

You can claim the EIC only if your child lived with you for more than half the tax year in the United States. Your child must also be related to you in one of the ways listed on the Form 886-H-EIC and be an eligible age. Your child must meet all three of these requirements to qualify you for the EIC. If you can't show that your child meets all the requirements, you may still be eligible for the EIC without a qualifying child.

Taxpayers who have valid SSNs for employment can claim the credit, even if their children don't have SSNs. In this instance, they may be eligible to claim the self only EIC.

Married but separated spouses can choose to be treated as not married for EITC purposes. To be treated as not married for EITC purposes, a married taxpayer cannot file jointly with the spouse, cannot have the same principal residence as the spouse on the last day of the year if legally separated under a written agreement or decree of separate maintenance, or live apart for the last six months of the year if not legally separated, and must have a qualifying child living with the taxpayer for more than half the year. Refer to Form 14824, Supporting Documents to Prove Filing Status and Schedule EIC for additional information.

Dependents

The next item is the dependents you claimed. Your dependents are listed in the middle of the first page of your tax return. The Form 886-H-DEP lists all the documents or combination of documents you can use to prove you can claim each child listed as your dependent.

To claim a child as a dependent qualifying child, the child must have lived with you for more than half the tax year (the residency test), be related to you (the relationship test), be a certain age (the age test), and have not provided over half of the child’s own support (the support test). You generally can't claim a married person as a dependent if that person files a joint return but you can claim a person as a dependent if that person and that person’s spouse file the joint return only to claim a refund of income tax withheld or estimated tax paid.

  • If each child listed on your Schedule EIC is the same child you claimed as a dependent, you can use the same documents you used to prove you may claim the EIC to prove the child met the tests for a dependent qualifying child. You don't have to send in copies of the same documents or look for different ones. But you must use the Form 886-H-DEP to see what information must be provided to verify that the child meets the support test.
  • Support test
    • To meet the support test, the child can't have provided more than half of the child’s own support for the year.
    • You don't need to send proof of support at this time.

If you received this CP75 notice, you claimed a child as a dependent qualifying child. If you find the child doesn't meet the rules to be your qualifying child, you may be able to claim the child as a dependent qualifying relative. See the rules on the Form 886-H-DEP for a qualifying relative.

If the child meets the rules, you need to send the documents listed on the Form 886-H-DEP for a qualifying relative.

To be claimed as your qualifying relative, the person can’t be your qualifying child or the qualifying child of another taxpayer, must live with you as a member of your household or be related to you in one or more specific ways, must have income below the specified amount. In addition, you must provide more than half of the person's total support during the calendar year. For more information, see "Qualifying Relative" in Publication 501, Dependents, Standard Deduction, and Filing Information.

Filing status

The next item listed is filing status. Look at the first page of your tax return, the first line shows your filing status.

Look at the Form 14824 that lists all the different documents or combination of documents you can send to prove that the filing status you used allows you to claim the EITC.

To file as head of household, you must pass three tests: the filing status test, the qualifying person test, and the cost of keeping up a home test.

  • First, you must meet the filing status test:
    • If you were never married or you're a widow or widower, you don't need to provide documents to support your status as an unmarried person. Only submit documents for the qualifying person and cost of keeping up a home test.
    • If you're still married and lived with your spouse at any time during the last six months of the year, you can't file as head of household, unless your spouse was a nonresident alien at any time during the tax year. Instead, you must file either as married filing jointly or married filing separately.
    • If you were divorced or legally separated by December 31 of the tax year shown on your notice, you must send a copy of your divorce decree or separation papers.
    • If you're still married but lived apart from your spouse for the last six months of the tax year shown on your notice, you must send us documents, such as a copy of a lease agreement, showing you and your spouse lived at different addresses.
  • Next, you must meet the qualifying person test: The documents you send for the EIC and to prove you had a qualifying dependent will show you meet this test. So, you don't have to send us any more documents for this test.
  • Third, you must meet the cost of keeping up a home test:
    • If you didn't meet both the filing status and the qualifying person tests, you can't file as head of household.
    • If you met both the filing status and the qualifying person tests, you must send documents showing you paid more than half the cost of keeping up the home that the qualifying person and you lived in for more than half the tax year. You must send us documents showing you paid more than half the household expenses, such as rent, utilities, groceries, repairs and maintenance. If the qualifying person was your parent, you did not have to live with your parent, but you must prove that you paid more than half of the cost of maintaining a home for your parent for the entire tax year.

To file as married filing separately when claiming the EIC with a qualifying child, you must also meet the filing status test.

  • If you're still married and lived with your spouse at any time during the last six months of the year, you can't claim the EIC as married filing separately.
  • If you were legally separated by December 31 of the tax year shown on your notice, you must send a copy of your separation papers.
  • If you're still married but lived apart from your spouse for the last six months of the tax year shown on your notice, you must send us documents, such as a copy of a lease agreement, showing you and your spouse lived at different addresses.

American Opportunity Credit

The next section is the American opportunity credit (AOTC). If you claimed AOTC, you filed Form 8863, Education Credits (American Opportunity and Lifetime Learning Credits) PDF with your tax return. Look for the "American opportunity credit" on line 29 of your tax return or the "Education credits” on line 3 of your Schedule 3 (Form 1040) PDF. If your tax return shows you didn't claim the credit, you don't need to send documents to prove this credit.

If you claimed AOTC, the student claimed on your Form 8863 may have received a Form 1098-T, Tuition Statement PDF. Schools are required to send this form to all eligible students unless an exception applies. If the student didn't receive this form and is eligible for AOTC, contact the school for the form. Otherwise, you will need to show the student was enrolled in an eligible educational institution and the payments for the student’s qualified tuition and related expenses.

If you received payments for education expenses from your employer, Veterans' Educational Assistance, or other benefits, you can't claim these expenses for this tax credit. You must subtract these expenses paid from your total tuition costs and other eligible expenses.

  • If you claimed AOTC, we need proof that each student listed on the Form 8863 is eligible. The Form 1098-T has the amount of qualified education expenses paid in box 1. We need a copy of that form.
  • If you had more expenses than the amount listed in box 1 of the Form 1098-T or you did not receive a Form 1098-T, we need canceled checks or receipts for fees, books, and supplies that were required for the course or courses.

Refer to Form 886-H-AOC, Supporting Documents to Prove American Opportunity Credit for the documents to prove that you are eligible to claim the American Opportunity Credit.

If you have additional items listed

Your notice may have more items listed, such as Schedule C income, the premium tax credit or child and dependent care tax credit. First, let's cover other important information you need to know.

If we don't hear from you

If you think you qualify for one or more of the items shown on your Notice CP75 or CP75A, please send us all requested information by the date in this section of the Notice. If you need more time to get all the documents ready, call us at the number listed on the top right part of the page. If you do not respond by the date in this section, we will continue with our audit and send you an examination report with our proposed changes to your tax return.

But, if you review your tax return and your notice and realize you didn't qualify for any of the items shown on your notice, don't send anything. We'll get back to you with an examination report after the deadline shown on your notice with steps you should take next.

Response form

The last part of the notice is the response form. If you have documents proving you may claim one or more of the items listed, you need to complete the response form and either:

  • Upload the completed response form to us along with copies of the records, documents, and statements using your computer or mobile device at Campus Correspondence Exam Document Upload Tool or by scanning the QR code on your notice.
  • Fax the completed response form to us along with copies of the records, documents, and statements to the toll-free fax number on your notice.
  • Return the completed response form to us along with copies of the records, documents, and statements in the return envelope in your packet or to the address shown on the notice.

After we receive your information

It takes at least 30 days to review the documents you send us. You don't need to do anything until you hear from us.

If you sent us copies of documents that proved you were eligible for items you claimed on your tax return, we will send you a notice to let you know your audit is closed. If we held your refund, you should get your refund in eight weeks if you don't owe other taxes or debts we're required to collect.

If the documents you send don't give us the information we need or only verify some of the items, we will send you an audit report. The report will explain our proposed changes and show the amount of tax you owe or the corrected amount of any refund you may receive.

Your rights during an audit

Your audit packet includes:

Where to get more help

We list important numbers and websites on the notice if you need more help. You can find this information under the additional information heading. Also, you can:

  • Get a transcript of the information on your tax return online.
  • Visit EITC for more information you need to know about the EIC and for links to other topics discussed. If you're not sure you qualified for the EIC, or will qualify this year, or what your filing status is this year, use the EITC Assistant.
  • Use the Form 886-H-EIC Toolkit to help you identify what documents you need to provide to prove you can claim the EITC with a qualifying child.

Additional items on your notice

Schedule C

If your notice lists Schedule C (Form 1040) income, look at Form 11652, Questionnaire and Supporting Documentation, Form 1040 Schedule C (Profit or Loss from Business) PDF. It lists the documents you must send that support the income and expenses claimed on your Schedule C. Please review each line of this form and make sure you correctly answer every question. Return the Form 11652 with the requested supporting documents, such as copies of your business records, Form 1099-MISC and/or Form 1099-NEC, and your business license.

It is important to keep all documents used to complete your tax return. The documents kept should include records supporting the income, expenses, deductions or credits you claimed, such as invoices, receipts, mileage logs, and checking account statements showing amounts paid, and any other proofs of payment. The records should be well-organized to answer any questions when your tax return is selected for audit. The records supporting items on your tax returns should be kept for at least three years after filing your tax return.

When your tax return is selected for audit, you must send copies of your records that show the gross receipts and business expenses claimed on your Schedule C.

  • Gross receipts are the income from your business. Proof of your gross receipts includes cash register tapes, bank statements, bank deposit slips, receipt books, sales invoices, credit card charge slips, Forms 1099-MISC and/or Forms 1099-NEC.
  • Business expenses are the costs paid to carry on your business and proof of your expenses includes canceled checks or checking account statements which clearly show the expenses paid, cash register tapes, account statements, credit card sales slips, and invoices.

After you complete your response, please look at the Form 11652 to make sure you included all the necessary information.

If you need additional information about recordkeeping, see Publication 583, Starting a Business and Keeping Records.

Premium Tax Credit

If your notice lists the premium tax credit (PTC), look at the Form 14950, Premium Tax Credit Verification PDF. This form lists what document or documents you need to submit to verify you qualify for this credit.

You must have health insurance through an exchange or marketplace to claim this credit. If you didn't get your health insurance through an exchange or marketplace, you're not eligible for the PTC and you don't need to send any information to prove this credit.

If you bought your insurance through an exchange or marketplace, you must send copies of documents used to support any entries you have on Part 4, Allocation of Policy Amounts or Part 5, Alternative Calculation for Year of Marriage, on your Form 8962, Premium Tax Credit (PTC). We need the document that lists individuals whom your plan covers. This list is on your insurance enrollment form or on a statement from your insurance provider. If you paid insurance premiums, submit the proof of payment. This proof can be paid receipts, credit card statements, bank statements showing who was paid, or copies of both sides of your canceled checks.

You also must submit a copy of your Form 1095-A, Health Insurance Marketplace Statement. If you didn't receive this form or you didn't keep it, contact your plan administrator.

Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit

If your notice lists the child and dependent care tax credit, you filed Form 2441, Credit for Child and Dependent Care Expenses with your tax return. Look at the Form 14801, Child and Dependent Care Credit— Explanation of Items. This form lists what document or documents you need to submit to verify you qualify for this credit. For changes to the credit for 2021 only, please refer to Child and Dependent Care Tax Credit FAQs.