What Form 843 is for
Form 843 is how you ask the IRS to refund or wipe out certain taxes, penalties, additions to tax, interest, and fees. You check one box at the top to say why you are filing, name the tax period, give the amount, and explain your reasoning on line 8. The December 2024 revision is a redesign of both the form and its instructions.
You can file it yourself or have an authorized representative file it for you. Employees use it to recover social security, Medicare, or RRTA tax an employer withheld by mistake and will not adjust. Corporations, estates, and trusts file it too, signed by an officer or a fiduciary. It does not cover abatement of income, estate, or gift tax.
Who files Form 843?
You file Form 843 for yourself, or your authorized representative files it for you. If a representative files it, attach the original or a copy of Form 2848, signed by you and authorizing that person to act for you on this request. Forms filed by corporations need the signature of a corporate officer who is authorized to sign, with the officer's title included. An estate or trust needs the fiduciary's signature. If the claim relates to a joint return, both you and your spouse from that return sign.
- Filing as legal representative for someone who died, and you filed their return: attach a statement saying you filed it and still act for them
- You did not file their return: attach certified copies of letters testamentary, letters of administration, or similar evidence of your authority
- Legal representative of a decedent: file Form 1310 with Form 843
When do you file Form 843?
The text gives no annual due date. You file it when you have a refund to claim or a tax, penalty, addition to tax, interest charge, or fee you want abated. In general, you must file a claim for a credit or refund within 3 years from the date you filed your original return or 2 years from the date you paid the tax, whichever is later. If you do not file inside that window, you may no longer be entitled to the credit or refund.
Abatement of a penalty or addition to tax based on erroneous written advice from the IRS follows its own timing. It is allowed only if you submit the request within the period allowed for collection of that penalty or addition to tax, or you paid the penalty or addition to tax within the period allowed for claiming a credit or refund of it. If an IRS notice told you about a change to your return, or that you owe interest, a penalty, or an addition to tax, follow the instructions on the notice. You may not have to file Form 843.
Where do you mail Form 843?
The address depends on your reason for filing. If you are answering an IRS notice about a tax or fee, send the form to the return address the notice was sent from. For penalties, or for any other reason not listed separately, use the service center where you would file a current year tax return for the tax your claim relates to. If you mail the form to an address that has changed, the form will be forwarded.
- Refund claim in a Form 706 or 709 tax matter: Internal Revenue Service, Attn: E&G, Stop 824G, 7940 Kentucky Drive, Florence, KY 41042-2915
- Answering Letter 4658 about the branded prescription drug fee: Internal Revenue Service, Mail Stop 4921 BPDF, 1973 N. Rulon White Blvd., Ogden, UT 84201-0051
- Answering Letter 5067C about the annual fee on health insurance providers: Internal Revenue Service, Mail Stop 4921 IPF, 1973 N. Rulon White Blvd., Ogden, UT 84201
- Requests related to Form 8300: Internal Revenue Service, Rosa Parks Federal Building, P.O. Box 32621, Detroit, MI 48232
- Request for a net interest rate of zero: the service center where you filed your most recent return
- Nonresident alien claiming social security or Medicare tax withheld in error: the address in Pub. 519, following its instructions
How do you fill out Form 843?
Start at the top. Check the one box above the name block that gives your reason for filing, and do not check more than one. Enter your name and your TIN. If the claim relates to a joint return, enter the name and SSN of your spouse from that return. If you have an ITIN rather than an SSN, enter the ITIN wherever an SSN is requested. An entity such as a partnership or corporation uses its EIN. Then work down lines 1 through 8.
File a separate Form 843 for each tax period or fee year or type of tax or fee, with exceptions for certain claims. Line 8 carries the weight. Explain in detail why the claim or request should be allowed, show how you computed the amount on line 2, and attach appropriate supporting evidence. Put your name and SSN, ITIN, or EIN on any extra sheets. A paid preparer who files the form for you signs it, fills in the identifying information at the bottom, and gives you a copy for your records.
Which situations have their own rules?
Some claims come with their own steps. For excess tier 2 RRTA tax, complete lines 1 and 2, skip line 3, check box a for Employment on line 4, skip lines 5, 6, and 7, identify the claim on line 8 as Excess tier 2 RRTA, show your computation, and attach copies of your Forms W-2 for the year. For a branded prescription drug fee refund, enter the fee year on the beginning date line, check the box for Fee on line 4 and box m on line 5, and attach the Form 8947 that the fee was based on.
Interest abatement under section 6404(e)(1) applies only when an unreasonable IRS error or delay in a managerial or ministerial act caused the interest, and only for taxes that require a notice of deficiency. That includes income taxes, generation-skipping transfer taxes, estate and gift taxes, and certain excise taxes. Interest related to employment taxes or other excise taxes cannot be abated, and neither can interest on the branded prescription drug fee. If you could not read and respond on time to a standard print notice, line 8 is where you describe the disability, the notice, and any request you made for another format.
When should you use a different form instead?
Form 843 is the wrong form for many common fixes. Changes to amounts on a Form 1040 series return go on Form 1040-X. Employers must use the form matching the return they filed to adjust or claim FICA tax, RRTA tax, or income tax withholding. Refunds of excise tax based on nontaxable use or sale of fuels go on Form 4136 or Form 8849. Tax return preparer and promoter penalties go on Form 6118. Adjustments to liability reported on earlier Forms 720 go on Form 720-X.
- Form 941 or 941-SS: correct with Form 941-X
- Form 943 with Form 943-X, Form 944 or 944-SS with Form 944-X
- Form 945 with Form 945-X, Form CT-1 with Form CT-1 X
- Additional Medicare Tax: Form 1040-X with a corrected Form 8959 attached
- Your portion of a joint refund used to offset a spouse's past due obligations: Form 8379
- Overpayment computed on Form 4720, Part III, line 4: Form 4720, but an abatement of the tax reported on Form 4720 does go on Form 843
Form 843 line by line
| Line | What goes there |
|---|---|
| Checkbox at top | The one box that gives your reason for filing. Check only one. Use Other (specify) and write your reason if none of the listed reasons fit. |
| Name and TIN | Your name and SSN, ITIN, or EIN, plus your spouse's name and SSN if the claim relates to a joint return. |
| 1 | The tax period you are claiming for, beginning and ending dates. For a branded prescription drug fee, enter the fee year on the beginning date line. |
| 2 | The dollar amount you are asking to have refunded or abated. |
| 3 | The date of each payment you want refunded. Attach additional sheets if you need more space. |
| 4 | The type of tax or fee involved: employment, estate, gift, excise, income, fee, or civil penalty. |
| 5 | The type of fee or return your claim relates to. Box i labeled 1040 covers other individual returns such as 1040-SR, 1040-NR, or 1040 (sp). |
| 6 | The Internal Revenue Code section the penalty is based on. You can generally find it on the Notice of Assessment the IRS sent you. |
| 7 | Your reason: IRS errors or delays, erroneous written advice from the IRS, reasonable cause, or box d if none of those apply. |
| 8 | Your detailed explanation, your computation of the line 2 amount, and any supporting evidence you attach. |
| Signature | Your signature and date. Both spouses sign for a joint return claim. Corporate officers add their title. Fiduciaries sign for an estate or trust. |
| Identity Protection PIN | The IP PIN the IRS sent you, if you got one. There is a separate space for your spouse's IP PIN. |
| Paid Preparer Use Only | A paid preparer's name, signature, date, PTIN, firm name, firm EIN, address, and phone. Someone who prepares it without charge should not sign. |
Penalties and withholding
20%
The section 6676 penalty for an erroneous refund claim, assessed on the amount found excessive
Source: IRS, Form 843 (Rev. Dec 2024) and Instructions for Form 843, Claim for Refund and Request for Abatement. This page explains the form in plain English. It is not tax advice.