Skip to main content

Newsroom

Tax Tips: Moving During Tax Season

Are you moving homes sometime in the near future? You should know that it's important to update government agencies of any address changes for a few different reasons. By failing to report an address change, you could prevent the arrival of any government check or letter. This is especially important during tax filing season. If you do not inform agencies of an address change and the IRS is unable to find you, your tax refund may not arrive.

There are two necessary steps you should take to ensure that your tax return and other government documents, as well as any other mail you receive, will be delivered to your new address:

First, you need to file a change of address form with the United States Postal Service.
You can get a form from your local USPS, fill out the form and mail it in, or you can file a change of address online for a low cost of only $1. If you choose to mail in the form, be sure to do this several days, if not weeks in advance, as it may take a longer to process. It is recommended that you inform USPS of any address changes at least 2-3 weeks prior to moving.

Second, be sure to confirm that the IRS knows of your address change.
If you have filed a change of address with USPS, it is automatically entered into the National Change of Address (NCOA) database. The IRS is typically able to access any changes of address through the NCOA database, but it is not guaranteed. It is always best to double check that the IRS has your new address on file and notify them immediately to be certain that they are aware of your address change. Even if you notify USPS, not all post offices forward government checks, so always notify both USPS and the IRS directly of any change of address.

Be sure to like and follow our Facebook pages and check back here for more blog posts to stay updated during tax season.

https://www.facebook.com/LowIncomeTaxpayerClinic/
https://www.facebook.com/arlegalaid/

Key words: address change, IRS, tax, Legal Aid, tax return

Thank you to our generous sponsors:

Close Menu