First-time penalty abatement request letter (template)

Who it is for

A business owner or individual with a clean recent record who was charged a failure-to-file, failure-to-pay or failure-to-deposit penalty and wants it removed without having to prove a specific hardship.

When to use it

Use it after a notice shows the penalty, once the return for that period is filed and the tax is paid or on a payment plan. Calling the number on the notice is the other route the IRS names; a letter gives you a paper record of the request.

For 2025 tax-year returns and 2026 quarterly returns onward, the IRS says a newer automatic relief applies without a request, so this letter is mainly for earlier periods or for a penalty you believe should have been waived automatically.

The deadline and form it relates to

• First Time Abate requires that the same return type was filed on time for the prior three years (or 12 consecutive quarters) (IRS — Administrative penalty relief).
• It also requires that no penalty other than the estimated-tax penalty was assessed in that window, or that any penalty was later removed for reasonable cause or IRS error (IRS — Administrative penalty relief).
• The penalties it covers are failure to file, failure to pay and failure to deposit, regardless of amount (IRS — Administrative penalty relief).
• A business also must not have had the failure-to-deposit penalty waived four or more times in the prior three years (or 12 consecutive quarters) (IRS — Administrative penalty relief).
• The IRS says you do not need to name First Time Abate or attach supporting documents to ask for it (IRS — Administrative penalty relief).
• Automatic Exemption from Penalty begins in summer 2026 and applies to 2025 tax-year returns, 2026 quarterly returns and later periods without a request (IRS — Administrative penalty relief).

The template

Replace every [BRACKETED] field and delete any line that does not apply. Keep a copy of everything you send.

[DATE]

[IRS ADDRESS — copy it exactly from your notice]

Re: Request for First Time Abate penalty relief
Taxpayer name: [BUSINESS OR INDIVIDUAL NAME, exactly as on the return]
Taxpayer identification number: [EIN or last four digits of SSN, as the notice shows it]
Tax form: [e.g. Form 1120-S, Form 1065, Form 941, Form 1040]
Tax period(s): [e.g. tax year 2024, or quarter ending 03/31/2025]
Notice or letter number: [e.g. CP14, CP2000, LT11 — top or bottom right corner] dated [NOTICE DATE]

To whom it may concern:

I am writing to request administrative penalty relief (First Time Abate) for the [FAILURE-TO-FILE / FAILURE-TO-PAY / FAILURE-TO-DEPOSIT] penalty of $[AMOUNT] assessed for [TAX PERIOD], as shown on the notice listed above.

For the three tax years (or 12 quarters) before this period, [BUSINESS NAME] filed this return type on time and was not assessed a penalty other than the estimated-tax penalty. [IF TRUE: A penalty assessed for [PERIOD] was later removed for reasonable cause.]

The return for [TAX PERIOD] was filed on [DATE FILED]. The tax due has been [paid in full on [DATE] / placed on a payment plan on [DATE]].

Please remove the penalty and the interest charged on it, and confirm the adjustment in writing to the address above.

Sincerely,

[SIGNATURE]
[PRINTED NAME], [TITLE — e.g. Owner, Managing Member, President]
[BUSINESS NAME]
[DAYTIME PHONE]

Enclosure: copy of the notice

What to attach

• A copy of the notice that shows the penalty (all pages).
• Nothing else is required for this request, according to the IRS; keep your filing and payment confirmations in case the IRS asks.

Where to send it

• Send the letter or Form 843 to the address the Form 843 instructions specify, or call the toll-free number in the top right corner of the notice instead (IRS — Administrative penalty relief).
• For a request that answers an IRS notice, the Form 843 instructions say to mail it to the return address from which the notice was sent (IRS — Instructions for Form 843 (12/2024)).

Official forms and pages

• Form 843 (PDF)