How to File a Tax Court Petition | Kathryn Meyer Law PC

You start a U.S. Tax Court case by filing a petition, either electronically through the court's DAWSON system (which must receive it by 11:59 p.m. Eastern time on the last day) or on paper by mail or hand delivery to the court in Washington, D.C. With it you file a copy of the IRS notice, a Statement of Taxpayer Identification Number (Form 4) and a Request for Place of Trial (Form 5), and you pay the $60 filing fee or ask the court to waive it.

The deadline comes from the IRS notice, usually 90 days for a notice of deficiency, and the court says it cannot extend it. Filing correctly matters too, because any issue left out of the petition is treated as conceded. Tax Court cases are the core of Kathryn Meyer's tax litigation practice.

How filing works, step by step

The Tax Court's "Starting a Case" guidance describes the process for both electronic and paper filers.

Find the last day to file. The IRS notice usually states the number of days and often the last date. For a notice of deficiency it is 90 days from mailing, or 150 days if the notice is addressed to a person outside the United States (IRC 6213(a)); for a Collection Due Process determination it is 30 days.
Prepare the petition. In DAWSON you can answer questions and let the system generate the petition, upload the court's standard form (T.C. Form 2), or upload your own petition that meets the Tax Court Rules.
Prepare the supporting papers. A redacted copy of the IRS notice, Form 4 with your Social Security or employer number, Form 5 naming the city where you want trial (see where your Tax Court trial will be held), and, for a corporation, partnership or LLC, a Corporate Disclosure Statement (Form 6).
File once. Electronically, DAWSON walks you through seven steps and assigns a docket number when you submit; on paper, you mail or hand deliver the originals. The court tells filers not to file both ways.
Pay the $60 fee online through Pay.gov or by check or money order payable to "Clerk, United States Tax Court," or file an Application for Waiver of Filing Fee.
Watch for the court's notice. Paper filers receive a notice of receipt with the docket number; a docket number ending in "S" means the case is proceeding as a small tax case.

The court does not accept petitions by fax or email. Paper petitions go to the United States Tax Court, 400 Second Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20217, and may be hand delivered between 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Eastern time.

What goes in the petition?

Tax Court Rule 34(b) lists what a petition in a deficiency case must contain. In summary:

Item	What the rule requires
Who you are	Your name and state of legal residence (for a business, its principal place of business), mailing address, and the IRS office where the return was filed
The notice	The date of the notice and the city and state of the IRS office that issued it, with a copy attached
The amounts	The deficiency, the kind of tax, the years involved, and the approximate amount in dispute if you contest only part
Assignments of error	In separately lettered paragraphs, each error you say the IRS made; "Any issue not raised in the assignments of error will be deemed conceded"
Facts	In separately lettered paragraphs, the facts supporting each error
Relief	What you are asking the court to do
Signature	Signature, mailing address, email address and phone number of each petitioner or counsel, with counsel's Tax Court bar number

The court's own guidance gives the practical version: list each IRS error separately with a letter or number, say briefly why you disagree, and then state the facts in the same order. Do not attach tax returns, receipts or other evidence to the petition; evidence comes later. Married couples who received a joint notice must each sign, and each spouse who wants to contest the notice must satisfy the rule.

How do you make sure it counts as on time?

The court treats a petition as timely if it is received, or mailed, within the time the Internal Revenue Code allows. A petition that arrives in an envelope with a legible U.S. Postal Service postmark inside the period is generally treated as timely under IRC 7502. The court recommends certified or registered mail with a postmarked receipt, or a designated private delivery service, and warns that a private meter stamp or a postmark from an online postage service will not prove the mailing date.

If the last day is a Saturday, Sunday or legal holiday in the District of Columbia, you have until the next business day. Electronic filings are logged in Eastern time. The federal courts of appeals disagree about whether a late petition can ever be excused (as of October 2026, four circuits allow equitable tolling in the right case and the First Circuit does not), so treat the printed last day as final. How the 90 days are counted from the notice itself is set out in what to do when you receive a notice of deficiency.

What happens after you file?

Collection on the disputed years generally stops. While a timely petition is pending, the IRS may not assess or levy the deficiency (IRC 6213(a)). The court's guidance says that if the IRS tries to collect the petitioned years anyway, you may consider a Motion to Restrain Assessment and Collection.
The IRS answers. Under Rule 36(a), the Commissioner has 60 days from service of the petition to file an answer, or 45 days to file a motion; any material allegation the answer does not admit or deny is deemed admitted (Rule 36(c)).
Settlement with Appeals is usually possible. IRS Publication 5 says that if you did not take the case to Appeals before filing, you will normally have an opportunity to try to settle with Appeals while you wait for trial; the conference process is described in what happens at an IRS Appeals conference.
Interest keeps running. You do not have to pay the disputed tax while the case is pending, but interest runs on any amount ultimately owed, and the court notes you may pay to stop it.
Your place of trial stands until changed. A Motion to Change Place of Trial is needed later, and the court may deny one filed after the trial notice without good reason (Rule 140(b)).

The papers that feed each part of the petition are listed in what to bring to a first meeting about a Tax Court case.

What changes the answer

Which notice you received. Rule 13 ties the court's jurisdiction to a notice of deficiency in most cases; lien and levy cases follow Rule 331, and innocent spouse cases follow Rule 321, each with its own petition contents.
Small or regular procedure. You choose on the petition, and the court files the case as a regular case if you do not check a box; the trade-offs are in small tax case or regular case.
An innocent spouse claim with no answer. The court says you may petition if six months have passed since you filed the claim and the IRS has issued no determination; the claim itself is explained in innocent spouse relief. The court stage is covered in whether you can take an innocent spouse denial to the Tax Court.
A business petitioner. Corporations, partnerships and LLCs file the Corporate Disclosure Statement (Form 6). Under Rule 24(b), a corporation may appear through an authorized officer if it does not appear through counsel admitted to practice before the court. Kathryn Meyer's page on tax planning for law firms notes that Tax Court cases have been dismissed where a state had suspended the entity. The Annual Tax Health Checkup includes an entity status check with your state.
Inability to pay the fee. The court may waive the $60 fee if you establish an inability to pay on its application, signed under penalty of perjury; if the waiver is denied and the fee is not paid, the case may be dismissed.
A notice you thought was settled. The court advises filing anyway if the IRS issued a notice of deficiency or determination after what you believed was an agreement, because the notice suggests the IRS is proceeding without one.

For example: a 90-day letter for two years

For example, imagine a consultant who receives a notice of deficiency dated March 3 covering two tax years, after an audit and a 30-day letter he did not answer. He counts 90 days from the mailing date and confirms the last date printed on the notice. He creates a DAWSON account, uploads a petition with lettered assignments of error for each adjustment he disputes (unreported income from one client, a disallowed home office, and the accuracy-related penalty), and adds the facts for each in the same order. He blacks out his Social Security number on a copy of the notice and uploads it, puts the number only on Form 4, chooses Washington, D.C. on Form 5, and pays the $60 fee through Pay.gov. Because the amount in dispute is under $50,000 for each year, he considers the small case option before submitting. If he had forgotten to dispute the penalty, Rule 34 would treat that issue as conceded unless the court later allowed an amended petition. This is a hypothetical, not a real case.

Common mistakes when filing a Tax Court petition

Waiting for a reply from the IRS. Calls and letters to the IRS do not stop the clock, and the court cannot extend it; if it has already run, see what to do if you missed the 90-day Tax Court deadline.
Leaving an issue out. Any error not assigned in the petition is deemed conceded under Rule 34(b).
Exposing personal numbers. Social Security and account numbers belong only on Form 4; the rest of the file is public, though Rule 27(h) allows a redacted substitute within 60 days.
Attaching evidence. The court asks for only the notice with the petition, not returns or receipts.
Relying on a postage meter. Only a USPS postmark, a certified or registered receipt, or a designated private delivery service receipt proves timely mailing.
Filing twice. Filing both electronically and on paper creates duplicate records.

What to do this week

Write down the date on the notice and the last day to file printed on it, and set reminders well before it.
List every adjustment and penalty in the notice and mark each one you dispute.
Redact a copy of the notice and complete Forms 4 and 5.
Decide between small and regular procedure, and choose a place of trial.
File through DAWSON or by a mailing method that proves the date, and keep the confirmation or receipt.

Frequently asked questions

Can you file a Tax Court petition yourself?

Yes. Individuals may file and present a case without a representative, though they must follow the court's rules and orders. A representative must be admitted to practice before the Tax Court, which is separate from the IRS authorization described in how a tax attorney represents you before the IRS.

Do you have to pay the tax before filing?

No. That is the Tax Court's defining feature. Paying first and suing for a refund is a different route with its own deadlines; see how long you have to claim a tax refund.

Can you petition from a CP2000 or a 30-day letter?

No. Those letters propose changes but do not give the court jurisdiction; only the later notice of deficiency does. The first is explained in whether a CP2000 notice is an audit. The second is covered in what to do with an IRS 30-day letter.

Can you ask for a remote trial?

Yes. The court accepts a Motion to Proceed Remotely from the time the petition is filed until 31 days before the first day of the trial session, and the judge decides whether to grant it.

What if you forget to say something in the petition?

You may be able to file an amended petition, which in some cases requires asking the court's permission by motion.

Can a Collection Due Process determination be petitioned the same way?

Yes, through the same filing system, but within 30 days of the determination; the hearing that produces it is covered in what a Collection Due Process hearing is.

Filing with care inside the 90 days

A petition is short, but it fixes the issues the court will hear and the deadline for filing it cannot be extended. Kathryn Meyer spent more than two decades in the IRS Office of Chief Counsel, the office that defends the IRS in the Tax Court, and now represents taxpayers there. If you hold a notice of deficiency, contact the firm or call (571) 560-8674 well before the last day.

Sources

Back Home